So Mujazziz al-Mudlijī, the qāʾif (expert in physiognomy and footprint analysis), happened to pass by the two of them while their heads were wrapped in a blanket and only their feet were showing. On noticing the likeness between the feet he said, “Some of these feet belong to the others.” The Prophet ﷺ heard the physiognomist’s statement and was greatly delighted by it. He entered upon ʿĀʾishah with the lines of his face gleaming, filled with joy and reassurance about the soundness of Usāmah’s lineage and eager to silence those who wag their tongues against people’s honour without knowledge.
Lessons Drawn from the Ḥadith
1- Relying on the judgment of qāʾifs in matters of lineage is valid when no stronger proof—such as the marital bed—exists. This is the position of the three Imams, inferred from the Prophet’s joy in this incident, for he would only rejoice over what is true. Abū Ḥanīfah dissented, rejecting qiyāfah on the grounds that this report did not involve a disputed attribution of lineage.
2- One qualified qāʾif is sufficient, but the scholars stipulate that he must be upright and proven accurate. Indeed, no report is accepted and no verdict enforced except from one who possesses these two qualities.
3- The Lawgiver’s solicitude for preserving sound lineage and attaching every child to his proper roots.
4- Rejoicing at glad tidings, announcing them, and spreading them—especially news that removes suspicion or malicious talk.
5- Qiyāfah is not confined to any particular tribe; what matters is that the physiognomist meets the conditions of accuracy.
6- Some jurists thought a qāʾif could attribute a child to more than one father, whereas modern medicine has confirmed that the sperm that effects fertilization cannot come from two different men.
The Third Ḥadith
Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Withdrawal (ʿazl) was mentioned to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and he said, ‘Why would any of you do that?’—he did not say, ‘Let none of you do that’—for ‘there is no soul created except that Allah is its Creator.’”
Lexical Notes
• ʿazl: withdrawing the male organ from the vagina when ejaculation is imminent so that the semen is released outside.
• “Why would any of you do that?”: an interrogative form expressing censure.
Overall Meaning
Coitus interruptus was mentioned in the presence of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and some men practised it with their wives and female slaves. The Prophet ﷺ asked—in a tone of reproach—why they did so, and then informed them