Al-Bayhaqī also transmitted the report.

The Tradition of the Gazelle

Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nuʿaym al-Iṣfahānī—may Allah have mercy on him—states in his book “Dalāʾil al-Nubuwwah”: “Sulaymān ibn Aḥmad dictated to us; Muḥammad ibn ʿUthmān ibn Abī Shaybah narrated to us; Ibrāhīm ibn Muḥammad ibn Maymūn narrated to us; ʿAbd al-Karīm ibn Hilāl al-Jufī narrated to us, from Ṣāliḥ al-Murrī, from Thābit al-Bunānī, from Anas ibn Mālik, who said:

‘The Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by some people who had trapped a gazelle and tied it to the pole of a tent. The gazelle pleaded, “O Messenger of Allah, I was taken while I have two fawns. Grant me permission to nurse them, and I will come back to them.” He asked, “Who owns this animal?” They replied, “We do, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “Release her so she may go to her two fawns, nurse them, and then return to you.” They said, “Who will be surety for us?” He replied, “I will.” They untied her; she went off, suckled her young, and then returned to them, whereupon they bound her again.

Later the Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by them once more and asked, “Where are the owners of this animal?” They answered, “Here we are, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “Would you sell her to me?” They responded, “She is yours, O Messenger of Allah.” He then said, “Set her free.” They released her, and she bounded away.’

Abū Nuʿaym also related: “Abū Aḥmad Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-Ghitrīfī—reading from his own manuscript—told us; Aḥmad ibn Mūsā ibn Anas ibn Naṣr ibn ʿUbayd-Allah ibn Muḥammad ibn Sīrīn of Baṣrah told us; Zakarīyā ibn Yaḥyā ibn Khallād told us; Ḥassān ibn Aghlab ibn Tamīm told us, from his father, from Hishām ibn Ḥassān, from al-Ḥasan, from Ḍabbah ibn Miḥṣan, from Umm Salamah, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ, who said:

‘While the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was in an open stretch of land, a voice called out, “O Messenger of Allah, O Messenger of Allah!” He turned but saw no one. He walked on a little, and again the voice cried, “O Messenger of Allah, O Messenger of Allah!” He turned yet saw no one, though the voice was clearly addressing him. He therefore followed the sound and came upon a gazelle fastened with a rope, while a Bedouin lay sleeping in the sun, wrapped in his cloak. The gazelle said, “O Messenger of Allah, this Bedouin captured me earlier. I have two fawns on that mountain. If you would set me free so that I may nurse them and then return to my tether?” He asked, “Will you really do that?” She replied, “May Allah punish me with the torment meted out to the tax-collector if I do not.” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then released her, and she went off and nursed the two fawns…"