Majma al-Zawaid — Hadith 236

Sayyiduna Shaddad bin Aws (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: We said: "O Messenger of Allah! On the night you were taken on the night journey, how were you taken?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I led my companions in the Isha prayer in Makkah, after which Jibril brought me a white animal, somewhat larger than a donkey and somewhat smaller than a mule. It became restive with me, so Jibril twisted its ears until I mounted it. It set off with us, its foot landing as far as the eye could reach, until we reached a land with many palm groves. Jibril said: Dismount. I dismounted. Then he said: Pray. I prayed. Then we mounted. He asked me: Do you know where you prayed? I replied: Allah knows best. He said: You prayed in Yathrib; you prayed in 'Taybah'. Then the animal set off with us, each of its steps landing as far as its sight reached, until we reached a white land. Jibril said to me: Dismount. I dismounted. Then he said: Pray. I prayed. Then we mounted. He asked: Do you know where you prayed? I replied: Allah and His Messenger know best (perhaps the words 'and His Messenger' are extra here and may be a mistake of the scribe or typesetter, because in the sentence before this and in the sentence after it the words are only: 'Allah knows best'). Jibril said: You prayed in 'Madyan', by the tree of Sayyiduna Musa (peace be upon him). Then the animal set off with us, each of its steps landing as far as its sight reached. Then, on reaching a place, Sayyiduna Jibril said: Dismount. I dismounted. He said: Pray. I prayed. Then we mounted. He asked: Do you know where you prayed? I said: Allah knows best. He said: You prayed in 'Bayt Lahm', where Sayyiduna Isa the Messiah, son of Maryam (peace be upon him), was born. Then he set off with me until we entered the city through its eighth gate. He came to the qiblah side of the mosque and tied the animal there. We entered the mosque through a gate on which there was an image of the sun and the moon, and I prayed in the mosque where Allah willed.
(Here a narrator named Ibn Zibriq transmitted these words:) Then two vessels were brought to me, one containing milk and the other honey; both had been sent to me. I considered the two equal, but then Allah Almighty guided me, so I took the milk and drank it, until I felt its effect on my forehead. Before me an elderly man was sitting, reclining, and he said: Your master has chosen the fitrah (natural disposition) (the narrator is unsure about one word here). Then he set off with me until I came to the valley that is in the city, and there Hell appeared before me like spread-out bedding." (The narrator says:) We said: "O Messenger of Allah! How did you find it?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The narrator says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned something, but I have forgotten it. (Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:) "I passed by a camel of Quraysh at such-and-such a place; their camel had gone missing. I greeted them, and one of them said to another: This is the voice of (Sayyiduna) Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)." (Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:) "Then I came to my companions in Makkah before morning. Abu Bakr came to me and said: O Messenger of Allah! Where were you last night? I came to your house looking for you, but I did not find you. I told (him): Last night I went to Bayt al-Maqdis. He said: O Messenger of Allah! That is a month's journey away; describe it to me." (The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) says:) "Then it was presented before me, as if I were looking at it. Whatever the people asked me about, I told them about it." Then Abu Bakr said: "I bear witness that you are the Messenger of Allah." But the polytheists said: "Look at the son of Abu Kabshah! He claims that he went to Bayt al-Maqdis last night." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Yes! And at such-and-such a place I also passed by your camels; they (that is, the herders of your camels) had lost their camel at such-and-such a place. I will tell you about them: they will have camped at such-and-such a place, and then they will come to you on such-and-such a day. Ahead of them will be an ash-coloured camel with a black sackcloth on it and two black sacks."
The narrator says: When that particular day came, the people began to watch, until near midday the caravan arrived with that same camel ahead of it, just like the camel the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had described.
Imam al-Bazzar and Imam al-Tabarani in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir recorded it, except that Imam al-Tabarani transmitted these words in it: "Your master has chosen the fitrah, and indeed he is rightly guided."
Likewise, regarding the description of Hell, he transmitted these words: "The Companions asked: How did you find it? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Like a spring of hot water." Its chain contains a narrator, Ishaq bin Ibrahim bin al-Ala', whom Yahya bin Ma'in declared thiqah (trustworthy), while Imam al-Nasa'i (may Allah have mercy on him) declared him da'if (weak).