Caution: Translations of Quran and Ḥadīth may lead to possible misapplications and misinterpretations. This site is intended for students of sacred knowledge that are proficient in comprehending classical Arabic and have a strong foundation in Islamic sciences. Also note that religious injunctions rely on several aspects beyond what one may glean through reading individual aḥādīth.
muslim:2327dAbū Kurayb > Abū Usāmah > Hishām from his father > ʿĀʾishah

Never did Messenger of Allah ﷺ make a choice between two things but adopting the easier one as compared to the difficult one, but his choice for the easier one was only in case it did not involve any sin, but if it involved sin he was the one who was the farthest from it amongst the people.  

مسلم:٢٣٢٧dحَدَّثَنَا أَبُو كُرَيْبٍ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو أُسَامَةَ عَنْ هِشَامٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ

مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ أَحَدُهُمَا أَيْسَرُ مِنَ الآخَرِ إِلاَّ اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِنْ كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ  


See similar narrations below:

Collected by Bukhārī, Muslim, Abū Dāwūd, Aḥmad, Suyūṭī
bukhari:3560ʿAbdullāh b. Yūsuf > Mālik > Ibn Shihāb > ʿUrwah b. al-Zubayr > ʿĀʾishah

Whenever Messenger of Allah ﷺ was given the choice of one of two matters, he would choose the easier of the two, as long as it was not sinful to do so, but if it was sinful to do so, he would not approach it. Messenger of Allah ﷺ never took revenge (over anybody) for his own sake but (he did) only when Allah's Legal Bindings were outraged in which case he would take revenge for Allah's Sake.  

البخاري:٣٥٦٠حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ يُوسُفَ أَخْبَرَنَا مَالِكٌ عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ عَنْ عُرْوَةَ بْنِ الزُّبَيْرِ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ ؓ

أَنَّهَا قَالَتْ مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ إِلاَّ أَخَذَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِنْ كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ وَمَا انْتَقَمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ لِنَفْسِهِ إِلاَّ أَنْ تُنْتَهَكَ حُرْمَةُ اللَّهِ فَيَنْتَقِمَ لِلَّهِ بِهَا  

muslim:2327a[Chain 1] Qutaybah b. Saʿīd > Mālik b. Anas Fīmā Quriʾ ʿAlayh [Chain 2] Yaḥyá b. Yaḥyá > Mālik > Ibn Shihāb > ʿUrwah b. al-Zubayr

'A'isha, the wife of Allah's Apostle ﷺ, said that whenever he had to choose between two things he adopted the easier one, provided it was nor sin, but if it was any sin he was the one wio was the farthest from it of the people; and Messenger of Allah ﷺ never took revenge from anyone because of his personal grievance, unless what Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, had made inviolable had been violated.  

مسلم:٢٣٢٧aحَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ بْنُ سَعِيدٍ عَنْ مَالِكِ بْنِ أَنَسٍ فِيمَا قُرِئَ عَلَيْهِ ح وَحَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ يَحْيَى قَالَ قَرَأْتُ عَلَى مَالِكٍ عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ عَنْ عُرْوَةَ بْنِ الزُّبَيْرِ

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ زَوْجِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ أَنَّهَا قَالَتْ مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ إِلاَّ أَخَذَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِنْ كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ وَمَا انْتَقَمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ لِنَفْسِهِ إِلاَّ أَنْ تُنْتَهَكَ حُرْمَةُ اللَّهِ ﷻ  

abudawud:4785ʿAbdullāh b. Maslamah > Mālik > Ibn Shihāb > ʿUrwah b. al-Zubayr > ʿĀʾishah

the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was never given his choice between two things without taking the easier(or lesser) of them provided it involved no sin, for if it did, no one kept farther away from it than he. And the Messenger of Allah ﷺ never took revenge on his own behalf for anything unless something Allah had forbidden has been transgressed, in which event he took revenge for it for Allah’s sake.  

