27 – Hammad narrated from Ibrāhīm, from ʿAlqamah, from ʿAbd Allah ibn Masʿūd, who said:
A man once came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and asked, “O Messenger of Allah, will anyone who affirms divine oneness ever remain in the Fire?”
He replied, “Yes: a man at the very bottom of Hell keeps calling out, al-Hannān al-Mannān (O Most Tenderly Compassionate, O Ever-Bestowing), until Gabriel hears his voice. Astonished, Gabriel exclaims, ‘How wondrous! How wondrous!’ He cannot rest until he is prostrate before the Throne of the Most Merciful.
Allah says, ‘Raise your head, O Gabriel.’ When Gabriel lifts his head, He asks, ‘What marvel have you witnessed?’—although Allah knows best what he has seen. Gabriel answers, ‘My Lord, I heard a voice from the depths of Hell calling out al-Hannān al-Mannān, and I was amazed by that cry.’
Allah says, ‘O Gabriel, go to Mālik and tell him: “Bring out the servant who calls upon al-Hannān al-Mannān.”’ Gabriel goes to one of Hell’s gates and strikes it; Mālik comes out, and Gabriel conveys the command. Mālik goes in to look for the man but cannot find him—even though Mālik knows the denizens of the Fire better than a mother knows her own child. He returns and says to Gabriel, ‘Hell has just heaved a sigh so violent that I can no longer tell stone from iron, nor iron from men.’
Gabriel goes back and again prostrates before the Throne of the Most Merciful. Allah asks, ‘Raise your head, O Gabriel. Why have you not brought My servant?’ Gabriel replies, ‘My Lord, Mālik says that Hell has heaved a sigh so violent that he can no longer distinguish stone from iron, nor iron from men.’
Allah says, ‘Tell Mālik: My servant is in such-and-such a depth, in such-and-such a crevice.’ (In another version: ‘in such-and-such a place.’) Gabriel conveys the information, Mālik enters, and he finds the man cast upside-down—his forelock bound to his feet, his hands shackled to his neck, and serpents and scorpions swarming over him. Mālik drags him until the serpents and scorpions fall away, then gives another tug until the chains and fetters snap. He takes him out of the Fire, plunges him into the Water of Life, and hands him over to Gabriel.
Gabriel seizes him by the forelock and stretches him out. Whenever Gabriel passes him by a company of angels they exclaim, ‘Fie upon this servant!’—until he is finally prostrate before the Throne of the Most Merciful.
Allah says, ‘Raise your head, O Gabriel,’ and then addresses the man: ‘My servant, did I not create you in fair form? Did I not send a messenger to you? Was My Book not recited to you? Did I not command you and forbid you?’—until the servant admits his guilt.
Allah Most High then asks, ‘Why did you do such-and-such?’ The servant replies, ‘My Lord, I wronged myself and remained in the Fire for such-and-such autumns, yet I never lost hope in You. My Lord, I called upon You as al-Hannān al-Mannān and You released me by Your grace; so have mercy on me through Your mercy.’
Allah Most High declares, ‘Bear witness, My angels, that I have shown him mercy.’