Harith bin Hisham asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, "Messenger of Allah, how does the revelation come to you?"He replied, "Sometimes it comes to me like the ringing of a bell, and that is the hardest on me. It leaves me, and I have grasped what was said. And sometimes the angel appears to me in the form of a man and speaks to me, and I retain what he says."Ayesha said, "I saw the revelation descending upon him on a bitterly cold day, and when it left him, his forehead was streaming with sweat."
أن الحارث بن هشام سأل رسول الله ﷺ فقال: يا رسول الله! كيف يأتيك الوحي؟ فقال: أحيانايأتيني مثل صلصلة الجرس وهو أشده علي، فيفصم عني وقد وعيت عنه ما قال، وأحيانا يتمثل لي الملك رجلا فيكلفني فأعي ما يقول. قالت عائشة: ولقد رأيته ينزل عليه الوحي في اليوم الشديد البردفيفصم عنه، وإن جبينه ليتفصد عرقا.
Malik narrated it in Kitab al-Quran (7), from Hisham bin Urwa, from his father, from Ayesha, and mentioned it as above. Bukhari narrated it in Kitab Bad al-Wahy (2), through the route of Malik, with the same wording.Muslim narrated it in Kitab al-Fadail (2333), through other routes from Hisham bin Urwa, with similar wording, in which Ayesha said, "Revelation would come down upon the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on a cold morning, and then his forehead would pour with sweat."