Question
There is a hadith which mentioned Ummu Sofian complained to the prophet s.a.w. that Abu Sofian is a stingy man & did not give what was due to her & asked whether she could take part of his property to cover her needs & the Prophet (pbuh) permitted it.
Answer
According to the narration reported in Al-Mustadrak, the referred incident took place when Hind – the wife of Abu Sufian – came to make her pledge of accepting Islam in the presence of the Prophet (pbuh). It is reported that during the pledge, when the Prophet (pbuh) directed Hind to make a pledge that she would not steal anything, she refused to do so saying that she would pinch Abu Sufian’s money without his knowledge. At this, the Prophet (pbuh) suspended the pledge and called for Abu Sufian. When Abu Sufian was informed about the situation, he consented to allow Hind’s action. The same incident has also been reported by Ibn Katheer in his commentary, with minor variations, as follows:
وقال لعمر قل لهن ولا يسرقن قالت هند والله إني لأصيب من أبي سفيان الهنات ما أدري أيحلهن لي أم لا قال أبو سفيان ما أصبت من شيء مضى أو قد بقي فهو لك حلال فضحك رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم (ابن كثير ج 4، ص 355)
And the Prophet (pbuh) directed Omar (ra) to tell the women [who were present] that they shall not steal. At this, Hind said ‘I pinch various things from Abu Sufian, I do not know if these are allowed for me or not’. Abu Sufian said: ‘Whatever you have taken and have used up or even that which remains with you, I declare that to be Halaal for you’. The Prophet (pbuh) laughed at this.
It should be clear from the referred narration that Abu Sufian himself forgave his wife for her actions.
I hope this helps.
Regards,
Moiz Amjad
February 23, 2003