[Report of Ibn ʿAbbās]

Abu Yaʿlā said: Yahyā ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd narrated to us; Abu ʿAwana narrated to us; from Abu Balj; from ʿAmr ibn Maymūn; from Ibn ʿAbbās, who said:

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Tomorrow I shall give the banner to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger, and whom Allah and His Messenger love.” He then asked, “Where is ʿAlī?” They replied, “He is grinding flour.” He remarked, “And not one of them is willing to do the grinding!” ʿAlī was brought, and the Prophet placed the banner in his hand, whereupon he returned with Safiyyah bint Ḥuyayy ibn Akhṭab. This chain of transmission is unique (gharīb) in this form and is an abridgement of a longer report.

Imām Aḥmad also recorded it (1): through Yahyā ibn Ḥammād, from Abu ʿAwana, from Abu Balj, from ʿAmr ibn Maymūn, from Ibn ʿAbbās, giving the narration in full.

Imām Aḥmad said: From Yahyā ibn Ḥammād—Abu ʿAwana related to us; Abu Balj related to us; ʿAmr ibn Maymūn related to us:

I was sitting with Ibn ʿAbbās when nine men approached and said, “Ibn ʿAbbās, either come outside with us or let us speak privately with these people.” He answered, “I will come with you”—and that was before he lost his sight. They began to talk, but we could not hear what they said. He then came back, shaking the dust from his cloak and exclaiming, “Uff and fie! They have spoken against a man who possesses ten merits—they have spoken against the man to whom the Prophet ﷺ said, ‘I will send forth a man whom Allah will never disgrace, who loves Allah and His Messenger.’” Those who hoped for that honor craned their necks in expectation.

He said, “Where is ʿAlī?” They replied, “He is at the hand-mill, grinding.” He remarked, “Could not one of you do the grinding?” ʿAlī came with sore eyes, barely able to see; the Prophet spat into his eyes, then shook the banner three times and handed it to him, and he returned with Safiyyah bint Ḥuyayy (ibn Akhṭab).

Afterward the Prophet sent so-and-so with Surat al-Tawbah, then sent ʿAlī after him, who took it from him. He said, “No one shall carry it except a man who is of me, and I am of him.”

He also said to his cousins, “Which of you will be my ally in this world and the Hereafter?” They refused—while ʿAlī was sitting with him—so ʿAlī said, “I will ally myself with you in this world and the Hereafter.” The Prophet left him and turned again to the men, asking, “Which of you will be my ally in this world and the Hereafter?” They again refused, and ʿAlī said, “I will ally myself with you in this world and the Hereafter.” He replied, “You are my ally in this world and the Hereafter.” Ibn ʿAbbās added: ʿAlī was the first person to embrace Islam after Khadījah.

The Messenger of Allah then took his cloak and draped it over ʿAlī, Fāṭimah, al-Ḥasan, and al-Ḥusayn, and recited, “Indeed, Allah only desires to remove impurity from you, O People of the House, and to purify you completely” (Al-Aḥzāb 33).

ʿAlī offered up his life: he put on the Prophet’s cloak and slept in his bed. The idolaters were seeking the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Abū Bakr arrived while ʿAlī was asleep, thinking he was the Prophet, and said, “O Prophet of Allah!” ʿAlī replied, “The Prophet of Allah has gone toward the well of Maymūnah; catch up with him.” Abū Bakr went and entered the cave with him.

ʿAlī was then pelted with stones just as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to be pelted, and he was in pain. He had wrapped his head in the cloak and did not uncover it until morning. When he uncovered his head they said, “You are indeed base (2); when we stoned your companion he did not flinch (3), but you do—and that has surprised us.”

He continued, “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ set out—meaning on the expedition of Tabūk—and …”