Majma al-Zawaid — Hadith 2154

Sayyiduna Qatadah (may Allah be pleased with him) states: It was an extremely dark and rainy night, and I thought: It would be good if I seized the opportunity tonight of attending the Isha prayer behind the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). So I did so. When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) finished the prayer, he saw me. He had a stick in his hand on which he would lean as he walked. He said: "O Qatadah! What is the matter, why are you here at this hour?" I said: "O Prophet of Allah! I took the opportunity of attending the Isha prayer with you." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) gave me that stick and said: "The devil has come behind you to your family. Take this stick and keep hold of it until you reach your house, then seize him in a corner of the house and strike him with this stick." (Sayyiduna Qatadah (may Allah be pleased with him) states:) I went out of the mosque, and the stick lit up the way a candle gives light. I walked home by its light. When I reached my house, I found that my family had gone to sleep. I looked into a corner of the house, and there was a hedgehog there. I kept striking it with the stick until it went out.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded this narration in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir. A longer hadith than this, recorded by Imam Ahmad, will come later in the chapter on Friday and the special hour within it, if Allah wills. The narrators of this narration have been declared trustworthy (muwaththaqun).