All praise is due to Allah, and may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
The hadith of Usayd ibn Hudayr (may Allah be pleased with him) indicates that angels may be seen in certain circumstances. However, this does not necessarily mean that they are seen in the original form in which Allah created them. Rather, angels may take on a form that human beings are capable of seeing, as is established in many texts.
Allah Almighty says:
“And if We had made him an angel, We would certainly have made him appear as a man, and We would have certainly caused them the same confusion in which they are already involved.”
[Al-An‘am: 9]
Scholars of Qur’anic interpretation have mentioned that human beings are ordinarily unable to bear seeing angels in their original form. Therefore, when Allah sends an angel to human beings, the angel may come to them in a human form that they are able to see and interact with.
Gabriel (Jibril), peace be upon him, appeared to Mary (Maryam), peace be upon her, in the form of a man. Allah Almighty says:
“Then We sent to her Our Spirit, and he appeared before her as a well-proportioned man.”
[Maryam: 17]
Likewise, Gabriel would sometimes come to the Prophet ﷺ in the form of a man whom the Companions could see.
It is authentically established in al-Bukhari and Muslim that Usayd ibn Hudayr (may Allah be pleased with him) was reciting Surah Al-Baqarah at night while his horse was nearby. Each time he recited, the horse became agitated.
When he raised his head toward the sky, he saw:
“Something like a canopy containing objects resembling lamps.”
The following morning, he informed the Prophet ﷺ about what had happened. The Prophet ﷺ asked him:
“Do you know what that was?”
He replied: No.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Those were the angels who came near because of your voice. Had you continued reciting, people would have seen them in the morning, and they would not have hidden from them.”
[Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim]
The hadith clearly states that the angels came near because of the recitation of the Qur’an, and that had Usayd continued reciting, they would have remained until morning and people would have been able to see them.
The hadith tells us that what Usayd saw was connected with the angels, but he described it as:
“Something like a canopy containing objects resembling lamps.”
It does not state that he saw each angel in its original form.
Therefore, the hadith does not necessarily mean that human beings saw—or would have seen—the angels in the form in which Allah originally created them. Rather, it is possible that they appeared in a form that human beings could see, or that something perceptible indicating their presence became visible.
This is the meaning mentioned by a number of commentators on the hadith.
It is authentically established that Gabriel, peace be upon him, would come to the Prophet ﷺ in the form of a man.
One example is the hadith of Usamah ibn Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him and his father), in which Gabriel came to the Prophet ﷺ while Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) was present. After he left, the Prophet ﷺ asked her:
“Who was that?”
She replied: Dihyah.
In reality, the one she had seen was Gabriel, peace be upon him, who had appeared in his form.
[Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim]
Thus, a human being may see an angel when the angel takes on a human form or another form perceptible to human senses.
Ibn Battal (may Allah have mercy on him) said that the hadith provides evidence for the possibility of human beings seeing angels when they take on a form that humans are capable of seeing, just as Gabriel would appear to the Prophet ﷺ in the form of a man.
Ibn al-Mulaqqin mentioned the same meaning: that humans can see angels when they appear in forms that people are capable of perceiving.
Therefore, the hadith does not contradict the principle that human beings do not ordinarily see angels in their original created form.
Seeing angels in their original form is an extraordinary and rare matter. It is authentically established that the Prophet ﷺ saw Gabriel in his true form.
However, seeing angels when they take on a form that humans can perceive is not exclusive to prophets. The Companions saw Gabriel in the form of a man, and other examples are also mentioned in the religious texts.
The story of Usayd ibn Hudayr (may Allah be pleased with him) is among the evidences indicating that some believers may witness something of this nature by Allah’s permission.
The hadith itself explains the reason:
“Those were the angels who came near because of your voice.”
The angels came near to listen to his recitation of the Qur’an.
This demonstrates the virtue of the Qur’an and the great status of its recitation, and that the angels attend gatherings and places of remembrance and Qur’anic recitation by Allah’s permission.
The Prophet’s ﷺ statement to Usayd ibn Hudayr, “Had you continued reciting, people would have seen them in the morning,” indicates that angels could have been seen in that situation, but it does not mean that they would necessarily have been seen in their original form.
Angels may take on forms that human beings are capable of seeing, as is authentically established regarding Gabriel and others.
What Usayd (may Allah be pleased with him) saw was something like a canopy containing objects resembling lamps, and the Prophet ﷺ informed him that those were the angels who had come near to listen to his recitation.
Therefore, there is no contradiction between this hadith and the statement that human beings do not ordinarily see angels in their original form.
And Allah knows best.