Their feet." He said: "They should let it down a handspan, and not increase beyond that." (1)

This is a good and authentic hadith.

1829 - Ishaq ibn Mansur narrated to us, saying: 'Affan informed us, saying: Hammad ibn Salama narrated to us, from 'Ali ibn Zayd, from Umm al-Hasan, that Umm Salama narrated to them: that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, measured out for Fatima a handspan of her waist-wrapper (2).

Some of them narrated it from Hammad ibn Salama, from 'Ali ibn Zayd, from—

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(1) Its chain is authentic. It was recorded by 'Abd al-Razzaq (19984), al-Nasa'i 8/209, and the second part of the hadith was narrated from Umm Salama herself from her own hadith with an authentic chain, recorded by Abu Dawud (4117) and (4118), Ibn Majah (3580), and al-Nasa'i 8/209. It is in the Musnad of Ahmad (26511). See the discussion on the discrepancy in its chain there.

(2) Its chain is weak, due to the weakness of 'Ali ibn Zayd — that is, Ibn Jud'an. It is in the Musnad of Ahmad (26554).

Al-Sindi said in his gloss on the Musnad: Her saying "he measured out for Fatima a handspan" — from shabara al-thawba, like daraba and nasara.

Al-Mubarakfuri said in his commentary Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi 5/408: "Shabara" — from tashbir... He quoted from al-Qamus, the text of which is: "Al-Nitaq, like kitab: a strip of cloth that a woman wears, tying it around her waist, then letting the upper part hang down over the lower part to the ground, while the lower part drags on the ground; it has no belt-loop, no opening, and no legs." Then he said: The meaning is that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, determined for Fatima, may God be pleased with her, that she should let down the measure of a handspan of her waist-wrapper. Al-Nawawi said: They are unanimous on the permissibility of dragging [the garment] for women.