The plague, one who stays in it and one who flees from it

Sayyidah Aishah al-Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "My Ummah will perish only through ta'n and plague." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, we know ta'n; what is the plague?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is a gland-swelling like the gland-swelling of a camel. The one who stays in the plague will be like a martyr, and the one who flees from it will be like one who flees from the battlefield."
Ahmad, Abu Ya'la and al-Tabarani in al-Awsat recorded it.

Abu Ya'la also recorded this narration from Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her): The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is a stab that will afflict my Ummah from their enemies, the jinn. It is a gland-swelling like the gland-swelling of a camel. Whoever stays in it (the plague-stricken area) will be counted as one guarding the frontier (murabit), whoever dies in it will be counted as a martyr, and whoever flees from it will be like one who flees from the battlefield."
Al-Tabarani recorded something similar in al-Awsat, except that he recorded these words: "And the one who is patient in it will be like one who strives in the path of Allah."

Al-Bazzar recorded this narration from Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her). (She narrates:) I said: "O Messenger of Allah, we know ta'n; what is the plague?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is like a boil that will come out in the armpits and in the lower part of the belly. In it is the purification of their deeds, and it is martyrdom for every Muslim." The narrators of Ahmad are thiqat (trustworthy), and the remaining chains are hasan (good).

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say about the plague: "The one who flees from it will be like one who flees from the battlefield, and whoever is patient in it will have the reward of a martyr."
Ahmad, al-Bazzar and al-Tabarani in al-Awsat recorded it. The narrators of Ahmad are thiqat (trustworthy).

Ikrimah bin Khalid al-Makhzumi narrates from his father, or perhaps from his paternal uncle, from his grandfather, that during the Battle of Tabuk the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When the plague breaks out in a land and you are there, do not leave it; and when it breaks out in a place and you are not there, do not go there."
Ahmad recorded it.

In a narration from this person, the words are: "When it is in a place where you are not present, do not go near that place."
The chain of Ahmad is hasan (good). Al-Tabarani recorded it likewise in al-Kabir.

Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The plague was mentioned in the presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said: "It is an affliction that befell those before you. When you hear that it has come to a city, do not go there; and when it comes to the city where you are, do not leave it fleeing from it."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Kabir, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Ya'la bin Shaddad bin Aws narrates: Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) mentioned the plague in his sermon, and Sayyiduna Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Your mother Hind has more knowledge than you." Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) completed his sermon, then led the prayer, then sent for Sayyiduna Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him). Some men of the Ansar went along with Sayyiduna Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him). Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) seated them, and Sayyiduna Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) came in. Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: "Do you not fear Allah Almighty, and do you not feel shy before your Imam?" Sayyiduna Ubadah said to him: "Do you not know that I pledged allegiance at the blessed hand of the Messenger of Allah that I would not fear the blame of any blamer concerning Allah Almighty?" Then Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) came out at the time of Asr and led the prayer. Then he took hold of the leg of the couch and said: "O people, I mentioned something to you from the pulpit; then I went home, and the actual matter is what Sayyiduna Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) told me. So benefit from him, for he has more knowledge than I do."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Kabir and al-Awsat. Its chain contains a narrator, Isa bin Sinan, whom Ibn Hibban and others declared thiqah (trustworthy), and Yahya bin Ma'in and others declared da'if (weak).

Shahr bin Hawshab al-Ash'ari narrates from his stepfather, a man from his tribe who had married his mother after his father, and who had been present at the plague of Amwas. He narrates: When the affliction spread, Sayyiduna Abu Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah (may Allah be pleased with him) stood among the people to deliver a sermon, and said: "O people, indeed this affliction is the mercy of your Lord, the supplication of your Prophet, and the cause of the death of the righteous before you." Sayyiduna Abu Ubaydah (may Allah be pleased with him) supplicated to Allah Almighty that He grant him his share of this affliction. The narrator says: He was struck by the plague and he too passed away, may Allah Almighty have mercy on him. After that Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal became the leader of the people. Then he addressed the people and said: "O people, this affliction is the mercy of your Lord, the supplication of your Prophet, and the means of the death of the righteous before you." Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) supplicated to Allah Almighty that He grant the family of Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) their share of this affliction. The narrator says: Sayyiduna Mu'adh's (may Allah be pleased with him) son Abd al-Rahman was struck by the plague and passed away. Then Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) stood and supplicated to his Lord for himself, and the plague (its mark) appeared in his palm. The narrator says: I saw him looking at that mark and then kissing the back of his hand, saying: "I would not like to have anything of this world in exchange for you." When he passed away, Sayyiduna Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) was appointed leader of the people. He stood among us to deliver a sermon and said: "O people, when this affliction occurs, it spreads the way fire spreads, so leave it and scatter into the various mountains." Sayyiduna Abu Wa'ilah al-Hudhali said: "You are wrong. By Allah, I kept the company of the Messenger of Allah, and you are worse than this donkey." Sayyiduna Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, I will not answer you regarding what you are saying; by Allah, we will not stay in this place." Then Sayyiduna Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) left from there, and some people also went with him. They left that place and scattered here and there, and Allah Almighty kept them safe from the plague. The narrator says: When news reached Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) of Sayyiduna Amr's (may Allah be pleased with him) position, by Allah, he did not disapprove of it.
Ahmad recorded it. There is criticism about the narrator Shahr, and the name of his teacher is not mentioned.

It is reported about Sayyiduna Abis al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him) that he was with these people on a raised place. Some people passed by who were loaded up on their mounts. He asked: "Who are these people?" He was told: "These people are going away to escape the plague." Sayyiduna Abis al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O plague, seize me! O plague, seize me! O plague, seize me!" A nephew of his, who had the honour of being a Companion, said to him: "Are you wishing for death? Yet I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: 'None of you should wish for death, for death is the reward of the believer's deeds; he will not be sent back (to the world) to be given another chance.'" Sayyiduna Abis al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O my nephew, I want to depart (from the world) before certain things come, things which I heard from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) will appear at the end of time, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) feared them for his Ummah. (Those things are:) the rule of fools, an abundance of police, regarding bloodshed as a light matter, violating the rights of kinship, and young people taking the Qur'an as musical pipes: people will not put forward a man who has more knowledge of the religion or more understanding of the religion; among them there will be someone with more understanding and more knowledge, but they will put forward (to lead them) someone who will sing the Qur'an to them."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Kabir, and Ahmad recorded something similar.

In a narration from him, these words are reported: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "No one should wish for death, for in this way his respite will come to an end." Its chain contains a narrator, Layth bin Abi Sulaym, about whom there is criticism.
(Allamah Haythami says:) I say: It has various routes which will come later in the chapters on governance, the caliphate and repentance, if Allah wills.