Musnad Ahmad

It is narrated from Hazrat Mahmood bin Labeed (may Allah be pleased with him) that when Abu al-Haythar Anas bin Rafi’ came to Makkah Mukarramah, some young men from Banu Abd al-Ashhal were with him, among whom was Iyas bin Mu’adh. The purpose of their arrival was to seek an oath and alliance from the Quraysh against their own Khazraj. When the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) heard of their arrival, he went to them and sat with them and said, “Shall I not tell you something better than the purpose for which you have come?” They asked, “What is that?” The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “I am the Messenger of Allah. He has sent me to His servants so that I may invite them to worship Allah alone and not associate anything with Him, and He has revealed His Book to me.” Then the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) recited the Holy Qur’an to them. Upon hearing it, Iyas bin Mu’adh, who was a young boy, said, “O my people, by Allah! This is much better than that for which you have come here.” So Abu al-Haythar Anas bin Rafi’ picked up a handful of pebbles and threw them at Iyas’s mouth. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) got up from them, and those people also returned to Madinah, and the Battle of Bu’ath took place between the Aws and Khazraj. Shortly after, Iyas bin Mu’adh passed away. Hazrat Mahmood (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the people of my tribe who were present with him at the time of his death told me, “We saw him constantly reciting the Tahleel (La ilaha illallah), Takbeer (Allahu Akbar), Tasbeeh (Subhanallah), and Tahmeed (Alhamdulillah) until he passed away, and there remained no doubt among the people that he died as a Muslim. Indeed, Islam had entered his heart at the very moment he heard the words of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).”