Explanation of the chapter on the one who cursed his slave and then freed him, and beneath it is the hadith of 'A'ishah that Abu Bakr cursed some of his slaves, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Are the cursers and the sincere friends?"

The Shaykh : Then the author (may Allah have mercy on him) follows with a chapter in which he clarifies what a sincere friend does when his tongue slips and he curses someone who is not worthy of being cursed. The author narrates in this chapter, "The one who cursed his slave and then freed him," with a sound chain from 'A'ishah: that Abu Bakr cursed some of his slaves, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said . And in the narration of others, such as al-Bayhaqi in *Shu'ab al-Iman*, with a clearer and more explicit wording, he said , meaning these are two things that do not coexist, i.e., are you a sincere friend and you curse? So what did Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) do? This indicates the strength of his faith and the truth of his sincerity. So Abu Bakr freed some of his slaves on that day as expiation for cursing one of his slaves without right. After that, Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) completed his path in repentance, as it comes at the end of this hadith: "Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came and said: I will not do it again." So he did not merely repent between himself and his Lord by freeing some of his slaves, but he also, after doing that, hastened to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), showing him his regret for what he had done and his resolve not to repeat it.