Reports ascribed to ᶜAbd Allāh b. Masᶜūd
22. Aḥmad b. Manīᶜ → ᶜAbbād b. al-ᶜAwwām:
Al-Shaybānī said that he asked Zirr b. Ḥubaysh about the Qurᵓānic verse: “And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or even nearer” (Q 53:09). He said that he (Zirr b. Ḥubaysh) replied, “Ibn Masᶜūd told me that the Prophet saw Gabriel who had six hundred wings.”
23. Salm b. Junādah → Abū Muᶜāwiyah → Ibn Isḥāq (al-Shaybānī) → Zirr b. Ḥubaysh:
ᶜAbd Allāh commented on the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent” (Q 53:13), saying, “He saw Gabriel who had six hundred wings.”
24. Muhammad b. Yaḥyā → al-Nufaylī → Zuhayr → Abū Isḥāq al-Shaybānī:
I asked Zirr b. Ḥubaysh to explicate the Divine statement: “And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or even nearer” (Q 53:09). He replied, “ᶜAbd Allāh b. Masᶜūd reported to us that he (the Messenger) saw Gabriel who had six hundred wings.”
25. Zakariyyā b. Yaḥyā b. Abān → ᶜAmr b Khālid (al-Ḥarrānī) → Zuhayr → Abū Isḥāq:
I came to Zirr b. Ḥubaysh wearing two pearls in my ears. He showed me love and care. People started pressing me to ask some questions from him. I asked him about the verse: “And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or even nearer” (Q 53:09). He said, “Ibn Masᶜūd told me that the Messenger of Allāh said, “I saw Gabriel who had six hundred wings.””
26. Muhammad b. Yaḥyā → Ḥajjāj b. Muhammad → Ḥammād → ᶜĀṣim → Zirr:
Ibn Masᶜūd said that the Messenger of Allah said while commenting on the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent, near the sidrah al-muntahā” (Q 53:13-4), “I saw Gabriel near the* sidrah al-muntahā*. He had six hundred wings which issued forth wonderful, variegated pearls and rubies.”
27. Muhammad b. Yaḥyā → Abū Bakr b. Abī Shaybah → Ḥusayn b. ᶜAlī → Zāᵓidah → ᶜĀṣim → Zirr → ᶜAbd Allāh:
The Prophet saw Gabriel in his original form on the Sidrah al-Muntahā. He had six hundred wings.
28. Muhammad b. Yaḥyā → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Mahdī → Shuᶜbah → al-Shaybānī:
I heard Zirr b. Ḥubaysh saying: “ᶜAbd Allāh said….”
29. Muhammad → ᶜAbd al-Ṣamad b. ᶜAbd al-Wārith → Shuᶜbah → al-Shaybānī → Zirr:
ᶜAbd Allāh commented on the verses: “For truly did he see, of the signs of his Lord, the greatest!” (Q 53:18). He said, “He (the Messenger) saw Gabriel in his real form. He had six hundred wings.”
30. Muhammad → Abū al-Walīd → Shuᶜbah → al-Shaybānī:
I asked Zirr b. Ḥubaysh about the verse: “For truly did he see, of the signs of his Lord, the Greatest!” (Q 53:18). He said that ᶜAbd Allāh said to him, “He saw a red carpet spread over the entire horizon.”
31. Muhammad b. Bashshār → Yaḥyā b. Saᶜīd → Ḥammād b. Salamah → ᶜĀṣim → Zirr:
ᶜAbd Allāh commented on the divine statement: “For truly did he see, of the signs of his Lord, the Greatest!” (Q 53:18), and said, “He saw Gabriel who had six hundred wings from which wonderful variegated pearls and rubies scattered.”
32. ᶜAbdah b. ᶜAbd Allāh al-Khuzāᶜī → Yaḥyā b. Ᾱdam → Isrāᵓīl → Abū Isḥāq → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Yazīd → ᶜAbd Allāh:
[While explaining] the verse: “The (Prophet's) heart in no way falsified that which he saw (Q 53:11),” he said, “The Prophet saw Gabriel in a feathery garment covering between the heaven and the earth.”
33. Muhammad b. ᶜAbd al-Aᶜlā → Khālid b. al-Ḥārith → Shuᶜbah → al-Shaybānī → Zirr → ᶜAbd Allāh:
[Interpreting the verse]: “For truly did he see, of the Signs of his Lord, the Greatest!” (Q 53:18) or the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent,” (Q 53:13) he said, “He saw Gabriel in his real form. He had six hundred wings.”
34. Muhammad b. ᶜAbd al-Aᶜlā → Khālid b. al-Ḥārith → Shuᶜbah → Sulaymān → Ibrāhīm → ᶜAqlamah → ᶜAbd Allāh:
[Commenting on the verse]: “For truly did he see, of the signs of his Lord, the Greatest!” (Q 53:18) or the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent” (Q 53:13), he said, “He saw a red carpet spread over the entire horizon.”
