Hadith 3866

حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ سُلَيْمَانَ ، قَالَ : حَدَّثَنِي ابْنُ وَهْبٍ ، قَالَ : حَدَّثَنِي عُمَرُ , أَنَّ سَالِمًا حَدَّثَهُ ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ ، قَالَ : مَا سَمِعْتُ عُمَرَ لِشَيْءٍ قَطُّ يَقُولُ : " إِنِّي لَأَظُنُّهُ كَذَا إِلَّا كَانَ كَمَا يَظُنُّ بَيْنَمَا عُمَرُ جَالِسٌ إِذْ مَرَّ بِهِ رَجُلٌ جَمِيلٌ ، فَقَالَ : لَقَدْ أَخْطَأَ ظَنِّي , أَوْ إِنَّ هَذَا عَلَى دِينِهِ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ , أَوْ لَقَدْ كَانَ كَاهِنَهُمْ عَلَيَّ الرَّجُلَ فَدُعِيَ لَهُ ، فَقَالَ لَهُ : ذَلِكَ ، فَقَالَ : مَا رَأَيْتُ كَالْيَوْمِ اسْتُقْبِلَ بِهِ رَجُلٌ مُسْلِمٌ ، قَالَ : فَإِنِّي أَعْزِمُ عَلَيْكَ إِلَّا مَا أَخْبَرْتَنِي ، قَالَ : كُنْتُ كَاهِنَهُمْ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ ، قَالَ : فَمَا أَعْجَبُ مَا جَاءَتْكَ بِهِ جِنِّيَّتُكَ ، قَالَ : بَيْنَمَا أَنَا يَوْمًا فِي السُّوقِ جَاءَتْنِي أَعْرِفُ فِيهَا الْفَزَعَ ، فَقَالَتْ : أَلَمْ تَرَ الْجِنَّ وَإِبْلَاسَهَا وَيَأْسَهَا مِنْ بَعْدِ إِنْكَاسِهَا وَلُحُوقَهَا بِالْقِلَاصِ وَأَحْلَاسِهَا ، قَالَ عُمَرُ : صَدَقَ بَيْنَمَا أَنَا نَائِمٌ عِنْدَ آلِهَتِهِمْ إِذْ جَاءَ رَجُلٌ بِعِجْلٍ , فَذَبَحَهُ فَصَرَخَ بِهِ صَارِخٌ لَمْ أَسْمَعْ صَارِخًا قَطُّ أَشَدَّ صَوْتًا مِنْهُ ، يَقُولُ : يَا جَلِيحْ أَمْرٌ نَجِيحْ رَجُلٌ فَصِيحْ ، يَقُولُ : لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ , فَوَثَبَ الْقَوْمُ ، قُلْتُ : لَا أَبْرَحُ حَتَّى أَعْلَمَ مَا وَرَاءَ هَذَا , ثُمَّ نَادَى يَا جَلِيحْ أَمْرٌ نَجِيحْ رَجُلٌ فَصِيحْ يَقُولُ : لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ , فَقُمْتُ فَمَا نَشِبْنَا أَنْ قِيلَ : هَذَا نَبِيٌّ " .
Narrated `Abdullah bin `Umar: I never heard `Umar saying about something that he thought it would be so-and-so, but he was quite right. Once, while `Umar was sitting, a handsome man passed by him, `Umar said, "If I am not wrong, this person is still on his religion of the pre-lslamic period of ignorance or he was their foreteller. Call the man to me." When the man was called to him, he told him of his thought. The man said, "I have never seen such a day on which a Muslim is faced with such an accusation." `Umar said, "I am determined that you should tell me the truth." He said, "I was a foreteller in the pre-lslamic period of ignorance." Then `Umar said, "Tell me the most astonishing thing your female Jinn has told you of." He said, "One-day while I was in the market, she came to me scared and said, 'Haven't you seen the Jinns and their despair and they were overthrown after their defeat (and prevented from listening to the news of the heaven) so that they (stopped going to the sky and) kept following camel-riders (i.e. 'Arabs)?" `Umar said, "He is right." and added, "One day while I was near their idols, there came a man with a calf and slaughtered it as a sacrifice (for the idols). An (unseen) creature shouted at him, and I have never heard harsher than his voice. He was crying, 'O you bold evil-doer! A matter of success! An eloquent man is saying: None has the right to be worshipped except you (O Allah).' On that the people fled, but I said, 'I shall not go away till I know what is behind this.' Then the cry came again: 'O you bold evil-doer! A matter of success! An eloquent man is saying: None has the right to be worshipped except Allah.' I then went away and a few days later it was said, "A prophet has appeared."
Hadith Reference صحيح البخاري / كتاب مناقب الأنصار / 3866
Hadith Grading محدثین: أحاديث صحيح البخاريّ كلّها صحيحة
Explanation & Benefits
Maulana Dawood Raz
Hadith Commentary:
Based on his insight and discernment, Umar (radi Allahu anhu) said to the passerby, “Are you a Muslim, a disbeliever, or a soothsayer?”
Abu Amr said that this person used to practice soothsaying during the time of ignorance (Jahiliyyah). One day, Umar (radi Allahu anhu), in jest, said to him, “O Suwad! Where has your soothsaying gone now?” At this, he became angry and said, “O Umar! The state we were in before—that is, ignorance and disbelief—was worse than soothsaying, and you reproach me for something from which I have repented, and I hope that Allah has forgiven me for it.”
(Wahidi)
From this, the perfect wisdom of Umar (radi Allahu anhu) is established, and this is the very reason for mentioning this hadith here.
The one who called out was an angel who was giving glad tidings of the Prophet’s (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) being sent.
Source: Sahih Bukhari: Commentary by Maulana Dawood Raz, Page: 3866
Shaykh Abdul Sattar al-Hammad
Hadith Commentary:

Regarding Umar (radi Allahu anhu), the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said:
"Every nation has a muhaddath (one who is inspired); if there is a muhaddath in my ummah, it is Umar (radi Allahu anhu)."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Virtues of the Companions of the Prophet, hadith: 3689.)


Indeed, whatever Umar (radi Allahu anhu) would say would come to pass, as Ibn Umar (radi Allahu anhu) expressed about him at the beginning of the hadith.
The suspicion Umar (radi Allahu anhu) expressed regarding that handsome man turned out to be exactly as he thought, and the man himself admitted it.
One day, Umar (radi Allahu anhu), in a lighthearted manner, said to this man:
"Now, what is the state of your jinn?"
He became filled with anger and said:
"O Umar! The shirk and other acts you committed in the time of ignorance were worse than my profession of soothsaying.
Why do you shame me for something from which I have now repented and for which I hope for Allah's forgiveness?"


The conversation that this man had with his jinn meant that the Prophet of the end times (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was about to appear.
All the jinn would become subject to the Arabs and would follow their religion, because that Prophet is for both jinn and mankind.


It is said that this very incident became the cause of Umar (radi Allahu anhu) accepting Islam.
This is why Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has mentioned this incident under the chapter of Umar's acceptance of Islam.
(Fath al-Bari: 7/229.)
And Allah knows best.
Source: Hidayat al-Qari: Commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Urdu, Page: 3866