It is reported in Sahīh Muslim that when Uthmān ibn Mazūn was killed, the Prophet said:
“By Allah, though I am the Messenger of Allah, I do not know what will be done with me or with you.” (1)
Al-Tirmidhī and others relate from Abū Dharr that the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—(2) said:
“I see what you do not see, and I hear what you do not hear. Heaven has creaked—and it has every right to creak. There is not a space four fingers wide in it without an angel laying his forehead down in prostration to Allah. By Allah, if you knew what I know, you would laugh little and weep much; you would take no pleasure in women in your beds, and you would go out into the open roads, crying out to Allah in supplication. I wish I were a tree that would be cut down.”
Regarding the words, “I wish I were a tree that would be cut down,” it has been said that they were spoken by Abū Dharr, not by the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him. (3)
Allah—Most High—said:
“Indeed, those who stand in awe for fear of their Lord, who believe in their Lord’s signs, and who associate no partners with their Lord”—and the passage continues [Surah al-Mu’minūn:
(1) The hadith of Umm al-Alā’, a woman of the Ansar—may Allah be pleased with her—is found in several places in *Sahīh al-Bukhārī*: 2/72, Book of Funerals, chapter “Entering upon the Deceased after Death”; 5/67, Book of the Virtues of the Ansar, chapter “The Arrival of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and His Companions in Medina”; 9/34–35, Book of Dream Interpretation, chapter “Women’s Dreams”; and 9/38, in the same book, chapter “The Flowing Spring.” The wording in the last passage is: Umm al-Alā’, one of their women who had pledged allegiance to the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said: “Uthmān ibn Mazūn fell to our lot. He became ill, and we nursed him until he died. I said, ‘May Allah have mercy upon you, Abū al-Sā’ib. I testify concerning you that Allah has indeed honored you.’ He said, ‘How do you know that?’ I replied, ‘By Allah, I do not know.’ He said, ‘As for him, certainty has come to him, and I hope that Allah will grant him good. By Allah, although I am the Messenger of Allah, I do not know what will be done with me or with you.’” Umm al-Alā’ said: “By Allah, I will never again attest to anyone’s righteousness after him.” The hadith continues. It is also found in *al-Musnad*, al-Halabī ed., 6/436. I did not find the hadith in *Sahīh Muslim*.
(2) At this point, a folio is missing from the photographic copy of manuscript (M). I shall indicate where its surviving text resumes at the appropriate place, Allah willing.
(3) This hadith appeared previously at 2/629.