Musnad Ahmad

It is narrated from Hazrat Abdullah bin Abi Hadr (may Allah be pleased with him) that once the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent us towards a place called "Azm." I set out with a group of Muslims, among whom were Hazrat Abu Qatadah bin Harith Rabi'i (may Allah be pleased with him) and Muhallim bin Jathamah. When we reached "Batan Azm," Amir Ashja'i passed by us with some of his camels. He also had some belongings and a water skin of milk with him. As he passed by, he greeted us with salam, upon which we restrained our hands, but Muhallim bin Jathamah attacked him and killed him. In fact, there was an old grudge between the two. Muhallim killed him and took possession of his camels and belongings. When we returned and informed the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) of this incident, this verse was revealed: "O you who believe! When you travel in the land, investigate carefully, and do not say to anyone who greets you with peace, 'You are not a believer.'"

It is narrated from Hazrat Abdullah bin Abi Hadr (may Allah be pleased with him) that he married a woman and went to the service of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to request help in paying the dowry. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked, "What dowry did you fix for her?" I replied, "Two hundred dirhams." The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Even if you were picking up dirhams from this valley like pebbles, you should not have fixed such a high dowry. At this time, I have nothing to give you."

After some time, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called me and included me in a detachment going towards Najd and sent me there, saying, "Go with this detachment, perhaps you will get something and I will give it to you as a reward." So we set out and by evening reached near a city. When the darkness of night faded (and there was moonlight), our leader started sending us in pairs. We surrounded the army. Our leader had said, "When I say takbeer and attack, you should also say takbeer and attack. Do not separate from each other, and I will ask each of you about your companion, so that he is not missing from his companion, and do not go too far ahead while chasing the enemy."

When we intended to attack, I heard the voice of a man from the city who was shouting, "O Shadabi!" I took this as a good omen that we would get prosperity from their side. When the night deepened, our leader said takbeer and attacked, and we also attacked saying takbeer. Suddenly, a man passed by me with a sword in his hand. I chased after him, but my companion said, "Our leader instructed us not to go too far while chasing the enemy, so come back." When I did not stop chasing him, he said, "By God, come back, otherwise I will go and tell them that you did not obey their command." I said, "By Allah! I will definitely chase him," and I kept chasing him until I got close and shot an arrow at his back. He fell and said, "O Muslim! Come near to Paradise." But I did not go near him and shot another arrow at him and loosened it. Seeing this, he swung his sword at me, but his aim missed, and I grabbed the sword and killed him with it, and cut off his head. Since our attack was very severe (the enemy fled), and we got many animals and goats as spoils of war, and we set off back.

In the morning, another camel was standing near my camel, on which a beautiful young woman was riding. She kept turning back again and again in great abundance. I asked her, "Whom are you looking for?" She said, "I am looking for a man. By God! If he were alive, he would have caught you." I understood that she was talking about the same person whom I had killed, so I told her, "I have killed him, and this is his sword." The sword was hanging with the saddle of my camel, while the scabbard that was hanging with the saddle of his camel was empty. When I told her this, she said, "Take this scabbard, and if you are truthful, compare it." I took the scabbard from her hand and compared both, and they matched each other. Seeing this, the woman started crying, and we returned to the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) gave me a share from the animals that we had brought.