That he was invoking against Safwan … and the others: they were the chiefs of the idolaters on the Day of Uhud. Later Allah accepted their repentance; they embraced Islam, and their submission was exemplary.

Summary meaning of the hadith: ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him) relates that he heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ supplicating in the prayer against certain named unbelievers who had harmed him on the Day of Uhud. Allah then reproved him with the verse, “You have no share in the matter” (Āl ʿImrān 3:128). Afterwards Allah turned to them in mercy, and they believed in Allah and His Messenger.

Relevance of the hadith to the chapter: It shows that the Prophet ﷺ could not ward off the harm of the idolaters from himself or from his Companions; instead he sought refuge with his Lord, the All-Powerful, the Sovereign. This exposes the falsehood of the beliefs held by grave-worshippers regarding the saints and the righteous.

Lessons derived from the hadith:
1- The futility of relying on saints and righteous people to fulfill needs or remove hardships.
2- The permissibility of supplicating against the polytheists while in prayer.
3- Evidence that naming the person for or against whom one supplicates does not invalidate the prayer.
4- A clear indication that the imam may combine the tasmiʿ (saying “Allah hears those who praise Him”) with the taḥmīd (“Our Lord, to You belongs all praise”).