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Hadith 210

أَخْبَرَنَا أَخْبَرَنَا الْحَكَمُ بْنُ الْمُبَارَكِ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ يَحْيَى، قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ أَبِي يُحَدِّثُ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، قَالَ: كُنَّا نَجْلِسُ عَلَى بَابِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَبْلَ صَلَاةِ الْغَدَاةِ، فَإِذَا خَرَجَ، مَشَيْنَا مَعَهُ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ، فَجَاءَنَا أَبُو مُوسَى الْأَشْعَرِيُّ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ، فَقَالَ: أَخَرَجَ إِلَيْكُمْ أَبُو عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بَعْدُ ؟، قُلْنَا: لَا، فَجَلَسَ مَعَنَا حَتَّى خَرَجَ، فَلَمَّا خَرَجَ، قُمْنَا إِلَيْهِ جَمِيعًا، فَقَالَ لَهُ أَبُو مُوسَى: يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، إِنِّي رَأَيْتُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ آنِفًا أَمْرًا أَنْكَرْتُهُ وَلَمْ أَرَ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ إِلَّا خَيْرًا، قَالَ: فَمَا هُوَ ؟، فَقَالَ: إِنْ عِشْتَ فَسَتَرَاهُ، قَالَ: رَأَيْتُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ قَوْمًا حِلَقًا جُلُوسًا يَنْتَظِرُونَ الصَّلَاةَ فِي كُلِّ حَلْقَةٍ رَجُلٌ، وَفِي أَيْدِيهِمْ حَصَا، فَيَقُولُ: كَبِّرُوا مِائَةً، فَيُكَبِّرُونَ مِائَةً، فَيَقُولُ: هَلِّلُوا مِائَةً، فَيُهَلِّلُونَ مِائَةً، وَيَقُولُ: سَبِّحُوا مِائَةً، فَيُسَبِّحُونَ مِائَةً، قَالَ: فَمَاذَا قُلْتَ لَهُمْ ؟، قَالَ: مَا قُلْتُ لَهُمْ شَيْئًا انْتِظَارَ رَأْيِكَ أَوِ انْتِظَارَ أَمْرِكَ، قَالَ: أَفَلَا أَمَرْتَهُمْ أَنْ يَعُدُّوا سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ، وَضَمِنْتَ لَهُمْ أَنْ لَا يَضِيعَ مِنْ حَسَنَاتِهِمْ ؟ ثُمَّ مَضَى وَمَضَيْنَا مَعَهُ حَتَّى أَتَى حَلْقَةً مِنْ تِلْكَ الْحِلَقِ، فَوَقَفَ عَلَيْهِمْ، فَقَالَ: مَا هَذَا الَّذِي أَرَاكُمْ تَصْنَعُونَ ؟، قَالُوا: يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ حَصًا نَعُدُّ بِهِ التَّكْبِيرَ، وَالتَّهْلِيلَ، وَالتَّسْبِيحَ، قَالَ: "فَعُدُّوا سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ، فَأَنَا ضَامِنٌ أَنْ لَا يَضِيعَ مِنْ حَسَنَاتِكُمْ شَيْءٌ، وَيْحَكُمْ يَا أُمَّةَ مُحَمَّدٍ، مَا أَسْرَعَ هَلَكَتَكُمْ ! هَؤُلَاءِ صَحَابَةُ نَبِيِّكُمْ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مُتَوَافِرُونَ، وَهَذِهِ ثِيَابُهُ لَمْ تَبْلَ، وَآنِيَتُهُ لَمْ تُكْسَرْ، وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ، إِنَّكُمْ لَعَلَى مِلَّةٍ هِيَ أَهْدَى مِنْ مِلَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ، أَوْ مُفْتَتِحُو بَابِ ضَلَالَةٍ"، قَالُوا: وَاللَّهِ يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، مَا أَرَدْنَا إِلَّا الْخَيْرَ، قَالَ: "وَكَمْ مِنْ مُرِيدٍ لِلْخَيْرِ لَنْ يُصِيبَهُ، إِنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ حَدَّثَنَا أَنَّ قَوْمًا يَقْرَؤُونَ الْقُرْآنَ لَا يُجَاوِزُ تَرَاقِيَهُمْ، وَايْمُ اللَّهِ مَا أَدْرِي لَعَلَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ مِنْكُمْ"، ثُمَّ تَوَلَّى عَنْهُمْ، فَقَالَ عَمْرُو بْنُ سَلَمَةَ: رَأَيْنَا عَامَّةَ أُولَئِكَ الْحِلَقِ يُطَاعِنُونَا يَوْمَ النَّهْرَوَانِ مَعَ الْخَوَارِجِ.
Amr bin Yahya reported that I heard from my father, who narrated from his father, who said: We used to sit at the door of Abdullah bin Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) before the Zuhr prayer. When he would come out, we would walk with him to the mosque. One day, Abu Musa Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him) also came to us and asked: Has Abu Abdur Rahman (the kunyah of Ibn Mas’ud, may Allah be pleased with him) come out yet? We said: No, not yet. So he sat with us. When Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) came out, we all stood up for him. Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Abu Abdur Rahman! I have just seen something in the mosque that I disliked, though, all praise is due to Allah, it must be good. Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: What is it? He said: You will see it yourself when you reach there. Then he said: I saw a group of people sitting in circles waiting for the prayer. In each circle, there was a man, and in their hands were pebbles. That man would say to them: Say Allahu Akbar a hundred times, so they would say Allahu Akbar a hundred times, counting with the pebbles. Then he would say: Say La ilaha illallah a hundred times, so they would say La ilaha illallah a hundred times. Then he would say: Say Subhanallah a hundred times, so they would say Subhanallah a hundred times.

Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: So what did you say to them? He said: I did not say anything to them, waiting for your opinion or command. Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Why did you not command them to count their sins with those pebbles, and guarantee them that none of their good deeds would be lost? Then he set out, and we went with him until he came to one of those circles and stood by them and said: What is this that I see you doing? They said: Abu Abdur Rahman! These are pebbles by which we count the number of takbeer, tahlil, and tasbeeh. Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Count your evil deeds, for I guarantee that none of your good deeds will be lost. O Ummah of Muhammad! How quickly you have fallen into destruction! The companions of your Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are still many among you, and his clothes have not yet decayed, nor have his vessels been broken. By Him in Whose hand is my soul, are you upon a guidance better than the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), or are you opening a door of misguidance? They said: O Abu Abdur Rahman! By Allah, we only intended good. Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: How many seekers of good never attain it! The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) told us that there will be a people who will recite the Qur’an, but it will not go beyond their throats. By Allah, most of them may be from among you. Then he left them. Amr bin Salamah said: We saw most of the people in those circles fighting against us with the Khawarij on the day of Nahrawan, shooting arrows at us (i.e., those same people later joined the Khawarij).
Hadith Reference سنن دارمي / مقدمه / 210
Hadith Grading تحقیق (حسین سلیم أسد الدارانی): إسناده جيد، [مكتبه الشامله نمبر: 210]
Hadith Takhrij اس روایت کی سند صحیح ہے۔ دیکھئے: [مصنف ابن أبي شيبه 19736] ، [معجم الطبراني الكبير 8636] ، [مجمع الزوائد 863] ، نیز [ترمذي 2189] اور [ابن ماجه 168] نے آخر کا پیراگراف اختصار سے ذکر کیا ہے۔
Brief Explanation
(Commentary on Hadiths 208 to 210)

In this lengthy narration and hadith, there is a severe condemnation of innovation (bid‘ah) and a strong expression of disapproval regarding the practice of reciting tasbih (glorification), tahlil (declaration of Allah’s oneness), and takbir (proclamation of Allah’s greatness) on pebbles or beads of a rosary (tasbih). This is the intense reaction of Sayyiduna Ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu.

Today, those who use his words as evidence are themselves in opposition to him, wandering around with rosaries (tasbih) in their hands.

This also establishes the mutual respect the noble Companions (Sahabah) had for one another, which is a cause for emulation and reflection.

The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam foretold that a group would emerge who would recite the Qur’an but would be devoid of action; they would abandon following the Qur’an and hadith, instead following their own desires and Satan, and would act according to their own whims in religious matters. This prophecy was fulfilled exactly in the form of the Khawarij.