نَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مُبَشِّرٍ ، نَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ سِنَانٍ ، نَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الأَنْصَارِيُّ ، نَا ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ ، نَا عَطَاءٌ ، عَنْ صَفْوَانَ بْنِ يَعْلَى ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ ، قَالَ : غَزَوْتُ مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ جَيْشَ الْعُسْرَةِ فَكَانَ مِنْ أَوْثَقِ أَعْمَالِي فِي نَفْسِي ، وَكَانَ لِي أَجِيرٌ فَقَاتَلَ إِنْسَانًا فَعَضَّ أَحَدُهُمَا إِصْبَعَ صَاحِبِهِ ، فَلَقَدْ سَمَّى لِي صَفْوَانُ أَيُّهُمَا عَضَّ فَنَسِيتُهُ ، قَالَ : فَانْتَزَعَ إِصْبَعَهُ فَانْكَسَرَتْ ثَنِيَّتُهُ فَرَفَعَ إِلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، فَأَهْدَرَ ثَنِيَّتَهُ ، وَقَالَ : يَدَعُ يَدَهُ فِي فِيكَ تَقْضَمُهَا ، أَحْسَبُهُ قَالَ : كَقَضْمِ الْفَحْلِ " .
Sayyiduna Safwan bin Ya’la narrates from his father: I participated in the Battle of Tabuk with the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). I think this was my greatest good deed. I had a laborer with me, and he got into a fight with another man. One of them bit the other’s finger. (The narrator says:) Sayyiduna Sufyan had mentioned who bit whose finger, but I have forgotten that detail. The other man pulled his hand away, and the biter’s front teeth broke. This case was brought before the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and he declared the teeth to be without compensation and said: “Would this man have left his hand in your mouth so that you could bite it?” (The narrator says: I think this is the example in the narration) “You would have bitten it like a bull.”