Mustadrak al-Hakim — Hadith 5831

It is narrated from Harim bin Hayyan al-Abdi that he said: I came to Kufa, and my only purpose was to find Uways al-Qarani and ask about him, until at midday I found him sitting alone on the bank of the river Euphrates, making ablution (wudu) and washing his garment. I recognised him by his description. He was a man of full body, of deep brown complexion, with abundant hair, a shaved head and a thick beard, wearing a woollen lower garment and a woollen cloak, and without shoes. His face was stern and his appearance extremely awe-inspiring. I greeted him with salam; he returned it and looked at me. I said: May Allah keep you well. I extended my hand to shake hands with him, but he declined and said: "And may Allah keep you well too." I submitted: O Uways! May Allah have mercy on you and forgive you; how are you? Then, out of my love for him and my tenderness at seeing his condition, my throat choked up and I began to weep, and he wept too. Then he said: "And may Allah have mercy on you too, O Harim bin Hayyan! How are you, my brother? Who told you where I was?" I submitted: Allah. He said: "La ilaha illallah (There is no god but Allah). 'Glory be to our Lord! Indeed, the promise of our Lord has been fulfilled' [Surah al-Isra: 108]." I was astonished that he called me by my name, although, by Allah, I had never seen him before, nor had he seen me. Then I asked: How did you recognise me and know my name and my father's name, when I have never met you before today? He said: "The All-Knowing, the All-Aware informed me. My spirit recognised your spirit when my soul spoke to your soul. Indeed, spirits have souls just as the living have. Indeed, the believers recognise one another and converse with one another through the spirit granted by Allah even if they have not met, and they recognise one another even if they have not spoken, even though their lands be far apart and their dwellings separated." I submitted: Narrate to me a hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) which I may memorise from you. He said: "I did not meet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), nor did I have his companionship; however, I have seen men (Companions) who saw him (peace and blessings be upon him), and his hadith have reached me just as they have reached you. And I do not like to open this door upon myself, to become a narrator of hadith, a storyteller or a mufti, for, O Harim bin Hayyan, my own soul keeps me very busy." I submitted: O my brother! Recite to me some verses from the Book of Allah; I wish to hear them from you, for I love you intensely for the sake of Allah. And make some supplications for me and give me some advice that I may remember from you. So he took hold of my hand on the bank of the Euphrates and said: 'A'udhu billahi al-sami' al-'alim min al-shaytan al-rajim, bismillah al-rahman al-rahim' (I seek refuge in Allah, the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing, from Satan the accursed; in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful). The narrator says: He let out a deep sob and wept right there. Then he said: Exalted is the remembrance of my Lord; His word is the truest, His speech the most truthful and His words the most beautiful: "And We did not create the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them in play. We did not create them except in truth" until he reached this verse: "Except those on whom Allah has mercy. Indeed, He is the Almighty, the Most Merciful" [Surah al-Dukhan: 38 - 42]. Then he let out a deep sob and fell silent. I looked at him and thought that perhaps he had fainted. Then he said: "O Harim bin Hayyan! Your father has died and you too are close to death; and Hayyan's father (your grandfather) has also died. Now the abode is either Paradise or Hell. O Ibn Hayyan! Adam died, Hawwa died, Nuh and Ibrahim the Friend of Allah died, Musa who spoke with Allah died, Dawud the vicegerent of Allah died, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) the Messenger of the Most Merciful died, and Abu Bakr the caliph of the Muslims also died, O Ibn Hayyan! And my brother, my sincere companion and friend Umar bin al-Khattab has also died." Then he cried out: "Alas, Umar! May Allah have mercy on Umar." Yet Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was alive at that time, and this was in the last period of his caliphate. I said to him: May Allah have mercy on you, Umar bin al-Khattab is still alive. He said: "Yes indeed, but my Lord has informed me of his death. If you have understanding, then know what I have said; and you and I too are among the dead (and this has already been decreed)." Then he sent blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and made some brief supplications. Then he said: "O Harim bin Hayyan! This is my advice to you: hold fast to the Book of Allah, keep the company of the righteous among the Muslims, and keep sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). My death and yours have been announced to me, so hold fast to the remembrance of death; let it not leave your heart even for the blink of an eye. When you return to your people, warn them (of the Hereafter), give sincere counsel to all the people of your faith, and strive hard for your own soul. And beware! Never separate from the Jama'ah, or you will separate from your religion without even realising it, and you will enter the Fire on the Day of Resurrection." Then he supplicated: "O Allah! This man claims that he loves me for Your sake and has visited me for Your sake. O Allah! Let me recognise his face in Paradise, and bring him in to me as a visitor in Your abode, the Abode of Peace. Protect him wherever he may be as long as he is in this world, gather together for him his scattered affairs, make him content with little of this world, make easy for him whatever of this world You give him, make him among those who are grateful for the blessings You grant him, and reward him with the best of rewards." O Harim bin Hayyan! I entrust you to Allah; peace and the mercy of Allah be upon you. Then he said to me: "After today I will not see you, may Allah have mercy on you, for I dislike fame and solitude is dearer to me, because as long as I am alive in this world among these people, I remain deeply grieved and greatly anxious. Now do not ask about me and do not search for me. And know that you will remain in my thoughts even though I do not see you and you do not see me. Just remember me and pray for me, for I too, if Allah wills, will remember you and pray for you. You go this way and I will go that way." Harim says: I tried very hard to walk with him for a while, but he refused. I parted from him while he was weeping and so was I. I kept watching his back until he disappeared into the streets. After that, how much I searched for him and asked about him, but I found no one who could give me news of him. May Allah have mercy on him and forgive him. Now no Friday passes over me without my seeing him in my dream once or twice.