Sahih Al Bukhari 2 Ring Sheytan

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said:

“The bell is the musical instrument of the Satan.”

Sahih/Authentic. - [Muslim]

With this hadith in mind, some people have argued that Muhammed SAW was receiving revelation from Satan due to the following hadith

‘Aisha (Allah be pleased with her) narrated that Al-Harith bin Hisham asked Allah’s Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace),

“O Allah’s Messenger! How is the Divine Inspiration revealed to you?” Allah’s Messenger replied, “Sometimes it is (revealed) like the

ringing of a bell, this form of Inspiration is the hardest of all, and then this state passes off after I have grasped what is inspired.

Sometimes the Angel comes in the form of a man and talks to me, and I grasp whatever he says.” ‘Aisha added: Verily, I saw the Prophet

being inspired divinely on a freezing day and noticed the sweat dripping from his

forehead (as the Inspiration was over).” [Bukhari]

However if we analyse each hadith properly we realise that Muhammed SAW is not saying the sound is that of a bell, but it’s sometimes

revealed like the ringing of a bell

The Prophet’s description (Allah bless him and give him peace) of revelation being like the ringing of a bell was not the physical bell

or its sound, but is a similie to describe one aspect of how revelation came to him. This is not likening it to the sound of a bell in every aspect,

but merely with one characteristic. When someone is said to be ‘like a lion’ that is not to say that they have manes and live in the jungle,

but that they share the characteristic of strength or courage with a lion.

Imaam As-Suyooti, may Allaah have mercy upon him said,

“If it is said how is a praiseworthy matter likened to a dispraised thing? For the ringing of the bell, which is authentically proved

to be forbidden and that the Angels do not accompany travelers who have with them a bell, the answer shall be: In similes it is not necessary

that the two ends of the simile are identical in all characteristics; it is enough that they share one characteristic. The simile in the Hadeeth

is to represent what is intangible by mentioning something the audiences are familiar with in order to be easily understood.”

We find similes being used in a similar fashion in other hadith such as

It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:

Verily the faith would recede to Medina just as the serpent crawls back into its hole.

Sahih Muslim 147

Is Muhammed SAW saying Eman is like a snake in every aspect, when the killing of snakes has been enjoined in many hadiths?

No, this is just likening Eman to a snake in a single characteristic and not in every aspect