, from Ḥammād with a similar wording. He added: “This is a ḥasan gharīb hadith through this chain.”

Al-Ḥāfiẓ ʿAbd al-Ghanī and others also narrated it by another route, from Muḥammad ibn Sīrīn, from Abū Hurayrah, who said:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was on a military expedition when the troops suffered a shortage of food. He said, ‘Abū Hurayrah, do you have anything?’

I replied, ‘A little date-fruit in a satchel of mine.’

He said, ‘Bring it here.’ So I brought the satchel. Then he said, ‘Fetch a niṭāʿ (leather cloth).’ I brought the cloth and he spread it out. He put his hand into the satchel, grasped the dates, and there were twenty-one of them.

He then said, ‘Bismillah (In the name of Allah),’ and began placing each date on the cloth, naming Allah over every one, until he had laid them all out. Then he gathered them together and said, ‘Call so-and-so and his companions.’ They came, ate until they were satisfied, and left.

He said again, ‘Call such-and-such and his companions.’ They came, ate until they were satisfied, and left. Some dates were still left over.

He said to me, ‘Sit down.’ I sat; he ate and I ate, yet some dates still remained. He picked them up and put them back into the satchel. Then he said, ‘Abū Hurayrah, whenever you need something, insert—’