Hadith #267
Arabic Text
حَدَّثَنَا وَكِيعٌ حَدَّثَنَا الْأَعْمَشُ عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ عَلْقَمَةَ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ قَالَ كُنْتُ أَمْشِي مَعَ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي حَرْثٍ بِالْمَدِينَةِ وَهُوَ مُتَّكِئٌ عَلَى عَسِيبٍ قَالَ فَمَرَّ بِقَوْمٍ مِنْ الْيَهُودِ فَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ لِبَعْضٍ سَلُوهُ عَنْ الرُّوحِ قَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ لَا تَسْأَلُوهُ فَسَأَلُوهُ عَنْ الرُّوحِ
فَقَالُوا يَا مُحَمَّدُ مَا الرُّوحُ فَقَامَ فَتَوَكَّأَ عَلَى الْعَسِيبِ قَالَ فَظَنَنْتُ أَنَّهُ يُوحَى إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ { وَيَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنْ الرُّوحِ قُلْ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي وَمَا أُوتِيتُمْ مِنْ الْعِلْمِ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا } قَالَ فَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ قَدْ قُلْنَا لَكُمْ لَا تَسْأَلُوهُ
Isnad Chain
وكيع
الأعمش
إبراهيم
علقمة
عبد الله
الروح
English Translation
It was narrated from 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (رضي الله عنه) — via Waki', from al-A'mash, from Ibrahim, from 'Alqama — that 'Abdullah said: 'I was walking with the Prophet ﷺ in a cultivated field in Medina, and he was leaning on a palm-leaf stalk ['asib]. He passed by a group of Jews, and some of them said to others: Ask him about the soul. Some said: Do not ask him. But they asked him about the soul: O Muhammad, what is the soul? He stood up and leaned on the stalk. I thought he was receiving revelation. Then he said: "And they ask you about the soul. Say: The soul is of the affair of my Lord, and of knowledge you have been given only a little" [17:85]. Some of them said: We told you not to ask him.'
Quran References
Reference: Musnad Ahmad, Book 11, Hadith 267
Sunnah.com ref: Musnad Ahmad 3505
Islam.wiki ID: IWH-39895