Are the narrations present in our (Shia) sources that allude towards the point that the Prophet (saws) was assassinated by the poison of the Jewish woman of Khaybar true?

This verse is the explicit proof that He (saws) was subjected to assassination attempts multiple times and from various parties: from the polytheists, the Jews, and even those who outwardly professed Islam. It could also be said that these different groups occasionally collaborated on this matter, after realizing that their interests aligned in this effort. They made attempts, and perhaps some of them failed once or more, but in the end, they succeeded in achieving their goal. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) ultimately died as a martyr by poisoning, as will be explained. But, in this article our main concern is:

Are the narrations present in our (Shia) sources that allude towards the point that the Prophet (saw) was assassinated by the poison of the Jewish woman of Khaybar true?

Answer:

As for what the Shia have narrated in their sources regarding Khaybar's Jewish woman's attempt to poison Him (saws), we mention the following narrations:

First narration:

The story of the poisoned shoulder is thus: When the Holy Prophet (S) was returning to Medina after capturing Khaiber, a Jewess approached and said that she had accepted Islam. Then she put before the Holy Prophet (saw), a roasted lamb shoulder, saying: 'O Allah’s Messenger! May my parents be sacrificed for you, I was very worried due to your advance towards Khaiber, because I knew that those people were very brave. I had a little lamb. I had nourished it like a child. I also knew that you are fond of roasted mutton shoulders. Therefore, I vowed that if Allah brings you back victorious, I will present this to your honor to fulfill my vow. At that time Ali (as) and Baraa bin Maaroor were also present near the Holy Prophet (saw). Baraa extended his hand, picked a piece of meat and was about to put it in his mouth, when Ali (as) told him: Don’t begin anything before the Holy Prophet (saw). Baraa, who was a Bedouin, replied: O Ali! Do you consider that the Prophet is stingy? Ali (as) replied: No, I am telling you this just to give respect to the Holy Prophet (saw). Neither I nor you or any believer should ever try to precede the Holy Prophet (saw) in eating, drinking or in any other matter. When Baraa replied that he did not consider the Holy Prophet (saw) stingy, Ali (as) said: The reason for which I prevented you is that this meat is brought by a Jewess, whom we do not know. Therefore, if you eat from it with the prior permission of the Holy Prophet (saw) it would be safe for you, but if you go ahead without his permission, only you will be responsible for your life. Ali (as) was saying this when Baraa had begun to chew that meat. Suddenly that meat spoke up by Allah’s command and said: O Allah’s Messenger! Please don’t consume this. It is poisoned. That very moment Baraa fainted and died. The Holy Prophet (S) called that woman and asked her the reason for such a heinous act. She replied: You have done great injustice to me. You killed my father, brother (ie: Ka’ab bin Ashraf), uncle, husband (ie: Sallam bin Mishkam)  and son. I told myself: If Muhammad is only a king like other rulers, he will be killed by this poison. But if he is a true messenger of God, Allah will fulfill His promise of capturing Mecca and also protect him from this poison. The Holy Prophet (S) told her: Well, you are telling the truth. Now don’t be proud of killing Baraa, because Almighty Allah has only tried him, as he went ahead of His Prophet in eating. Had he taken my permission earlier, he would have been protected from fatal consequences. Then the Holy Prophet (saw) called ten persons from his companions. The wise men included Salman, Miqdad, Ammar, Suhaib, Abu Tharr and Bilal (r.a.). His Eminence, Ali (as) was also present. The Holy Prophet (saw) asked them all to sit down and they sat down in a circle. Then the Holy Prophet (saw) placed his hand on that poisoned meat and blew from his holy mouth over it, reciting:

'In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. In the Name of Allah, the Healer. In the Name of Allah, the Sufficient. In the Name of Allah, the Protector. In the Name of one, after taking Whose Name nothing and no pain can harm, neither on earth nor in the sky and He is the Hearer, the Knower'

