Abu Dawud also said: “He died in 187 AH.”
Ahmad ibn ʿAbd al-Hamid, Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ibn Bittikh, Ahmad ibn Muʾmin, and ʿAbd al-Hamid ibn Ahmad told us, saying:
“ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn Najm informed us; Shuhda the scribe informed us; al-Husayn ibn Talhah informed us; ʿAbd al-Wahid ibn Muhammad informed us; al-Husayn ibn Ismaʿil narrated to us; Yaʿqub ibn Ibrahim narrated to us; Marhum ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz the perfume-seller narrated to us; Abu Naʿamah al-Saʿdi narrated to us, from Abu ʿUthman al-Nahdi, from Abu Musa al-Ashʿari, who said:
‘We were with the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—on a military expedition when he said, “ʿAbd Allah ibn Qays, shall I teach you a treasure from the treasures of Paradise? It is: La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah—There is no power and no might except with Allah (1).”’
Sulayman al-Taymi, Khalid al-Hadhdhaʾ, ʿAsim al-Ahwal, and others also transmitted it from al-Nahdi with similar wording.
86 – al-Muttalib ibn Ziyad ibn Abi Zuhayr al-Thaqafi (Bukh, S, Q)
It was also said that he was their Qurashi client, and it was said that he was the client of Jabir
(1) Reported by al-Bukhari, 7/363: Book of the Expedition of Khaybar; also in the Book of Jihad, “Chapter on the Disapproval of Raising the Voice in the Takbir,” in the Book of Supplications, “Chapter on the Supplication When Ascending an Elevation” and “Chapter on La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah,” in the Book of Predestination, “Chapter on La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah,” and in the Book of Tawhid, “Chapter on the verse: wa kana Allahu samiʿan basiran (And Allah has always been All-Hearing, All-Seeing).” Muslim, no. 2704, records it in the Book of Remembrance, Supplication, Repentance and Seeking Forgiveness, “Chapter on the Recommendation to Lower the Voice in Dhikr.”
Complete wording: Abu Musa al-Ashʿari said, “When the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, set out for (or: marched toward) Khaybar, the people reached a valley and raised their voices, proclaiming the takbir: ‘Allahu akbar, la ilaha illa Allah.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Irbiʿu ʿala anfusikum (be gentle with yourselves); you are not calling upon One who is deaf or absent. You are calling upon One who hears, is near, and is with you.’ I was riding behind the mount of the Messenger of Allah, and he heard me saying, ‘La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah’ (there is no power and no strength except with Allah). He said, ‘O ʿAbd-Allah b. Qays!’ I replied, ‘At your service, O Messenger of Allah.’ He said, ‘Shall I not guide you to a word that is one of the treasures of Paradise?’ I answered, ‘Indeed, O Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be ransomed for you.’ He said, ‘La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.’”
“ Irbiʿu ʿala anfusikum ” means “treat them gently.”
Al-Tabari commented that the narration disapproves of raising one’s voice in supplication and remembrance, and this was the view of the majority of the early generations among the Companions and their Followers. Ibn Hajar transmits this in Fath al-Bari, 6/135, and concurs.
Additional sources: Khalifah b. Khayyat, Tarikh, p. 127; al-Tarikh al-Kabir, 8/60; al-Tarikh al-Saghir, 2/244.