- “The Muslims are like a single man: if his eye aches, his whole body aches; and if his head aches, his whole body aches.”
Muslim recorded it (8/20), as did Ahmad (4/271 and 276), through al-A‘mash, from Khaythamah, from al-Nu‘man ibn Bashir, in a report attributed to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, with this wording. Ahmad said: “The believers.” Al-Bukhari (7/77–78), Muslim as well, Ahmad (4/70), and al-Tayalisi, no. 790, also recorded it from al-Sha‘bi, from al-Nu‘man, in a report attributed to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, with the wording: “The likeness of the believers in their mutual affection, mercy, and compassion is that of a body: when one limb suffers, the rest of the body responds with sleeplessness and fever.”
Al-Tayalisi, no. 793, and Ahmad (4/274) then recorded it, in abridged form, through Hammad ibn Salamah, from Simak ibn Harb, who said: I heard al-Nu‘man ibn Bashir. Its chain of transmission is authentic according to Muslim’s criteria.
It has a supporting narration from Sahl ibn Sa‘d, in a report attributed to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, with the wording: “Indeed, the believer among the people of faith is like the head in relation to the body: the believer suffers for the people of faith just as the body suffers from what afflicts the head.” Ahmad recorded it (5/340): Ahmad ibn al-Hajjaj narrated to us; ‘Abd Allah narrated to us; Mus‘ab ibn Thabit informed me; Abu Hazim said: I heard Sahl ibn Sa‘d al-Sa‘idi.
This chain is satisfactory as supporting evidence. Its narrators are trustworthy and are narrators of al-Bukhari, apart from Mus‘ab ibn Thabit, who is somewhat weak in hadith transmission, though he was devout, as stated in al-Taqrib. Al-Haythami cited the hadith in al-Majma‘ (8/87) and said: “Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are those of the Sahih, apart from Siwar ibn ‘Umarah, who is trustworthy.”