Hadith #124

Arabic Text

English Translation

Shihāb ibn ʿAbbād narrated that he heard some of the delegation of ʿAbd al-Qays say: We came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and they were overjoyed at our arrival. When we reached the people, they made room for us. the Prophet ﷺ welcomed us and supplicated for us, then looked at us and said: 'Who is your leader and chief?' We all pointed to al-Mundhir ibn ʿĀʾidh. the Prophet ﷺ said: 'Is this al-Ashajj?' — this was the first day that name was given to him, due to a mark on his face from the hoof of a donkey. We said: 'Yes, O Messenger of Allah.' Al-Ashajj had stayed behind after the people to tie their camels and gather their belongings, then took out his travel bag, removed his travel clothes, and put on his best clothes. He then came to the Prophet ﷺ, who had stretched out his leg and was reclining. When al-Ashajj approached, the people made room and said: 'Over here, O Ashajj.' the Prophet ﷺ sat up straight, drew his leg in, and said: 'Over here, O Ashajj.' He sat at the right of the Prophet ﷺ, who sat up, welcomed him warmly, then asked about his land, naming the village of al-Ṣafā, al-Mushaqqar, and others of the villages of Hajar. Al-Ashajj said: 'By my father and mother, O Messenger of Allah, you know the names of our villages better than we do.' He said: 'I have traversed your lands, and they were opened up to me.' Then he turned to the Anṣār and said: 'O people of the Anṣār, honor your brothers, for they are the most like you in Islam, the closest to you in disposition and appearance. They embraced Islam willingly, not by compulsion or bereavement, while other people refused to submit until they were killed.' Then he asked them: 'How did you find the hospitality of your brothers?' They said: 'The best of brothers! They softened our beds, served us good food, and spent their nights and mornings teaching us the Book of our Lord and the Sunnah of our Prophet.' the Prophet ﷺ was pleased and happy. Then he examined us one by one on what we had learned — some had learned the Tashahhud, the Fātiḥah, a surah or two, and a sunnah or two. Then he turned to us and said: 'Do you have any of your provisions with you?' The people were happy at this and rushed to their luggage. Each man brought a pile of dates and placed it on a leather mat before him. He pointed with a palm stalk in his hand — between the length of a forearm and two forearms — and said: 'Do you call this taʿḍūḍ?' We said: 'Yes.' Then he pointed to another pile and said: 'Do you call this ṣarafān?' We said: 'Yes.' Then he pointed to another and said: 'Do you call this barnī?' We said: 'Yes.' He said: 'Indeed, it is the best of your dates and the most beneficial for you.' When we returned from our delegation, we planted extensively from it, and our desire for it grew until it became the bulk of our date palms and dates — barnī. Al-Ashajj said: 'O Messenger of Allah, our land is heavy and unhealthy, and if we do not drink these beverages, our complexions worsen and our bellies swell.' the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: 'Do not drink from gourds, green-glazed jars, or hollowed tree trunks. Let each of you drink from his tied waterskin.' Al-Ashajj said: 'By my father and mother, O Messenger of Allah, give us a concession for this.' the Prophet ﷺ gestured with his hands and said: 'O Ashajj, if I give you a concession for this much' — showing with his hands — 'you would drink this much' — and he spread his hands wide, meaning much larger — 'until when one of you becomes intoxicated from his drink, he would get up and strike his cousin's leg with a sword.' Among the delegation was a man from Banū ʿAṣr called al-Ḥārith whose leg had been struck with a sword during a drinking gathering when he recited poetry about a woman among them, and one of the household struck his leg with a sword. Al-Ḥārith said: 'When I heard this from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, I kept pulling my garment down to cover the wound on my leg, but Allah had revealed it to His Prophet ﷺ.'