Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (1/176)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

I reached Medina and presented myself before the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He said, “Wahshi?” I replied, “Yes.” He said, “Sit down and tell me how you killed Hamzah.” So I narrated it to him exactly as I have just related it to you two. Thereupon he said, “Woe to you! Keep your face away from me; do not let me see you again.” From that day on I deliberately avoided the Messenger of Allah ﷺ wherever he might be (1) until he passed away.

When the Muslims marched out against Musaylima, I went with them, carrying the very spear with which I had killed Hamzah. When the two armies met, I looked for Musaylima and saw him holding a sword. By Allah, I could not even recognize him, and at the same time an Ansari was advancing on him from another direction—both of us were seeking him. When he came within my reach, I drove my spear into him and it struck him, and the Ansari closed in and struck him with his sword. Your Lord knows best which of us killed him.

If it was I who killed him, then I have killed the best of men after the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and I have killed the worst of men (2).

With this same chain: from Sulayman ibn Yasar, from Abdullah ibn Umar, who said: I heard a man say, “The black slave killed him”—meaning Musaylima.

(1) The verb tanakkaba fulan anna means: he turned away from us and avoided us. (2) The chain up to Wahshi is sound. The report is also found in: Ibn Hisham, al-Sirah 2:70-73; Ibn al-Athir, Asad al-Ghabah 5:438-440; Ibn Abd al-Barr, al-Istiyab 11:51—all through the same isnad. Al-Bukhari likewise records it (no. 4072, Book of Military Expeditions, “The Killing of Hamza”) through Abu Ja far Muhammad b. Abd Allah → Hujayn b. al-Muthanna → Abd al-Aziz b. Abi Salamah → Abd Allah b. al-Fadl → Ja far b. Yasar → Ja far b. Amr al-Damari … (3) See Ibn Hisham 2:73; Asad al-Ghabah 5:440; al-Istiyab 11:49, all via the Ibn Ishaq route. It is transmitted by Abd Allah b. al-Fadl → Sulayman b. Yasar → Abd Allah b. Umar b. al-Khattab (who fought at al-Yamamah): “That day I heard a voice cry out, ‘He was killed by the black slave.’” Al-Bukhari concludes the same hadith (no. 4072) with: Abd Allah b. al-Fadl said, “Sulayman b. Yasar told me that he heard Abd Allah b. Umar say: A slave-girl standing on a rooftop cried, ‘O Commander of the Faithful, the black slave has killed him.’”

قَدِمْتُ المَدِيْنَةَ عَلَى رَسُوْلِ اللهِ ﷺ فَقَالَ: (وَحْشِيٌّ؟) . قُلْتُ: نَعَمْ. قَالَ: (اجْلِسْ، فَحَدِّثْنِي كَيْفَ قَتَلْتَ حَمْزَةَ) . فَحَدَّثْتُهُ كَمَا أُحَدِّثُكُمَا. فَقَالَ: (وَيْحَكَ! غَيِّبْ عَنِّي وَجْهَكَ، فَلاَ أَرَيَنَّكَ) . فَكُنْتُ أَتَنَكَّبُ (١) رَسُوْلَ اللهِ ﷺ حَيْثُ كَانَ، حَتَّى قُبِضَ. فَلَمَّا خَرَجَ المُسْلِمُوْنَ إِلَى مُسَيْلِمَةَ، خَرَجتُ مَعَهُم بِحَرْبَتِي الَّتِي قَتَلْتُ بِهَا حَمْزَةَ، فَلَمَّا الْتَقَى النَّاسُ، نَظَرْتُ إِلَى مُسَيْلِمَةَ وَفِي يَدِهِ السَّيْفُ، فَوَاللهِ مَا أَعْرِفُهُ، وَإِذَا رَجُلٌ مِنَ الأَنْصَارِ يُرِيْدهُ مِنْ نَاحِيَةٍ أُخْرَى، فَكِلاَنَا يَتَهَيَّأُ لَهُ. حَتَّى إِذَا أَمْكَنَنِي، دَفَعْتُ عَلَيْهِ حَرْبَتِي، فَوَقَعَتْ فِيْهِ، وَشَدَّ الأَنْصَارِيُّ عَلَيْهِ، فَضَرَبَهُ بِالسَّيْفِ، فَرَبُّكَ أَعْلَمُ أَيُّنَا قَتَلَهُ. فَإِنْ أَنَا قَتَلْتُهُ، فَقَدْ قَتَلْتُ خَيْرَ النَّاسِ بَعْدَ رَسُوْلِ اللهِ ﷺ وَقَتَلْتُ شَرَّ النَّاسِ (٢) . وَبِهِ: عَنْ سُلَيْمَانَ بنِ يَسَارٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللهِ بنِ عُمَرَ، قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَجُلاً يَقُوْلُ: قَتَلَهُ العَبْدُ الأَسْوَدُ، -يَعْنِي: مُسَيْلِمَةَ-.

(١) تنكب فلان عنا، أي: مال عنا وتجنبنا. (٢) إسناده قوي إلي وحشي. وأخرجه ابن هشام ٢ / ٧٠ - ٧٣ وابن الأثير في " أسد الغابة " ٥ / ٤٣٨ - ٤٤٠، وابن عبد البر في " الاستيعاب " ١١ / ٥١ وكلهم من هذا الطريق. وأخرجه البخاري (٤٠٧٢) في المغازي: باب قتل حمزة، ﵁، من طريق أبي جعفر محمد بن عبد الله، عن حجين بن المثنى، عن عبد العزيز بن أبي سلمة، عن عبد الله بن الفضل، عن جعفر بن يسار، عن جعفر بن عمرو الضمري ... (٣) انظر ابن هشام ٢ / ٧٣، و" أسد الغابة " ٥ / ٤٤٠، و" الاستيعاب " ١١ / ٤٩ وكلهم من طريق: ابن إسحاق. عن عبد الله بن الفضل، عن سليمان بن يسار، عن عبد الله بن عمر بن الخطاب - وكان قد شهد اليمامة - قال: سمعت يومئذ صارخا يقول: قتله العبد الأسود. وأخرجه البخاري في نهاية الحديث (٤٠٧٢) قال: قال عبد الله بن الفضل: فأخبرني سليمان ابن يسار أنه سمع عبد الله بن عمر يقول: فقالت جارية، على ظهر البيت: وا أمير المؤمنين قتله العبد الأسود.