Interpretation of Abu Bakr's differential granting of a gift to Aisha versus the Prophet's command to Nu'man ibn Bashir's father.

Primary text

The differentiating grant by Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, does not serve as a counter-argument or evidence against the command of the Prophet, peace be upon him. It is probable that Abu Bakr specified his grant to Aisha due to her need, inability to earn, her special status as the Mother of the Believers (wife of the Messenger of Allah), and other virtues. Another possibility is that he intended to grant similar gifts to his other children later but was prevented by death. The Hadith must be interpreted based on one of these excusable grounds, as applying it to support differential giving in the dispute itself is prohibited, or at the very least, disliked, and Abu Bakr is assumed to avoid disliked actions. The Prophet's statement, "Have others bear witness to this," is not interpreted as a direct command, as its minimum implication is recommendation or desirability, a point where there is no dispute regarding its dislikefulness. To hold that the Prophet ordered confirmation while simultaneously ordering retraction and naming the act unjust would lead to contradiction within the Prophet's utterances.