The slander affair — the exoneration of Aisha read from the pulpit

ذكر عائشة وأصحاب الإفك — تلاوة براءتها على المنبر

Waqidi narrates the whole slander affair: the accusation against Aisha, the revelation of her exoneration, and the Prophet ﷺ ascending the pulpit in joy to recite it. The same chapter reports Zaynab bint Jahsh (may God be pleased with her)'s exoneration and the descent of the hijab verse, and Umm Salama's remark that she was the first to know of Aisha's innocence.

Depth

At a glance

«فخرج رسول الله إلى الناس مسرورا فصعد على المنبر فحمد الله وأثنى عليه بما هو أهله، ثم تلا عليهم بما نزل عليه في براءة عائشة»

A verbatim excerpt of the text, forty words at most; the full text is in the edition cited under sources

Connections

Explore the connections

Mentions: Aisha bint Abi Bakr· Umm Salama (Hind bint Abi Umayya)· Zaynab bint Jahsh· Muhammad· Banu Hashim

People and things also explored

Mecca· Muhammad· Ahl al-Bayt· Battle of the Trench — the Prophet's rotation among his wives· Medina· The Hijra· Mothers of the Believers· Muwatta 147

Sources

Kitab al-Maghazi by al-Waqidi — al-Maktaba al-Shamila digital text of the Marsden Jones edition (Oxford 1966)

Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The slander affair — the exoneration of Aisha read from the pulpit”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/passage/waqidi-maghazi-ifk/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-11.

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Mecca

The most sacred city of Islam, in the Hejaz about 72 km inland from Jeddah, where the Prophet Muhammad was born, the Kaaba stands and the annual Hajj is held. The Encyclopaedia of Islam presents it as a trading centre dominated by Quraysh before Islam, then a city ruled by Umayyads, Abbasids, sharifs and Ottomans until Abd al-Aziz Al Saud took it in 1924. Ibn Battuta describes the Sacred Mosque in his day, counting its ten gates, domes and porticoes, measuring the distance between al-Safa and al-Marwa in steps, and noting that Dar al-Nadwa was made a congregational mosque attached to the haram. The Arabic Papyrology Database preserves two paper documents sent from Mecca to business friends in Fustat, a business letter about the pilgrimage dated 901-1000 CE and a private greeting from the pilgrimage dated 1101-1200 CE