Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah 37011 — The words of Luqman

Khalid bin Bab al-Rab'i (Ja'far said: and he used to read the scriptures) stated: Luqman (may Allah have mercy on him) was an Abyssinian carpenter and a slave. (Once) his master said to him: Slaughter a goat for me. He said: So he slaughtered a goat for him. His master said: Bring me its two best parts. So he brought him the heart and the tongue. He said: His master said: Was there nothing in it better than these? Luqman (may Allah have mercy on him) said: No. So his master fell silent, and some time passed in this way. Then (one day) his master said: Slaughter a goat for me. So he slaughtered a goat. His master said: Throw out its two worst parts. So he threw out its heart and tongue. His master said: I told you to bring its two best parts, and you brought the heart and the tongue; then I told you to throw out its two worst parts, and you again threw out the heart and the tongue (what is the reason for this?). Luqman (may Allah have mercy on him) said: When the heart and the tongue are pure, there is nothing better than them (in the body), and when the heart and the tongue are evil, there is nothing worse than them (in the body).