The wonders of creation

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "On the night I was taken on the Mi'raj, I saw that when I reached the seventh heaven, I looked above me, and there were thunder, lightning and thunderbolts. (The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:) I came upon some people whose bellies were like houses, with snakes in them that could be seen from outside their bellies. I asked: O Jibril, who are these people? He said: These are the people who consume usury (riba). When I descended to the lowest heaven and looked below me, I saw wind, noises and smoke. I asked: O Jibril, who are these? He said: These are devils who are burned in the eyes of the children of Adam, those people who do not reflect upon the dominion of the heavens and the earth. Were it not for this, these people would see wondrous things." (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Ibn Majah has recorded only the portion about those who consume usury.
Ahmad recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Abu al-Salt, whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) observed the sun at the time of its setting and said: "(It is in) the blazing Fire of Allah (made by Him). Had it not been restrained by the command of Allah, it would have destroyed everything on the face of the earth."
Ahmad recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator whose name has not been stated, and the remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abu Umamah al-Bahili (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Nine angels have been appointed over the sun, who throw snow upon it every day. Were it not for this, the sun would burn up whatever it came upon."
Al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Ufayr bin Ma'dan, who is extremely da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked; it was submitted: What do you say, upon what does the earth rest? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The earth rests upon water. It was submitted: Upon what does the water rest? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It rests upon a rock. It was submitted: Upon what does the rock rest? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It rests upon the back of a fish whose two ends meet the Throne. It was submitted: Upon what does that fish rest? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It rests upon the shoulder of an angel whose two feet are in the air.
Al-Bazzar recorded it from his teacher Abdullah bin Ahmad, that is, Abdullah bin Ahmad bin Shabib, and he is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The thickness of the earth is the distance of a journey of five hundred years, and between the upper part of the earth and the lowest heaven is a journey of five hundred years, or between it is a distance of five hundred years; and between the second heaven too is the same distance; between each earth is the same distance; between the uppermost earth and the heaven is a distance of five hundred years; the thickness of the heaven is five hundred years; and from the seventh heaven up to the Throne is a distance as great as the distance between all of these."
Al-Bazzar recorded it. Its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, except that Abu Nasr Humayd bin Hilal did not hear from Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him). The hadith narrated by Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) has already passed earlier, in the chapter concerning the tafsir of Surah al-Hadid.

