Musnad Ahmad

Shuraih bin Ubaid, may Allah have mercy on him, says that once in the city of Hims, Hazrat Thawban, may Allah be pleased with him, fell ill. At that time, the governor of Hims was Hazrat Abdullah bin Qurt Azdi, may Allah be pleased with him. He did not come to visit Hazrat Thawban, may Allah be pleased with him. Meanwhile, a man from the Kalaiyeen came to visit Hazrat Thawban, may Allah be pleased with him. He asked him, "Do you know how to write?" He replied, "Yes!" Hazrat Thawban, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "Write." So he wrote a letter to the governor of Hims, Hazrat Abdullah bin Qurt Azdi, may Allah be pleased with him: "From the freed slave of the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, Thawban. To proceed: If there had been a slave of Musa, peace be upon him, or Isa, peace be upon him, in your region, you would surely have gone to visit him." Then he rolled up the letter and said, "Will you deliver this letter to him?" He agreed, and took the letter and presented it to Hazrat Abdullah bin Qurt, may Allah be pleased with him. As soon as he read the letter, he became alarmed and stood up. People, seeing this, began to say in astonishment, "What has happened to him? Has some strange incident occurred?" He went straight from there to Hazrat Thawban, may Allah be pleased with him, entered the house, visited him, and after sitting for a short while, stood up to leave. Hazrat Thawban, may Allah be pleased with him, held his cloak and said, "Sit down so that I may tell you a hadith which I heard from the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. I heard the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, say: 'Seventy thousand people from my Ummah will certainly enter Paradise without any reckoning or punishment, and with every thousand, there will be seventy thousand more.'"