It was recorded by Aḥmad in his Musnad (1).

Al-Minhāl ibn Baḥr related that al-ʿAlāʾ ibn Muḥammad narrated to us, from al-Faḍl ibn Ḥabīb, from Furāt ibn al-Sāʾib, from Maymūn ibn Mihrān, from Ibn ʿAbbās, who said:

“I once passed by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ while he was wearing spotless white garments and was speaking privately with Dihyah ibn Khalīfah al-Kalbī—who was actually Gabriel, though I did not know it at the time. Gabriel asked, ‘Who is this?’ The Prophet replied, ‘My cousin.’ Gabriel then remarked, ‘How dirty his clothes are! Yet his descendants will rise to prominence after him.’

“After that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to me, ‘Did you see the one who was speaking to me?’ I replied, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Be aware that your eyesight will one day be taken from you (2).’”

Its chain of transmission is soft.

Thawr ibn Zayd al-Dīlī narrated, on the authority of Mūsā ibn Maysarah, that al-ʿAbbās sent his son ʿAbdullāh to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on an errand. When he arrived he found a man with the Prophet, so he returned without speaking to him. Later al-ʿAbbās met the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said, “I sent my son to you, but he found a man with you and could not address you.” The Prophet replied, “Uncle, do you know who that man was?” He said, “No.” The Prophet said, “That was Gabriel who met me. Your son will not die before he loses his sight and is granted knowledge.”

This was also transmitted by Sulaymān ibn Bilāl and al-Darāwardī from Thawr with similar wording.

It was likewise related by Muḥammad ibn Ziyād al-Ziyādī from al-Darāwardī (3), who said: from Ayyūb, from Mūsā ibn