Sayyiduna al-Rabi' bin Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The lowest heaven is a 'makfuf' (restrained) tablet, the second heaven is rock, the third is iron, the fourth is brass, the fifth is silver, the sixth is gold, and the seventh is ruby.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat in this way, as a mawquf report (stopping) at Sayyiduna al-Rabi' bin Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), and perhaps (the rest) has dropped out of the manuscript. Its chain contains a narrator, Abu Ja'far al-Razi, whom Abu Hatim and others declared thiqah (trustworthy), while al-Nasa'i (may Allah have mercy on him) and others called him da'if (weak). The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Ubaydullah bin Abi Bakr bin Anas narrates: I asked Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) about three things: the sun, the moon and the stars, from what they were created. He said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) told me this: "They were created from the light of the Throne."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat. Its chain contains a narrator, Ma'qil bin Malik, whom Ibn Hibban declared thiqah (trustworthy), while al-Azdi says: He is matruk (abandoned). The chain of this report also contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The hardest of your Lord's creation are ten things. There is the mountain; and iron splits even the mountain; and fire consumes iron; and water extinguishes fire; and the cloud, made subservient between the heaven and the earth, carries water; and the wind moves even the cloud; and man shields himself from the wind with his hand and goes out in the wind about his business; and intoxication overpowers man; and sleep overpowers intoxication; and worry overpowers sleep. So the hardest thing in your Lord's creation is worry.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah bin Khuzaymah bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him), who is not the Ansari, was in the caravan of Sayyidah Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was with him in that caravan (before the declaration of prophethood). He said to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): O Sayyiduna Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)! I have seen certain qualities in you. I bear witness that you are the Prophet of Allah who will emerge from Tihamah. I believe in you, and when I hear of your emergence, I will come to you. Then he was delayed in coming to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), until the time came when Makkah was conquered; then he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saw him, he said: Welcome to the first emigrant (Muhajir)! He submitted: O Messenger of Allah! I could not come to you earlier, not because I did not believe in you, or had denied my allegiance to you, or had broken the covenant made with you; I believed in the Qur'an too and had rejected the idols. But what happened is that after you, successive years of the most severe drought overtook us, which rendered the marrow useless and made the mounts sick. Because of it the milk vanished and sneezing set in; because of it good fortune was disrupted; all the implements of farming in the land were ruined; despair and restlessness took hold; distress became entrenched; the vegetation of the earth dried up; children began to perish. There was nothing but despair upon despair. In any case, I have come to you in such a state that I am neither one who breaks his covenant nor one who denies his allegiance. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: Leave this. Allah Almighty extends His hand at night so that the one who did wrong during the day may repent; if that person repents, Allah Almighty accepts his repentance. And He extends His hand during the day so that the one who did wrong at night may repent; if he repents, Allah Almighty accepts his repentance. The truth will be heavy on the Day of Resurrection because of its weight, and falsehood will be light on the Day of Resurrection because of its lightness. Paradise has been placed within disliked things, and the world has been placed within the desires of the self. He submitted: O Messenger of Allah! Tell me about the light of the day and the darkness of the night, about water being warm in winter and cold in summer, about the Secure City (al-Balad al-Amin), about the place from which clouds come forth, about the place from which locust swarms come forth, about thunder and lightning; and tell me what part of the child comes from the man and what part comes from the woman. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "As for the darkness of the night and the light of the day: when the sun sets, it goes beneath the earth, and for this reason the night becomes dark. When the light of morning comes, seventy thousand angels rush towards it, and it holds back reluctantly, disliking that anything other than Allah Almighty be worshipped, until it rises and gives light. Then, because of its long stay, the day becomes long, and for this reason water becomes warm. But when it is summer, its stay becomes shorter, and for this reason water becomes cold. As for the locust swarm, it is born from the sneeze of a fish in the sea named 'al-Abwat', and in it (the sea) it perishes. As for the formation of clouds, they form from the region between the earth and the sky, and from the region of the earth and sky the winds named al-Saba and al-Janub bridle them, and the winds named al-Shamal and al-Dabur drive them from behind. As for thunder, it is an angel who has a whip in his hand; he brings the far one near and pushes the near one back. When he raises his hand, the lightning flashes; when he rebukes, the thunder arises; when he strikes, the lightning flashes. As for what the man gets from the woman and what the woman gets from the man: from the man come the bones, sinews and veins, and from the woman come the flesh, blood and hair. As for 'al-Balad al-Amin', what is meant by it is 'Makkah'."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat. Its chain contains a narrator, Yusuf bin Ya'qub Abu Imran; al-Dhahabi mentioned this hadith in his biography and did not transmit from anyone that he was declared da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) transmits this as a marfu' hadith (attributed to the Prophet): The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty has created a rooster whose talons are on the seventh earth and whose crest is beneath the Throne. Its two wings are in the two horizons. When the last third of the night remains, it beats its two wings and says: 'Subhan al-Malik al-Quddus, subhana Rabbina al-Malik al-Quddus, la ilaha ghayruh' (Glory be to the King, the Most Holy; glory be to our Lord, the King, the Most Holy; there is no god besides Him). Then everything between the earth and the heaven hears it; only the two kinds of beings (that is, jinn and humans) do not hear it. So you will see the rooster: when it hears that sound, it too beats its wings and crows."

In one narration the words are: "Glorify the King, the Most Holy."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat. Its chain contains a narrator, Ibn Ishaq, who is thiqah (trustworthy) and a mudallis (one who conceals defects in the chain). The remaining narrators of this report have been declared trustworthy.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty has permitted me to tell you about the rooster whose feet are on the earth and whose neck is bent beneath the Throne, and it is saying: You are free of every defect, O our Lord; how great You are! Then the Lord answers it: The one who swears falsely by My name does not know this."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, except for al-Tabarani's teacher Muhammad bin al-Abbas bin al-Fadl bin Suhayl al-A'raj, whose case is different; I do not know him.

Sayyiduna Safwan bin Assal (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Allah Almighty has created a rooster beneath the Throne whose wings are in the air and whose talons are in the earth. When it is the time of suhur, or the time of the call to prayer, it flaps its wings and glorifies Allah, and the roosters (of the world) also glorify Allah, answering it with glorification.
Al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Asim bin Bahdalah, who is da'if (weak). His hadith has been declared hasan (good).

Sabah bin Ashras narrates: Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) was asked about the ebb and flow of the tide. He said: There is an angel appointed over the middle of the sea. When he puts his foot down, the tide rises, and when he lifts it, it recedes.
Ahmad recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Musa bin Abi Isa narrates: Once Sayyidah Maryam (peace be upon her) found Sayyiduna Isa (peace be upon him) missing, so she set out searching for him. She met a weaver, and he did not guide her, so she prayed against him; thus you will always see such a person bewildered and confused. Then she met a tailor, and he guided her; this is why people feel at ease with them, that is, people sit with them.
Ahmad recorded it through Ibn Uyaynah from him, and both of these narrators are thiqah (trustworthy).

