Thābit narrated to us; ʿIlbāʾ ibn Aḥmar al-Yashkurī narrated to us; Abū Zayd al-Anṣārī narrated to us and said:
“The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, led us in the dawn prayer, then ascended the pulpit and preached to us until the time for the noon prayer arrived. He then came down, performed the noon prayer, ascended the pulpit again and preached to us until the afternoon prayer became due. He came down, performed the afternoon prayer, ascended the pulpit once more and preached to us until the sun had set. He told us about all that had happened and all that is yet to come; the one who remembered most among us is the most knowledgeable among us.”
Muslim alone recorded this ḥadīth. He placed it in the Book of Tribulations of his Ṣaḥīḥ, transmitting it from Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm al-Dūraqī and Ḥajjāj ibn al-Shāʿir, both from Abū ʿĀṣim al-Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Makhlad al-Nabīl, from ʿAzrah, from ʿIlbāʾ, from Abū Zayd ʿAmr ibn Akhtab ibn Rifāʿah al-Anṣārī, may Allah be pleased with him, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, with similar wording.
Imām Aḥmad said: Yazīd ibn Hārūn and ʿAffān narrated to us; they both said: Ḥammād ibn Salamah narrated to us, informing us from ʿAlī ibn Zayd, from [Abū Naḍrah, from] Abū Saʿīd, who said:
“The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, delivered a sermon to us after the afternoon prayer that lasted until the sun was about to set. Whoever among us retained it, retained it, and whoever forgot it, forgot it.”
ʿAffān added: Ḥammād said—and this is what I remember most accurately—that the Prophet said, “He spoke of everything that will occur until the Day of Resurrection.” He praised Allah and extolled Him, then said:
“To proceed: Truly, this world is verdant and sweet, and Allah is appointing you as vice-gerents in it to see how you will act. So beware of the world, and beware of women …”
He mentioned the remainder of the sermon in full until he said:
“Behold! The portion of this world that remains is like the portion of this day that remains compared to what has already passed.”
Imām Aḥmad then said: ʿAbd al-Razzāq narrated to us; Maʿmar informed us from ʿAlī ibn Zayd ibn Judʿān, from