‘Abd Allaah bin Mas’ud said “Fosterage is not valid except by what strengthens love and grows flesh.” Abu Musa said “Do not ask us so long as this learned man is among us”

The aforesaid tradition has also been narrated by Ibn Mas’ud through a different chain of narrators and to the same effect from the Prophet (ﷺ). This version has the words anshaz al-‘azma meaning which nourishes bones and makes them sturdy and vigorous.

A’ishah wife of the Prophet(ﷺ) and Umm Salamah said “Abu Hudaifah bin ‘Utbah bin Rabi’ah bin ‘Abd Shams adopted Salim as his son and married him to his niece Hind, daughter of Al Walid bin ‘Utbah bin Rabi’ah. He (Salim) was the freed slave of a woman from the Ansar (the Helpers) as the Apostle of Allaah(ﷺ) adopted Zaid as his son. In pre Islamic days when anyone adopted a man as his son, the people called him by his name and he was given a share from his inheritance. Allaah, the Exalted, revealed about this matter “Call them by (the name of) their fathers, that is juster in the sight of Allaah. And if ye know not their fathers, then (they are) your brethren in the faith and your clients. They were then called by their names of their fathers. A man, whose father was not known, remained under the protection of someone and considered brother in faith. Sahlah daughter of Suhail bin Amr Al Quraishi then came and said Apostle of Allaah(ﷺ), we used to consider Salim(our) son. He dwelled with me and Abu Hudhaifah in the same house, and he saw me in the short clothes, but Allaah the Exalted, has revealed about them what you know, then what is your opinion about him? The Prophet (ﷺ) said give him your breast feed. She gave him five breast feeds. He then became like her foster son. Hence, A’ishah(may Allaah be pleased with her) used to ask the daughters of her sisters and the daughters of her brethren to give him breast feed five times, whom A’ishah wanted to see and who wanted to visit her. Though he might be of age; he then visited her. But Umm Salamah and all other wives of the Prophet (ﷺ) refused to allow anyone to visit them on the basis of such breast feeding unless one was given breast feed during infancy. They told A’ishah by Allaah we do not know whether that was a special concession granted by the Prophet (ﷺ) to Salim exclusive of the people.

A’ishah said “In what was sent down in the Qu’ran ten suckling’s made marriage unlawful, but they were abrogated by five known ones and when the Prophet (ﷺ) dies, these words were among what was recited in the Qur’an.”