Yusuf bin Abi Maryam al-Hanafi narrates: Once I was sitting with Sayyiduna Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) when a man came, greeted him with salam and said: Do you not recognise me? Sayyiduna Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) asked him: Who are you? He said: You know of the man who came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and told the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he had seen the wall (of Ya'juj and Ma'juj)? Sayyiduna Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) asked him: Are you that man? He replied: Yes! Sayyiduna Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Sit down and tell us too. He said: Once I travelled and reached a land whose inhabitants did nothing but ironwork. I entered a house and lay down on my back there, and I placed one foot on the wall. When it was the time of sunset, I heard a sound; I had never heard a sound like it, and I became alarmed. The owner of the house said to me: Do not be alarmed, for this thing will not harm you. This is the sound of a people who return from this barrier at this hour. Then he asked: Would you like to see this wall? I said: Yes. The man says: Then I went to that wall, and its bricks were made of iron, each brick like a rock, and it looked as though it were embroidered cloaks, and its nails were like the trunks of date palms. Then I came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and told the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about this. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Describe it to me. I submitted: It was like embroidered (muhabbarah) cloaks. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever wishes to see a man who has reached that wall, let him look at this man. Sayyiduna Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: He has spoken the truth.
Al-Bazzar recorded it through his teacher Amr bin Malik, whom Abu Zur'ah and Abu Hatim declared matruk (abandoned). Ibn Hibban called him thiqah (trustworthy), and he says: He makes mistakes and transmits gharib (unusual) reports. Its chain contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) says: The angels were created from light.
Al-Bazzar recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

This report is transmitted from him. He says: Among the creation of Allah Almighty, no creation is more numerous than the angels. Allah Almighty created them like flies (in vast numbers), and then the Lord said: Become many thousands.
Al-Bazzar recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

Muslim al-Hajari narrates: I said to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him): O Abu Muhammad! From what was creation created? He said: From water, wind, light and darkness. Then I came to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) and asked him about this, and he said about it the same thing that Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) had said.
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and I do not know the narrator Muslim al-Hajari. The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Of the people who lived before you, if one of them were to come among you, he would have reached eighty years of age before attaining puberty.
Al-Bazzar recorded it through his teacher Amr bin Malik. Ibn Hibban declared him thiqah (trustworthy), and he says: He makes mistakes and transmits gharib (unusual) reports. Abu Zur'ah and Abu Hatim declared him matruk (abandoned). The remaining narrators of this report are the narrators of the Sahih.

Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah Almighty created the wind, lodged it in a house and closed its door. If that door were opened, it (the wind) would blow away everything between the heaven and the earth. It does not come to you (in full); it comes to you only through the crack of the door. You call it 'al-Janub' (the south wind), while with Allah Almighty it is 'al-Adhib'."
Al-Bazzar recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Yazid bin Iyad bin Ju'dah, who is a kadhdhab (liar).

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I have been given permission to tell you about an angel whose feet are in the seventh earth and the Throne is upon his shoulder, and he says: You are free of every defect; where were You, and where will You be!"
Abu Ya'la recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih. Some hadiths of this kind have already passed earlier in the Book of Faith.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Milky Way that is in the sky is the vein of a serpent beneath the Throne."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir and al-Mu'jam al-Awsat. He said: It is not narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) except with this chain. Its chain contains a narrator, Abd al-A'la bin Abi Amrah, whom I do not know. The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Mu'adh! I am about to send you to a people who are People of the Book. When you are asked about the Milky Way that is in the sky, then say: It is the saliva of a serpent beneath the Throne."
Al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, al-Fadl bin al-Mukhtar, who is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Throne is encircled by a serpent, and the revelation descends in chains.
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, except Kathir bin Abi Kathir, who is thiqah (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: A quarter of the black people who do not wear clothes are more numerous than all (other) people.
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, except Abdullah bin Ahmad bin Hanbal, who is thiqah (trustworthy) and thabt (firmly reliable).

Sayyiduna Abu Tha'labah al-Khushani (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The jinn are of three kinds: one kind has wings and they fly in the air; one kind is in the form of snakes; and one kind sometimes alights and settles and sometimes departs."
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators have been declared trustworthy, though there is disagreement about some of them.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The lifespan of a fly is forty days, and all flies will be in the Fire, except the honeybee."
Abu Ya'la recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy). Hadiths with this meaning have already passed in the chapter on the (animals) that it is forbidden to kill in hunting.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: Man was given the name insan (human) because a covenant was taken from him, and then he forgot (that covenant).
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Saghir, and its chain contains a narrator, Ahmad bin Isam, who is da'if (weak).