and he was also given a handsome complexion. The angel then asked, “Which kind of property is dearest to you?” He replied, “Camels”—or he said, “Cattle”; the narrator was unsure—so a she-camel in the tenth month of pregnancy was presented to him, and the angel said, “May Allah bless it for you.”

Next the angel came to the bald man and asked, “What is most beloved to you?” He answered, “Fine hair, and for this condition that makes people recoil from me to disappear.” The angel wiped him, the blemish vanished, and he was granted beautiful hair. He then asked, “Which type of wealth do you love most?” “Cattle,” he replied. So he was given a pregnant cow, and the angel said, “May Allah bless it for you.”

Then he came to the blind man and asked, “What is most beloved to you?” He said, “That Allah restore my sight so I may see people.” The angel wiped him and Allah restored his sight. He then asked, “Which form of wealth is dearest to you?” “Sheep,” he said. So he received a nursing ewe. The first two animals conceived and the third gave birth, until the first man possessed a valley full of camels, the second a valley full of cattle, and the third a valley full of sheep.

Afterwards the angel returned to the former leper in the very form and appearance he had once had and said, “I am a poor man; my resources have been exhausted on this journey, and today I have no means of reaching my destination except through Allah, then through you. I ask you, by the One who granted you a fine complexion, healthy skin, and wealth, for a single camel that will see me through my journey.” The man replied, “There are many demands upon me.” The angel said, “It seems I recognize you. Were you not a leper whom people found repulsive and poor, then Allah enriched you?” He said, “I inherited this wealth generation after generation.” The angel replied, “If you are lying, may Allah return you to how you were.”

He then came to the bald man in the very form and appearance he had once had and spoke to him as he had spoken to the first; the bald man answered as the leper had answered. The angel said, “If you are lying, may Allah return you to how you were.”

Finally he came to the blind man in the very form and appearance he had once had and said, “I am a poor man and a traveler; my resources have been exhausted on this journey, and today I have no means of reaching my destination except through Allah, then through you. I ask you, by the One who restored your sight, for a single sheep to help me on my journey.” He replied, “I was indeed blind and Allah restored my sight, so take whatever you wish and leave whatever you wish. By Allah, I will not make matters hard for you today regarding anything you take for Allah, the Mighty.”