"I entered upon Umm Habibah, the wife of the Prophet, when her father Abu Sufyan bin Harb died. Umm Habibah called for some perfume and put some on a young girl, then she put some on her cheeks. Then she said: 'By Allah, I do not have any need for perfume but I heard the Messenger of Allah say: It is not permissible for any woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for anyone who dies for more than three days, except for a husband, (for whom the mourning period is) four months and ten days.'"  

زَيْنَبُ دَخَلْتُ عَلَى أُمِّ حَبِيبَةَ زَوْجِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ حِينَ تُوُفِّيَ أَبُوهَا أَبُو سُفْيَانَ بْنُ حَرْبٍ فَدَعَتْ أُمُّ حَبِيبَةَ بِطِيبٍ فَدَهَنَتْ مِنْهُ جَارِيَةً ثُمَّ مَسَّتْ بِعَارِضَيْهَا ثُمَّ قَالَتْ وَاللَّهِ مَا لِي بِالطِّيبِ مِنْ حَاجَةٍ غَيْرَ أَنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرَأَةٍ تُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ تَحِدُّ عَلَى مَيِّتٍ فَوْقَ ثَلاَثِ لَيَالٍ إِلاَّ عَلَى زَوْجٍ أَرْبَعَةَ أَشْهُرٍ وَعَشْرًا  

"Then I went into Zainab bint Jahsh when her brother died, and she called for some perfume and put some on. Then she said: 'By Allah, I do not have any need for perfume but I heard the Messenger of Allah say on the Minbar: It is not permissible for any woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for anyone who dies for more than three days, except for a husband, (for whom the mourning period is) four months and ten days.'"  

سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ عَلَى الْمِنْبَرِ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرَأَةٍ تُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ تَحِدُّ عَلَى مَيِّتٍ فَوْقَ ثَلاَثِ لَيَالٍ إِلاَّ عَلَى زَوْجٍ أَرْبَعَةَ أَشْهُرٍ وَعَشْرًا  

"I heard Umm Salamah say: 'A woman came to the Messenger of Allah and said: O Messenger of Allah, my daughter's husband has died and she has a problem in her eye; can I put kohl on her? The Messenger of Allah said: No. Then he said: It is four months and ten days. During the Jahiliyyah one of you would throw a piece of dung at the end of the year.'" Humaid said: "I said to Zainab: 'What is this throwing a piece of dung at the end of the year?' She said: 'If a woman's husband died, she would enter a small room (Hifsh) and wear her worst clothes, and she would not put on perfume or anything until a year. Then an animal would be brought, a donkey or sheep or bird, and she would end her 'Iddah with it (clean herself with it), and usually any animal used for that purpose would die. Then she would come out and would be given a piece of dung which she would throw, then she would go back to whatever she wanted of perfume, etc.'" In the narration of Muhammad (bin Salamah) Malik said: Hifsh means hut.  

سَمِعْتُ أُمَّ سَلَمَةَ تَقُولُ جَاءَتِ امْرَأَةٌ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَقَالَتْ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ ابْنَتِي تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا وَقَدِ اشْتَكَتْ عَيْنَهَا أَفَأَكْحُلُهَا فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ لاَ ثُمَّ قَالَ إِنَّمَا هِيَ أَرْبَعَةُ أَشْهُرٍ وَعَشْرًا وَقَدْ كَانَتْ إِحْدَاكُنَّ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عِنْدَ رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ قَالَ حُمَيْدٌ فَقُلْتُ لِزَيْنَبَ وَمَا تَرْمِي بِالْبَعْرَةِ عِنْدَ رَأْسِ الْحَوْلِ قَالَتْ زَيْنَبُ كَانَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ إِذَا تُوُفِّيَ عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا دَخَلَتْ حِفْشًا وَلَبِسَتْ شَرَّ ثِيَابِهَا وَلَمْ تَمَسَّ طِيبًا وَلاَ شَيْئًا حَتَّى تَمُرَّ بِهَا سَنَةٌ ثُمَّ تُؤْتَى بِدَابَّةٍ حِمَارٍ أَوْ شَاةٍ أَوْ طَيْرٍ فَتَفْتَضُّ بِهِ فَقَلَّمَا تَفْتَضُّ بِشَىْءٍ إِلاَّ مَاتَ ثُمَّ تَخْرُجُ فَتُعْطَى بَعْرَةً فَتَرْمِي بِهَا وَتُرَاجِعُ بَعْدُ مَا شَاءَتْ مِنْ طِيبٍ أَوْ غَيْرِهِ قَالَ مَالِكٌ تَفْتَضُّ تَمْسَحُ بِهِ فِي حَدِيثِ مُحَمَّدٍ قَالَ مَالِكٌ الْحِفْشُ الْخُصُّ