Shamâ´il al-Muhammadiyyah[Part 18] - the Prophet's White Hair

§4/40 Muhammad bin `Umar bin al-Walîd al-Kindî al-Kûfî narrated to us; Yahyâ bin Adam informed us; on the authority of Sharîk; on the authority of `Ubaydullâh bin `Umar; on the authority of Nâfi`; on the authority of `Abdullâh bin `Umar (RAA) who said,

The white hairs of the Messenger of Allâh (SAW) only came to about twenty. [1]

"The white hairs of the Messenger of Allâh (SAW) only came to about twenty," (MS) Ishâq bin Rahawayh, ibn Hibbân and al-Bayhaqî record on the authority of ibn `Umar, 'The white hairs of the Messenger of Allâh (SAW) only came to about twenty, all towards the front.'[2]


Having white hairs is not a defect in a person. Abû Dâwûd records on the authority of ibn `Umar that the Prophet (SAW) said, "Do not pluck your white hairs for they are the light of Islâm. There is no Muslim who attains a white hair while in Islâm except that it will be a light for him on the Day of Judgment." at-Tirmidhî and an-Nasâ´î record on the authority of Ka`b ibn Murrah that the Prophet (SAW) said, "Whoever attains a white hair while in Islâm, it will be a light for him on the Day of Judgment." al-Bayhaqî records on the authority of ibn `Umar that the Prophet (SAW) said, "White hairs are the light of a believer. There is no person who attains a white hair while in Islâm except that he will acquire a good deed for each white hair, and be raised one level."[3,4]


§5/41 Abû Kurayb Muhammad bin al-`Alâ´ narrated to us; Mu`âwiyah bin Hishâm informed us; on the authority of Shaybân; on the authority of Abû Ishâq; on the authority of `Ikrimah; on the authority of ibn `Abbâs (RAA) who said,

Abû Bakr said to the Messenger of Allâh (SAW), 'Messenger of Allâh, your hair has gone white!' He replied, "It was [Sûrah's] Hûd, al-Wâqi`ah, al-Mursalât, `Amma Yatasâ´lûn, and Idha ash-Shamsu Kuwwirat that made this happen!" [5]

"Abû Bakr said to the Messenger of Allâh (SAW), 'Messenger of Allâh, your hair has gone white!'" (Q) i.e. your hair has gone white and the resultant effects have appeared on your body such as frailty and the likes. Ibn Sa`d has the wording, '…your hair has fast gone white!' "He replied, 'It was [Sûrah's] Hûd, al-Wâqi`ah, al-Mursalât, `Amma Yatasâ´alûn, and Idha ash-Shamsu Kuwwirat that made this happen!'" (M) at-Ţabarânî adds in his version, "al-Hâqqâh." Ibn Mardawayh adds in his version, "Hal atâka hadîthu-l-ghâsghiyah." Ibn Sa`d adds in his version, "al-Qâri`ah and Sa´ala Sâ´ilun," yet another version of his has, "Iqtarabati-s-Sâ`ah." (Q) and the likes of these chapters which talk about the affairs of the Hereafter and their horrors. at-Tûrabashtî said, 'Meaning that my concern for what they contain with regards mention of the horrors of the Hereafter, and the calamities that struck the previous nations, and my subsequent fear for my nation, has greatly affected me to the point that I attained white hairs before my time.' (M) And add to this the command that is contained in Hûd to remain firm and steadfast (istiqâmah) which is something truly difficult. However because of the greatness of the Prophet's heart and his degree of certainty, his concern did not overcome him completely but rather slightly so, such that only a few of his hairs turned white. As such his beauty and splendour remained. Sûrah Hûd has been mentioned first because it contains the command to remain firm and steadfast which is from the loftiest of the stations: none is able to reach its peak unless he be one whom Allâh has graced. Some have objected to this reasoning stating that the command to be steadfast and firm has also been mentioned in ash-Shûrâ so why just mention Hûd? This is answered by stating that the order in Hûd came first and moreover the order in ash-Shûrâ concerns the Prophet (SAW) alone whereas the order in Hûd concerns the Prophet (SAW) and his nation.


§6/42 Sufyân bin Wakî` narrated to us; Muhammad bin Bishr informed us; on the authority of `Alî bin Sâlih; on the authority of Abû Ishâq; on the authority of Abû Juhayfah (RA) that,

The people said, 'Messenger of Allâh, your hair has gone white!' He replied, "It was [Sûrah] Hûd and its sisters that did this!"[6]

§7/43 `Alî bin Hujr narrated to us; Shu`ayb bin Safwân informed us; on the authority of al-Malik bin `Umayr; Iyâd bin Laqîţ al-`Ijlî; on the authority of Abû Rimthah at-Taymî (RA) – Taym ar-Rabâb – who said,

I came to the Messenger of Allâh with my son. He said, 'I was shown him (SAW),' and I immediately said, "This is the Prophet of Allâh (SAW)."' He was wearing two green garments and whiteness had appeared in his hair, it was reddish in colour. [7]

"I came to the Messenger of Allâh with my son. He," (Q) the son, "said, 'I was shown him (SAW),' and I immediately" (Q) without pausing or needing to think, "said, 'This is the Prophet of Allâh (SAW),'" (Q) knowing this with certainty through the light of his beauty, manifest perfection, (M) great dignity, and light of Prophethood (Q) such that I required no further proof. "He was wearing two green garments," (Q) i.e. completely green and these are the generality of the garments of Paradise as shown in some reports. It is also possible that these garments had lines of green in them and were not all green as some versions of the hadîth mention that they were cloaks (burdah), and these are mostly streaked. (M) It is said that this narration proves that it is Sunnah to wear green garments but in fact all it proves is the permissibility of this. A discussion on green garments follows later. "and whiteness had appeared in his hair, it was reddish in colour," (Q) i.e. the tips of his white hairs were red, this is because the first stages of white hair is accompanied by redness in the tips. It is also possible that the narration means that the hair was white but it was reddish in colour due to dye. A detailed discussion concerning dyeing follows inshâAllâh.


§8/44 Ahmad bin Manî` narrated to us; Surayj bin an-Nu`mân narrated to us; Hammâd bin Salamah narrated to us; on the authority of Simâk bin Harb who said, Jâbir bin Samurah was asked, 'Were there any white hairs on the head of the Messenger of Allâh (SAW)?' He replied, 'There were no white hairs on his head save a few where the hair parted, when he oiled them, they were concealed.'[8]

______________________________________________

1. Ibn Mâjah [Libâs] and Ahmad [#]
2. Fath [6/707]
3. Refer also to al-Albânî, Sahîh at-Targhîb [#2091-2096]
4. Sharh Mawâhib al-Laduniyyah [5/498-499]
5. Tirmidhî [Tafsîr]
6. at-Ţabarânî.
7. Abû Dâwùd [Tarajjul] and an-Nasâ´î [az-Zîna]
8. Refer to fn. #8v