Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (1/519)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

is your name?”

He mentioned it.

I asked, “Do you know Abū al-Faḍl?”

“Yes,” he replied. “I only wish I might live long enough to see him. Indeed(1), he is the one through whom God favored me with this religion. I am awaiting the Prophet of Mercy he described to me: he will emerge from the mountains of Tihāmah, and he will be called Muhammad son of ʿAbd Allāh. He rides the camel, the donkey, the horse, and the mule; the free man and the slave are equal in his sight; compassion fills his heart and every limb—were it divided among the whole world, none of it would remain for anyone else. Between his shoulders is a mark the size of a dove’s egg, on which is written: on the inside, ‘God alone, without partner; Muhammad is the Messenger of God,’ and on the outside, ‘Go where you will, for you are granted victory.’ He eats what is given as a gift but not what is given as charity; he is neither rancorous nor envious, and he never wrongs a treaty-partner or a Muslim.”

I rose and said to myself, “Perhaps I can still catch up with my companion.”

I had not gone far when I looked right and left but saw nothing.

Some Bedouins of the Kalb tribe passed by; they seized me and carried me to Yathrib, calling me Maysarah. I kept pleading with them, but they could not understand my speech.

A woman named Khulaysah bought me for three hundred dirhams and asked, “What skills do you have?”

I replied, “I pray to my Lord, worship Him, and weave palm-leaf mats.”

“And who is your Lord?” she asked.

“The Lord of Muhammad,” I answered.

“Woe to you,” she exclaimed, “he is in Mecca! Still, take that palm-tree for your prayers—I will not stop you—prepare the palm leaves, and work for my daughters, for your Lord—if you are sincere to Him in worship—will grant you what you seek.”

I remained with her for sixteen months until the Messenger of Allah ﷺ arrived in Medina. News of his arrival reached me while I was on the far side of the city, during the time of khilāl(2). I picked some of the khilāl, placed them in my garment, and went about asking after him, until I entered upon him while he was in the house of Abū—

(1) The word amma (“as for”) is omitted in the printed edition. (2) Al-khilal refers to a thin stick used to pick threads from cloth or food from between the teeth; al-habb designates a large earthen jar (al-khabiyah) and is an Arabised Persian term.

اسْمُكَ؟ قَالَ: فَذَكَرَ اسْمَهُ. فَقُلْتُ: أَتَعْرِفُ أَبَا الفَضْلِ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ، وَوَدِدْتُ أَنِّي لاَ أَمُوْتُ حَتَّى أَرَاهُ، أَمَا (١) إِنَّهُ هُوَ الَّذِي مَنَّ عَلَيَّ بِهَذَا الدِّيْنِ، فَأَنَا أَنْتَظِرُ نَبِيَّ الرَّحْمَةِ الَّذِي وَصَفَهُ لِي، يَخْرُجُ مِنْ جِبَالِ تِهَامَةَ، يُقَالُ لَهُ: مُحَمَّدُ بنُ عَبْدِ اللهِ، يَرْكَبُ الجَمَلَ وَالحِمَارَ وَالفَرَسَ وَالبَغْلَةَ، وَيَكُوْنُ الحُرُّ وَالمَمْلُوْكُ عِنْدَهُ سَوَاءً، وَتكُوْنُ الرَّحْمَةُ فِي قَلْبِهِ وَجَوَارِحِهِ، لَوْ قُسِّمَتْ بَيْنَ الدُّنْيَا كُلِّهَا لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهَا مَكَانٌ، بَيْنَ كَتِفَيْهِ كَبَيْضَةِ الحَمَامَةِ عَلَيْهَا مَكْتُوْبٌ، بَاطِنُهَا: اللهُ وَحْدَهُ، لاَ شَرِيْكَ لَهُ، مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُوْلُ اللهِ، وَظَاهِرُهَا: تَوَجَّهْ حَيْثُ شِئْتَ فَإِنَّكَ المَنْصُوْرُ، يَأْكُلُ الهَدِيَّةَ، وَلاَ يَأْكُلُ الصَّدَقَةَ، لَيْسَ بِحَقُوْدٍ وَلاَ حَسُوْدٍ، وَلاَ يَظْلِمُ مُعَاهِداً، وَلاَ مُسْلِماً. فَقُمْتُ مِنْ عِنْدِهِ، فَقُلْتُ: لَعَلِّي أَقْدِرُ عَلَى صَاحِبِي. فَمَشَيْتُ غَيْر بَعِيْدٍ، فَالْتَفَتُّ يَمِيْناً وَشِمَالاً لاَ أَرَى شَيْئاً. فَمَرَّ بِي أَعْرَابٌ مِنْ كَلْبٍ، فَاحْتَمَلُوْنِي حَتَّى أَتَوْا بِي يَثْرِبَ، وَسَمَّوْنِي مَيْسَرَةَ، فَجَعَلْتُ أُنَاشِدُهُم، فَلاَ يَفْقَهُوْنَ كَلاَمِي، فَاشْتَرَتْنِي امْرَأَةٌ يُقَالُ لَهَا خُلَيْسَةُ بِثَلاَثِ مَائَةِ دِرْهَمٍ، فَقَالَتْ: مَا تُحْسِنُ؟ قُلْتُ: أُصَلِّي لِرَبِّي، وَأَعْبُدُهُ، وَأَسُفُّ الخُوْصَ. قَالَتْ: وَمَنْ رَبُّكَ؟ قُلْتُ: رَبُّ مُحَمَّدٍ. قَالَتْ: وَيْحَكَ، ذَاكَ بِمَكَّةَ، وَلَكِنْ عَلَيْكَ بِهَذِهِ النَّخْلَةِ، وَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ لاَ أَمْنَعُكَ، وَسُفَّ الخُوْصَ، وَاسْعَ عَلَى بَنَاتِي، فَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ يَعْنِي إِنْ تُنَاصِحْهُ فِي العِبَادَةِ يُعْطِكَ سُؤْلَكَ. فَمَكَثْتُ عِنْدَهَا سِتَّةَ عَشَرَ شَهْراً حَتَّى قَدِمَ رَسُوْلُ اللهِ ﷺ المَدِيْنَةَ، فَبَلَغَنِي ذَلِكَ وَأَنَا فِي أَقْصَى المَدِيْنَةِ، فِي زَمَنِ الخِلاَلِ (٢) ، فَانْتَقَيْتُ شَيْئاً مِنَ الخِلاَلِ، فَجَعَلْتُهُ فِي ثَوْبِي، وَأَقْبَلْتُ أَسْأَلُ عَنْهُ، حَتَّى دَخَلْتُ عَلَيْهِ وَهُوَ فِي مَنْزِلِ أَبِي

(١) سقطت " أما " من المطبوع. (٢) الخلال: عود يخلل به الثوب والاسنان، والحب: الخابية. فارسي معرب