Kindness to Parents — report 18

18. Al-Washsha’ has narrated from Ahmad ibn ‘Ai’z from abu Khadijah from Abu ‘Abdillah عليه السلام who has said the following: “Once a man came to the Holy Prophet and said, ‘I had a daughter and I brought her up until she became an adult. I then dressed her up in beautiful clothes, took her to the well and threw her therein to her death and the last thing I heard from her was; O father! What is the expiation for it?’ The Messenger of Allah asked, ‘Do you have a living mother?’ He said, ‘No, I do not.’ The Messenger of Allah asked, ‘Do you have a living maternal aunt?’ He said, ‘Yes, I do.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Be kind to her; she is like a mother, this will serve as expiation for what you have done.’ Abu Khadijah has said, ‘I asked Abu ‘Abdillah عليه السلام ‘When was this?’ The Imam said, ‘It was in the time of Jahiliyah (age of darkness). They would kill the girls for fear of being taken captive and giving birth to other people.’”