Incident of the Opening of His Noble Chest ﷺ:
Narrated by Utbah bin Abd as-Salami that a man asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, "What was your first affair, O Messenger of Allah?" He ﷺ replied: "My nurse was from the Banu Sa'd bin Bakr. I went with her son to the sheep, and we did not take any provisions with us. I said, 'O my brother, go and bring us some food from our mother'—meaning Halimah as-Sa'diyah. So my brother went, and I stayed with the sheep. Then two white birds came to me, as if they were eagles. One of them said to his companion, 'Is he the one?' The other said, 'Yes.' They both came to me quickly, seized me, threw me on my back, opened my belly, and took out my heart. They split it open and took out two black pieces from it. One of them said to his companion, 'Bring me some ice water.' They washed my insides with it. Then he said, 'Bring me cold water.' They washed my heart with it. Then he said, 'Bring me tranquility.' They sprinkled it in my heart. Then one of them said to his companion, 'Sew it up.' So he sewed it and sealed it with the seal of Prophethood. Then they left me, and I was greatly terrified. I ran to my mother and told her what I had encountered. She was concerned that something might have happened to my mind. She said, 'I seek refuge for you in Allah.' She saddled her camel, placed me on the saddle, and rode behind me until we reached my mother. She said, 'Did I fulfill my trust and my obligation?' She told her what I had experienced, but it did not frighten her. She said, 'Indeed, when I carried him, I saw a light that illuminated the palaces of Sham.' "
Muslim (162) narrated from Anas bin Malik that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was playing with the boys when Gabriel came to him, threw him down, opened his heart, took it out, and extracted from it a piece. He said, 'This is the share of the devil from you.' Then he washed it in a basin of gold with Zamzam water, gathered it, and returned it to its place. The boys ran to his mother—meaning his wet nurse—and said, 'Indeed, Muhammad has been killed.' When she met him, he was pale. Anas said: "I used to see the mark of that incision in his chest."
The Age of the Prophet ﷺ When His Chest Was Opened:
It is said he was two years old, and it is said he was four. Al-Iraqi and Ibn Hajar affirmed in their biographies that he was four years old ﷺ.
Repetition of the Opening of His Chest ﷺ:
It has been narrated that the opening of his chest occurred more than once, including when he was ten years old and again at the time of Prophethood, but the repetition of the opening of his chest was only confirmed during the Night Journey (Isra) and Ascension (Mi'raj).
Al-Bukhari (349) and Muslim (163) narrated from Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: " While I was at Mecca the roof of my house was opened and Gabriel descended, opened my chest, and washed it with Zamzam water. Then he brought a golden tray full of wisdom and faith and having poured its contents into my chest, he closed it. Then he took my hand and ascended with me to the nearest heaven." and he mentioned the hadith of the Isra and Mi'raj.
Ibn Hajar said in "Fath al-Bari" (7/604): "Then the opening of the chest occurred when he was about to ascend to the heavens to prepare for communion with Allah."
Al-Ghazali said in "Fiqh as-Sirah" (p. 66): "Perhaps the hadiths of the opening of the chest indicate the protections that Allah bestowed upon Muhammad ﷺ, keeping him from the pitfalls of human nature and the temptations of earthly life from his childhood."
