Source: Shumara al-Sunnah, Jhelum
"The Prophet ﷺ said to me: 'O ʿĀʾishah! If I wished, mountains of gold would have walked with me. An angel came to me, whose span was equal to that of the Kaʿbah, and said: Your Lord sends His greetings and says: If you wish, you can be a kingly prophet or a humble servant prophet.' Jibrīl (AS) signaled to me to adopt humility, so I said: I will be a servant prophet. After that, the Prophet ﷺ never ate reclining and used to say: I eat like a servant and sit like a servant.'”
References:
➊ Abū Maʿshar Najīḥ ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Madanī is declared weak by the majority of scholars:
➋ Saʿīd ibn Abī Saʿīd al-Maqburī narrating from ʿĀʾishah (RA) is mursal (interrupted), as he was not known to have directly heard from her.
Thus, even though Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī called it “ḥasan gharīb” and Ḥāfiẓ al-Haythamī deemed its chain “ḥasan,” this grading is not valid due to the weaknesses stated above.
✔ The narration is not authentic due to:
✔ It cannot be used as a reliable proof in matters of belief or practice.
❖ The Narration:
Saidah ʿĀʾishah (RA) reports:"The Prophet ﷺ said to me: 'O ʿĀʾishah! If I wished, mountains of gold would have walked with me. An angel came to me, whose span was equal to that of the Kaʿbah, and said: Your Lord sends His greetings and says: If you wish, you can be a kingly prophet or a humble servant prophet.' Jibrīl (AS) signaled to me to adopt humility, so I said: I will be a servant prophet. After that, the Prophet ﷺ never ate reclining and used to say: I eat like a servant and sit like a servant.'”
References:
- Ṭabaqāt Ibn Saʿd: 1/288
- Musnad Abī Yaʿlā: 4920
- Akhlaq al-Nabī by Abū Shaykh, p. 213
- Sharḥ al-Sunnah by al-Baghawī: 3683
❖ Ruling on the Chain (Isnād):
The chain is weak (ḍaʿīf).➊ Abū Maʿshar Najīḥ ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Madanī is declared weak by the majority of scholars:
- Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Qaṭṭān al-Fāsī:
"Weakened by the majority." [Fayḍ al-Qadīr: 2/300] - Ḥāfiẓ al-ʿIrāqī:
"He is weak according to the majority." [Ṭarḥ al-Tathrīb: 3/4] - Ḥāfiẓ al-Haythamī:
"He has been declared weak by many scholars." [Majmaʿ al-Zawāʾid: 2/89]
➋ Saʿīd ibn Abī Saʿīd al-Maqburī narrating from ʿĀʾishah (RA) is mursal (interrupted), as he was not known to have directly heard from her.
Thus, even though Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī called it “ḥasan gharīb” and Ḥāfiẓ al-Haythamī deemed its chain “ḥasan,” this grading is not valid due to the weaknesses stated above.
Conclusion:
✔ The narration is not authentic due to:- A weak narrator (Abū Maʿshar)
- A disconnected chain (mursal narration)
✔ It cannot be used as a reliable proof in matters of belief or practice.