Then he asked all of them to begin eating the meat taking the Name of Allah. The Holy Prophet (saw) himself also ate therefrom. All ate fully. Then all drank water. Thereafter the Holy Prophet (S) ordered: Detain this woman. Next day when she was brought to the Holy Prophet (S) he told her: Did you see that all these persons ate your poisoned food and all of them have been saved by Allah with His grace? She said: O Allah’s Messenger Until now I had a doubt regarding your messengership, but now I am fully convinced that you are Allah’s true messenger and I give witness that there is no one worth worshipping except Only One Allah; that He is One and He has no partner and that you are His servant and Messenger. The faith of that lady turned out sincere.

Second narration:

And the wife of Abdullah ibn Mishkam brought him (the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family) a poisoned sheep. With the Prophet was Bishr ibn al-Bara' ibn `Azib. The Prophet took the foreleg, and Bishr took the shank. The Prophet chewed it but spat it out, saying, 'It is telling me that it is poisoned.' As for Bishr, he chewed it and swallowed it, and he died. So He (ie: The Prophet) sent for her, and she confessed

Third narration:

al-Asbagh b. Nubata from `Ali (as).  He said: The Jews came to a woman from among them named `Abda. They said to her: O `Abda! As you know, Muhammad has destroyed the pillar of the Children of Israel and destroyed Judaism. The elites of the Children of Israel have prepared this poison for him, and they have come to you to have you poison him with this sheep. So, `Abda roasted the sheep and gathered the leaders in her house. She came to the Messenger of Allah (s) and said: O Muhammad! I have done what is obligatory for me [as your neighbor]. I have the leaders of the Jews present, so distinguish me with your companions. So, the Messenger of Allah (s) went with `Ali (as), Abu Dujana, Abu Ayyub, Sahl b. Hanif, and a group of Muhajirin. When they entered and the sheep was brought out, the Jews covered their noses with wool, stood on their feet and leaned on their staff. So, the Messenger of Allah (s) said to them: Sit down. So, they said: When a prophet visits us, none of us are to sit down. We would hate to have the harm of our breath reach you.  The Jews had lied – may Allah curse them. Rather, they only did that out of fear of the poison and its steam. When the sheep was placed in front of him, its shoulder spoke, saying: Stop, Muhammad. Do not eat me, for I am poisoned. So, the Messenger of Allah (saw) called for `Abda and said to her: What caused you to do this! So, she said: I said [to myself]: “If he were a prophet, then it would not harm him. If he were a liar or a sorcerer, then my people would be relieved from him.” So, Gabriel (as) came down and said: The Peace (as-Salaam is from the names of Allah) recites the salaam to you and says: “Say: In the name of Allah, by which every believer calls, and by which every believer reaches glory. By His light, which illuminates the heavens and the Earth. By His power, which subjugates every arrogant tyrant and relinquishes every rebellious devil from the evil of poison, sorcery, and deceit. In the name of the High, the King, the Alone, besides whom there is no other god, ‘We have sent down of the Quran that which is a healing and a mercy to the believers, and it does not increase the wrongdoers except in loss’ (17:82)” So, the Prophet (s) said that, and he ordered his companions [to say that as well]; so they said that. Then he said: 'Eat! and he commanded them to undergo cupping'

Fourth narration:

It is narrated to us by Ibrahim b. Hashim from Ja’far b. Muhammad from Abdullah b. Maymoon Al-Qaddah that Abu Abdullah (as) said:

'A Jewess poisoned the Prophet (saws) in the forearm (of a grilled sheep). And the Messenger of Allah (saw) used to love the forearm and the shoulder, and disliked the thighs due to its vicinity from the urinary tract’. He then said: ‘When she came with the grill, he ate from the forearm, and he loved it, so he ate whatever Allah so Desired. Then the forearm said, ‘O Messenger of Allah (saws), I am poisoned’. So, he left it, and the poison did not cease to infringe with Him until He passed away'

Fifth narration:

