The Book of Marriage, Breastfeeding, Divorce, Mutual Oath-Swearing, and Manumission-05a
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The reciter: Ibn Abi 'Umar narrated to us, saying: Marwan narrated to us from Yazid, meaning Ibn Kaysan, from Abu Hazim, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 1436c.
The Shaykh : His saying (peace and blessings be upon him) is an oath. Is it an oath by one of the names of Allah or by one of His attributes?
The students: By one of His attributes.
The Shaykh : It is one of His attributes, because "He" (al-dhi) is a relative pronoun that has no meaning except through its relative clause. The relative clause here is "my soul is in His hand," which is a subject and a predicate. It is an acknowledgment that a person's soul is in the hand of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So, does the meaning of "By Him in whose hand is my soul" imply that the human soul is in the hand of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), such that if He wills, He gives it life, and if He wills, He takes it away, as in His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He)[Az-Zumar 39:42]? Or does the meaning of "By Him in whose hand is my soul" include this and more, meaning that even the direction of a person and the inclination of a person are in the hand of Allah (Mighty and Majestic)? The answer is that it includes both this and that. Our souls are in the hand of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) in terms of management and creation, as He wills.
By Him in Whose Hand is my life, when a man calls his wife to his bed, and she does not respond, the One Who is in the heaven is displeased with her until he (her husband) is pleased with her.
والذي نفسي بيده ما من رجل يدعو امرأته إلى فراشها فتأبى عليه إلا كان الذي في السماء ساخطا عليها حتى يرضى عنهاThe Shaykh : His saying (peace and blessings be upon him)
By Myself in My Hand
والذي نفسي بيدهThe students: By one of His attributes.
The Shaykh : It is one of His attributes, because "He" (al-dhi) is a relative pronoun that has no meaning except through its relative clause. The relative clause here is "my soul is in His hand," which is a subject and a predicate. It is an acknowledgment that a person's soul is in the hand of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So, does the meaning of "By Him in whose hand is my soul" imply that the human soul is in the hand of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), such that if He wills, He gives it life, and if He wills, He takes it away, as in His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He)