Abū Shuayb Abd Allah ibn al-Hasan al-Harrānī narrated to us, saying: Āsim ibn Alī narrated to us, saying: Abū Mashar narrated to us. Abū Abd Allah Ahmad ibn al-Hasan ibn Abd al-Jabbār al-Sūfī also informed us, saying: Muhammad ibn Bakkār narrated to us, saying: Abū Mashar narrated to us, from Yaqūb ibn Zayd ibn Talha, from Zayd ibn Aslam, from Anas ibn Mālik, who said:

A man known for inflicting heavy losses on the enemy and for his diligence in worship was mentioned to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “I do not know this man.” They said, “O ⦗347⦘ Messenger of Allah, his description is such and such.” The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, replied, “I do not know him.”

While they were still discussing him, the man came into view. They said, “This is the man, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “I did not know this man. This is the first horn I have seen in my community. There is indeed a touch of Satan upon him.”

When the man drew near, he offered the greeting of peace, and the group returned his greeting. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to him, “I adjure you by Allah: when you came upon us, did you tell yourself that no one in the group was better than you?”

He replied, “Yes, by Allah.” He then entered the mosque ⦗348⦘ to pray.

The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to Abū Bakr, “Rise and kill him.” Abū Bakr entered the mosque and found him standing in prayer. Abū Bakr thought to himself, “Prayer possesses an inviolability and a right that must be respected. I should first seek further instruction from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.”

He returned to him, and he asked, “Did you kill him?”

He replied, “No. I saw him standing in prayer, and I recognized prayer’s right and inviolability. If you wish me to kill him, I will.”

He said, “You are not the man for this.” Then he said, “Go, Umar, and kill him.”

Umar entered the mosque and found him prostrating. He waited for him for a long time, then thought to himself, “Prostration possesses a right that must be respected. I should seek further instruction from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, for someone better than I has already sought his instruction.”

He returned to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, who asked, “Did you kill him?”

He replied, “No. I saw him prostrating, and I recognized the right of prostration. If you wish, O Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—I will kill him.”

He said, “You are not the man for this. Rise, Alī, and kill him. You are the man for this, if you find him.”

Alī—may Allah honor his countenance—entered the mosque but did not find him. He returned to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, ⦗349⦘ and informed him. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “Had he been killed today, no two men from my community would have differed with one another until the Dajjāl emerged.”

And he related the remainder of the hadith.