Musnad Ahmad

Bishr Taghlibi, who used to sit with Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him), says: In Damascus, there lived a companion of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) who was known as Ibn Hanzalah. He was a man of reclusive nature and had very little interaction with people. His habit was that he would keep performing prayers, and when he finished, he would engage in tasbih and takbir, and then go to his home. Once, we were sitting with Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) when he (Ibn Hanzalah) passed by us. Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him, "Tell us something from which we may benefit and you will not be harmed." He replied: Once, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) dispatched an army. When that army returned, one of the men came and sat in the gathering of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and said to the man sitting beside him, "If only you had seen the scene when we confronted the enemy! At that moment, so-and-so person raised his spear and, while striking a disbeliever, said, 'Take this! I am a young man from Ghifar.'" What is your opinion regarding this statement of his? The man replied, "In my opinion, he has wasted his reward." When the other man heard this, he said, "I see nothing wrong in it." Thereupon, the two began to argue, until the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also heard this and said, "Subhan Allah! There is nothing wrong in praising him, and he will also receive the reward." I saw that Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) became very happy after hearing this hadith from him, and raising his head towards him, he asked, "Did you yourself hear this from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)?" He replied in the affirmative. Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) repeated this question so many times that I thought he would not let him go until he made him sit down on his knees.

After that, he once again passed by us, and Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) requested, as before, for a hadith in the same words. He replied that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to us: The one who spends on a horse in the way of Allah is like the person who keeps his hands open for charity, never closing them.

After that, he passed by us once again, and Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) requested, as before, for a narration of a hadith in the same words. He replied that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) once said: "Khuraim Asadi is an excellent man, if only his hair were not so long and he did not let his lower garment hang below his ankles." When Khuraim learned of this, he took a knife and cut his hair up to half of his ears and raised his lower garment up to the middle of his shins. My father relates that once I went to Hazrat Amir Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), and there I saw an elderly man whose hair was above his ears and his lower garment was up to his shins. I asked people about him, and they told me that he was Khuraim Asadi (may Allah be pleased with him).

After that, once again he passed by us, and Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) requested him as before, so he replied, "I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: 'You are going to meet your brothers, so set right your mounts and your clothes, for Allah does not like obscene or foul speech.'"

Qasim, who was the freed slave of Hazrat Amir Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), says that once I entered the mosque of Damascus, where I saw a gathering of people to whom an elder was narrating hadith. I asked the people, "Who is he?" They told me that he is Hazrat Sahl bin Hanzalah (may Allah be pleased with him). I heard him saying that I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: Whoever eats meat should perform a new ablution.

Bishr Taghlibi, who used to sit with Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him), says that there lived in Damascus a companion of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) who was called Ibn Hanzala. He was a man of reclusive nature and had very little interaction with people. His habit was that he would remain engaged in prayer, and when he finished, he would busy himself with tasbih and takbir, and then go to his home. One day, we were sitting with Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) when he passed by us. Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him, "Tell us something from which we may benefit and you will not be harmed." He replied, "Once the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent out an army. When that army returned, one of the men came and sat in the gathering of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said to the man sitting beside him, 'If only you had seen the scene when we confronted the enemy! On that occasion, so-and-so person raised his spear and, striking a disbeliever, said, "Take this, I am a young man from Ghifar."' What is your opinion about this statement of his?" The man replied, "In my opinion, he has wasted his reward." When the other man heard this, he said, "I see nothing wrong in it." At this, the two began to argue, until the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also heard about it and said, "Subhan Allah! There is nothing wrong in praising him, and he will also receive the reward." I saw that Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) was very pleased after hearing this hadith and, raising his head towards him, said, "Did you yourself hear this from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)?" He replied in the affirmative. Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) repeated this question so many times that I thought he would not let him go until he made him sit on his knees.

After that, he passed by us once again, and Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) requested, as before, for a narration of a hadith in the same words. He replied that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) once said: "Khuraim Asadi is an excellent man, if only his hair were not so long and he did not let his lower garment hang below his ankles." When Khuraim learned of this, he took a knife and cut his hair up to half of his ears and raised his lower garment up to the middle of his shins. My father relates that once I went to Hazrat Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), where I saw an elderly man whose hair was above his ears and his lower garment was up to his shins. I asked people about him, and they told me that he was Khuraim Asadi (may Allah be pleased with him).

After that, once again he passed by us, and Hazrat Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) requested him as before, so he replied, "I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: 'You are going to meet your brothers, so set right your mounts and your clothes, for Allah does not like obscene or foul speech.'"

It is narrated from Hazrat Sahl bin Hanzalah (may Allah be pleased with him) that once the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), Uyainah and Aqra’ asked for something. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered Hazrat Amir Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) to write it for them. He wrote it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sealed it and ordered that the letter be handed over to them. Uyainah asked, "What is written in it?" He replied, "What you had wished for." Uyainah kissed it and wrapped it in his turban. Uyainah was more intelligent than both of them, while Aqra’ said, "Should I go around carrying a document like a beggar, about which I do not know what is written in it?" Hazrat Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) informed the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about what both of them had said. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) went out for some work and in the early part of the day passed by a camel tied at the door of the mosque. When he passed by there in the latter part of the day, the camel was still tied in the same way. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked, "Where is the owner of this camel?" Despite searching, its owner was not found. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Fear Allah regarding these animals. Ride them when they are healthy and strong." Then he said, "Whoever asks while he has enough to fulfill his need, as just now someone who showed displeasure did, then he is adding to the coals of Hell." The companions (may Allah be pleased with them) asked, "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), what is meant by need?" He replied, "Food."