Ibn Hibban

Sayyiduna Suhaib (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: In earlier times there was a king who had a magician. When the magician grew old, he said to the king: I have grown old, so send me a boy so that I may teach him magic. So the king sent a boy to him so that he could start teaching him. While the boy was on his way, he passed by a monk. He sat with him and listened to his conversation, and he liked what he heard. When he went to the magician, the magician beat him. When he returned from the magician, he sat with the monk and listened to his conversation. When he came home, his family beat him. He complained about this to the monk, so the monk said: When you fear the magician, say, "My family did not let me come," and when you fear your family, say, "The magician kept me." This continued in this way.

One day, the boy passed by a large animal that was blocking the way of the people. The boy thought, "Today I will find out whether the monk is superior or the magician." He took a stone and said: O Allah! If the matter of the monk is more beloved to You than the matter of the magician, then kill this animal so that the people may pass. Then he threw the stone at the animal and killed it, so the people passed by. He went to the monk and told him about this, so the monk said: O my son, today you are superior to me. Soon you will be tested. If you are tested, do not guide anyone to me.

Then the boy began to cure those who were born blind and those afflicted with leprosy. He began to cure all kinds of diseases (i.e., he began to heal them). One of the king's courtiers, who had become blind, heard about him. He came to the boy with many gifts and said: If you cure me, all this will be yours. The boy said: I do not cure anyone; it is Allah Almighty who cures. If you believe in Allah Almighty, I will pray to Allah Almighty, and He will cure you. So that person believed in Allah Almighty, and Allah Almighty cured him. Then he went to the king and came to him as before. The king asked him: How did you regain your sight? He replied: My Lord restored it to me. The king asked: Do you have a Lord other than me? He said: My Lord and your Lord is One. After that, the king kept torturing him until he guided him to the boy.

Then the boy was brought, and the king said to him: O boy, now your magic has reached the point that you cure those born blind, those afflicted with leprosy, and so-and-so. The boy said: I do not cure anyone; Allah Almighty cures. The king seized the boy and kept torturing him until he guided him to the monk. The monk was brought and was told: Renounce your religion. The monk refused, so a saw was brought, placed in the middle of his head, and he was sawn until his body was split into two parts. Then the king's courtier was brought and told: Renounce your religion. He refused, so the saw was placed in the middle of his head, and he too was sawn into two parts.

Then the boy was brought and told: Renounce your religion. The boy also refused. The king handed the boy over to his companions and said: Take him to such-and-such mountain, climb up the mountain with him. If he renounces his religion, fine; otherwise, throw him down. They took him and climbed up the mountain. The boy prayed: O Allah, suffice me against them as You will. The mountain shook, and they all fell down. The boy then walked back to the king. The king asked him: What happened to your companions? He replied: Allah Almighty sufficed me against them.

The king handed him over to other companions and said: Take him, put him in a boat, and take him to the middle of the sea. If he renounces his religion, fine; otherwise, throw him into the sea. They took him, and the boy said: O Allah, suffice me against them as You will. Their boat overturned (and all the others drowned). The boy then walked back to the king. The king asked him: What happened to your companions? He replied: Allah Almighty sufficed me against them.

Then he said to the king: You cannot kill me until you do what I instruct you. The king asked: What is that? He said: Gather the people in a field, tie me to the trunk of a date-palm tree, take an arrow from your quiver, place it in the bow, and say: In the name of Allah, the Lord of this boy, and then shoot the arrow at me. When you do this, you will kill me.

The king gathered the people in a field, tied the boy to the trunk of a date-palm tree, took an arrow from his quiver, placed it in the bow, and said: In the name of Allah, the Lord of this boy. Then the king shot the arrow, and it struck the boy in his temple. He placed his hand on the spot of the arrow and died. The people said: We believe in the Lord of this boy. We believe. They said this three times.

The courtiers came to the king and said: Did you notice that the very thing you were trying to avoid has happened? They have believed. So, by the king's order, pits were dug at various places, and fires were lit in them. The king ordered: Whoever does not renounce his religion, burn him. They did so until a woman came with her child. She hesitated to jump into the fire, so the boy said: Mother, be patient. You are on the truth.