A Narrative regarding the Prophet’s Directive to Kill an Apostate Woman

Subject Matter of the Narrative:

According to Bayhaqiy’s narrative no. 16643 it is reported[1]:

روي أن امرأة يقال لها أم مروان ارتدت عن الإسلام فأمر النبي أن يعرض عليها الإسلام فإن رجعت وإلا قتلت.

It is  narrated that a woman called Umm Marwan left Islam and returned to her previous beliefs. The Prophet (pbuh) directed that she should be asked to accept Islam and in case [she refuses and] returns to her previous beliefs, she should be killed.

Comment on the Narrative

This narrative have been narrated with four different chains of narrators by Bayhaqiy and by an additional chain by Daarqutniy. However, of four different chains reported by Bayhaqiy, two are considered below par in strength by Bayhaqiy himself. Under one of the chains, Bayhaqiy writes:

في هذا الإسناد بعض من يجهل (سنن البيهقي، رقم الحديث 16642)

In this chain is one (or a few) narrator who is not known.

Under the other chain, he writes:

وروي من وجه آخر ضعيف عن الزهري عن عروة عن عائشة (سنن البيهقي، رقم الحديث 16644)

And this [narrative] has also been reported through another weak chain: Zuhriy from `Urwah from `Ayeshah.

As for the third chain of Bayhaqiy, it includes Ma`mar ibn Bakkar Al-Sa`diy (معمر بن بكار السعدي), about whom the experts of the field have varying opinions. Thus, even though Ibn Abi Hatim considers him to be reliable, `Uqailiy has included him in his list of weak narrators and writes:

معمر بن بكار السعدي في حديثه وهم ولا يتابع على أكثره من حديثه

In the narratives of Ma`mar ibn Bakkar there is doubt. Most of his narratives are not considered agreeable.

The narrative has also been reported in Daarqutniy through three different chains. One of these chains is through Zuhriy from `Urwah from `Ayeshah, which Bayhaqiy has declared to be weak in the foregoing citation; while another chain consists of Ma`mar ibn Bakkar who is not considered to be reliable by many of the experts. As for the third chain through which Daarqutniy has reported this narrative, it consists of Ahmad ibn Yahya ibn Zukayr, about whom Daarqutniy himself is reported to have said:

قال الدارقطني في الغرائب ليس بشيء في الحديث (لسان الميزان، ج1، ص 323)

Darqutniy has said in Al-Gharaib, he is nothing in narrating Hadith.

Conclusion

In view of the fact that there is not a single chain which can be termed as completely reliable, the contents of this narrative cannot be safely ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh).

(This write-up is prepared by the Hadith Cell of Javed Ahmad Ghamidi)

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