أبو داود:٤٧٨٥حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مَسْلَمَةَ عَنْ مَالِكٍ عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ عَنْ عُرْوَةَ بْنِ الزُّبَيْرِ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ ؓ

أَنَّهَا قَالَتْ مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ فِي أَمْرَيْنِ إِلاَّ اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِنْ كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ وَمَا انْتَقَمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ لِنَفْسِهِ إِلاَّ أَنْ تُنْتَهَكَ حُرْمَةُ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى فَيَنْتَقِمَ لِلَّهِ بِهَا  

ahmad:26262Isḥāq > Mālik > al-Zuhrī > ʿUrwah > ʿĀʾishah

Whenever Messenger of Allah ﷺ was given the choice of one of two matters, he would choose the easier of the two, as long as it was not sinful to do so, but if it was sinful to do so, he would not approach it. Messenger of Allah ﷺ never took revenge (over anybody) for his own sake but (he did) only when Allah's Legal Bindings were outraged in which case he would take revenge for Allah's Sake. (Using translation from Bukhārī 3560)  

أحمد:٢٦٢٦٢حَدَّثَنَا إِسْحَاقُ أَخْبَرَنَا مَالِكٌ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ عَنْ عُرْوَةَ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ

مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ إِلَّا أَخَذَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِذَا كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ وَمَا انْتَقَمَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ لِنَفْسِهِ إِلَّا أَنْ يَكُونَ تُنْتَهَكُ حُرْمَةُ اللهِ فَيَنْتَقِمُ لِلَّهِ ﷻ  

ahmad:25756Wakīʿ > Hishām from his father > ʿĀʾishah

[Machine] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was never given a choice between two matters except that he chose the easier of the two as long as it did not involve sin.  

أحمد:٢٥٧٥٦حَدَّثَنَا وَكِيعٌ عَنْ هِشَامٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ

مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ إِلَّا اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ فِيهِ مَأْثَمٌ  

ahmad:24846Mūsá b. Dāwud > Mālik > Ibn Shihāb > ʿUrwah > ʿĀʾishah

the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was never given his choice between two things without taking the easier(or lesser) of them provided it involved no sin, for if it did, no one kept farther away from it than he. And the Messenger of Allah ﷺ never took revenge on his own behalf for anything unless something Allah had forbidden has been transgressed, in which event he took revenge for it for Allah’s sake. (Using translation from Abū Dāʾūd 4785)   

أحمد:٢٤٨٤٦حَدَّثَنَا مُوسَى بْنُ دَاوُدَ قَالَ أَخْبَرَنَا مَالِكٌ عَنْ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ عَنْ عُرْوَةَ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ

مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ إِلَّا اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِنْ كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ وَمَا انْتَقَمَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ لِنَفْسِهِ فِي أَمْرٍ يُنْتَهَكُ مِنْهُ إِلَّا أَنْ تُنْتَهَكَ لِلَّهِ ﷻ حُرْمَةٌ فَيَنْتَقِمُ لِلَّهِ ﷻ  

ahmad:25557ʿAbd al-Raḥman b. Mahdī > Mālik > al-Zuhrī > ʿUrwah > ʿĀʾishah

Never did Messenger of Allah ﷺ make a choice between two things but adopting the easier one as compared to the difficult one, but his choice for the easier one was only in case it did not involve any sin, but if it involved sin he was the one who was the farthest from it amongst the people. (Using translation from Muslim 2327d)   

أحمد:٢٥٥٥٧حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ مَهْدِيٍّ عَنْ مَالِكٍ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ عَنْ عُرْوَةَ عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ

مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ قَطُّ إِلَّا اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا إِلَّا أَنْ يَكُونَ فِيهِ إِثْمٌ فَإِنْ كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ  

ahmad:25288Ḥammād > Hishām > Abīhiʿan ʿĀʾishah

Never did Messenger of Allah ﷺ make a choice between two things but adopting the easier one as compared to the difficult one, but his choice for the easier one was only in case it did not involve any sin, but if it involved sin he was the one who was the farthest from it amongst the people. (Using translation from Muslim 2327d)  

أحمد:٢٥٢٨٨حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادٌ أَخْبَرَنَا هِشَامٌ عَنْ أَبِيهِعَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ

مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ أَحَدُهُمَا أَيْسَرُ مِنَ الْآخَرِ إِلَّا اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا فَإِذَا كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ  

suyuti:673-93b
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السيوطي:٦٧٣-٩٣b

"مَا خُيِّرَ رَسُولُ الله ﷺ بَيْنَ أَمْرَيْنِ إِلَّا اخْتَارَ أَيْسَرَهُمَا مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ إِثْمًا، فَإِذَا كَانَ إِثْمًا كَانَ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْهُ، وَمَا انْتَقَمَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ لِنَفْسِهِ فِي شَيءٍ قَطُّ إِلا أَنْ تُنْتَهَكَ حُرْمَةُ اللهِ فَيَنْتَقِم لله بِهَا".  

مالك. [خ] البخاري [م] مسلم [د] أبو داود [ن] النسائي في حديث مالك