It is narrated to us by Ahmad b. Muhammad from Al-Hussain b. Saeed from Al-Qasim b. Muhammad from Ali from Abi Baseer that Abu Abdullah (as) said:

'The Messenger of Allah (saws) was poisoned on the day of Khaybar. The meat spoke and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah (saws) ! I am poisoned’. He [the Imam] said: ‘The Prophet (saws) said during his passing: ‘My insides is being cut by the meal which I ate at Khaybar, and there is no Prophet nor a successor except that he is a martyr'

Analysis:

In the first narration, it is mentioned that al-Bara' ibn Ma'rur was the one who ate from the poisoned sheep and died. However, al-Bara' ibn Ma'rur had passed away a month before the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) migrated to Medina. He died before seeing the Prophet’s migration to Madinah. (Refer: Usd al-ghābah, vol 1, pg 174; al-Isabah, vol 1, pgs 144 and 145; and al-Isti'ab in its margin, vol 1, pg 136). The incident of Khaybar occurred in the seventh year after the Hijra. So how could al-Bara' ibn Ma'rur have died from the meal at Khaybar if he had died seven years before it? It might be excused by saying that there was an omission in the narration and that the correct name is Bishr ibn al-Bara'. However, the repeated mention of the name 'al-Bara' in multiple narrations makes it impossible to accept this excuse. Errors do not recur in all instances, as this is evident. Secondly, these narrations that have been reported by the Shia sources differ greatly from one another. There are severe inconsistencies in determining the victim.

1. Contradictions in determining the victim:

Victim as per the first narration: al-Bara' ibn Ma'rur

Victim as per the second narration: Bishr ibn al-Bara' ibn `Azib

2. Contradiction in the way of death:

As per the narration of Tafsir e Imam Hasan al-Askari (as), the victim died while chewing the morsel 

But as per the narration of Al-Kharāʾij wa l-jarāʾiḥ, the victim died after he swallowed the morsel

3. Contradiction in determining the Prophet's (saw) actions:

As per the majority of narrations, after the victim died, the Prophet (saw) and his companions ate fully

But as per the narration of Al-Kharāʾij wa l-jarāʾiḥ, the Prophet (saw) spat it out

4. Contradiction in determining the part consumed:

As per the narration of Tafsir e Imam Hasan al-Askari (as), the part was a Roasted lamb shoulder

But as per the narration of Al-Kharāʾij wa l-jarāʾiḥ, it was only the foreleg

But as per the narration of Al-Amālī, an entire sheep was brought

And lastly, as per the narration of Basair (the fourth narration of this article), it was actually the forearm

5. Contradiction in determining the animal:

As per the narration of Tafsir e Imam Hasan al-Askari (as), the animal served was a little lamb

But as per the remaining narrations, the animal wasn't a little lamb, but instead a sheep

6. Contradiction in the fact as when the flesh spoke to the Prophet (saw) of it being poisonous:

As per the narration of Tafsir e Imam Hasan al-Askari (as), the flesh spoke before He (saw) could chew the morsel

But as per the narration of Al-Kharāʾij wa l-jarāʾiḥ, it spoke when the Prophet (saw) chewed it

Interestingly, as per the narration of Al-Amālī, the flesh spoke as soon as it was placed before the Prophet (saw)

And lastly, as per the narration of Basair (the fourth narration of this article), the flesh spoke after He (saw) ate from it

7. Contradiction in determining whose wife was the Jewess:

As per the narration of Tafsir e Imam Hasan al-Askari (as), the Jewess was the wife of Sallam bin Mishkam

But as per the narration of Al-Kharāʾij wa l-jarāʾiḥ, she was the wife of Abdullah bin Mishkam

8. Contradiction in determining the name:

The narrations say her name was Zaynab but as per the narration narration by al-Asbagh, it was Abdah

Contradiction in determining the location:

The narration from Tafsir e Imam Hasan al-Askari (as) says the incident occurred in Medina, while other narrations say it took place in Kha