35. Yaḥyā b. Ḥakīm → Yaḥyā b. Saᶜīd → Ḥammād b. Salamah → ᶜĀṣim Ibn Buhdalah → Zirr b. Ḥubaysh → ᶜAbd Allāh (who ascribed it to the Prophet sws):
[Regarding the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent,” (Q 53:13) the Prophet said], “I saw Gabriel who had seventy thousand wings from which wonderful variegated pearls and rubies scattered.”
36. Muhammad b. Yaḥyā → Abū Ḥudhayfah → Sufyān b. ᶜĀṣim → Zirr → ᶜAbd Allāh:
Gabriel flew and frightened the Prophet who was alone (al-khalāᵓ).
Abū Bakr said: al-khalāᵓ here means seclusion opposed to company. It means that the Prophet was alone. No one else was there with him when he saw Gabriel.
37. Yūsuf b. Mūsā → Jarīr → Abū Isḥāq al-Shaybānī → Zirr b. Ḥubaysh → Ibn Masᶜūd:
While talking about the verse: “And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer;” (Q 53:09) he said, “The Prophet saw Gabriel who had six hundred wings.”
38. Muhammad b. Maᶜmar → Rawḥ → Shuᶜbah → Sulaymān → Ibrāhīm → ᶜAqlamah → ᶜAbd Allāh:
[While] commenting on the verse: “For truly did he see, of the signs of his Lord, the Greatest,” (Q 53:18) he said, “He saw a red carpet which had covered the horizon of the heavens.”
Abū Bakr said: I have included other related narratives in Kitāb al-Tafsīr (Chapter on Tafsīr). Similarly, I have recorded the commentaries ascribed to the earlier authorities on the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent,” (Q 53:13) in the same chapter.
Abū Bakr said: The reports ascribed to Ibn Masᶜūd prove that the verse: “For truly did he see, of the signs of his Lord, the greatest!” (Q 53:18) can correctly be interpreted as follows. Gabriel saw the signs of his Lord the way Ibn Masᶜūd has described in the reports ascribed to him. As for the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent” (Q 53:13), it is not inappropriate to hold that it means what Ibn ᶜAbbās narrated regarding it. He said that the Prophet saw his Lord twice. Thus it is likely that Ibn ᶜAbbās referred to Q 53:13 and not to Q 53:18.
Another report in this regard has been ascribed to Abū Dharr. The scholars have differed over its interpretation. The wording of the narrative can be interpreted to mean that the Prophet saw Allah just as it accommodates the meaning that he did not see Him. Both interpretations are possible and fit in the conventions of the language of the Arabs.
39. Abū Mūsā → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Mahdī → Yazīd b. Ibrāhīm (al-Tustarī) → Qatādah → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq:
I said to Abū Dharr, “Had I met the Messenger of Allāh I would have asked him something.” He said, “What would you ask him about?” I said, “I would have asked him whether he had seen the Lord.” He said, “I asked the Prophet this question and he replied, “How could I see Him (annā arāhu)?””
40. Yaḥyā b. Ḥakīm → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān → ᶜAlī b. al-Ḥusayn al-Dirhamī → Muᶜādh b. Muᶜādh al-ᶜAnbarī → Yazīd b. Ibrāhīm al-Tustarī → Qatādah → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq al-ᶜUqaylī:
I asked Abū Dharr, “Had I met the Messenger of Allāh, I would have asked him something.” He said, “What would you ask him about?” I said, “I would have asked him whether he had seen his Lord.” He said, “I asked him this question.” “What did he say?” I asked. He said that the Prophet responded, “He is light. How can I see Him (annā arāhu)?”
41. Salm b. Junādah al-Qarshī → Wakīᶜ → Yazīd b. Ibrāhīm → Qatādah → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq:
Someone said to Abū Dharr, “Had I met the Prophet, I would have asked him something.” He said, “What would you ask him about?” He said, “I would ask him whether he had seen his Lord.” Abū Dharr said that he had indeed put this question before the Prophet who had replied, “He is light. How could I see Him (annā arāhu)?”
Abū Bakr said: If we consider the historicity of this narrative, I believe there is an important point to note. I do not see that any of our scholars have detected that there is a hidden defect in this report. ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq did not know Abū Dharr. He did not know him by name, nor did he know his family origin. This I base on the following fact.
42. Abū Mūsā Muhammad b. al-Mathannā → Muᶜādh b. Hishām → his father → Qatādah → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq:
I visited Madina where I saw a man standing on a black horse with white spots on the foreheads (gharāᵓir sūd). He was saying, “The people of treasures should receive the news that they will be burnt in this life and the one to come.” People said, “This is Abū Dharr, the Companion of the Prophet.”
Abū Bakr said: ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq says this after the death of Abū Dharr. He states that he had seen a man saying such and such while riding on the back of a black horse with white spots on its forehead. He also states that he was informed by the people that it was Abū Dharr. This shows that he did not recognize Abū Dharr. He did not know that the man was Abū Dharr.
As for the Prophetic statement: Nūrun annā arāhu, it can be interpreted two ways. First, it negates the possibility of seeing Allah. Taken in this meaning the Prophet seems to have said that Allah is light and it is not possible to see Him. Second, the Prophet could have said, “Where did I see Him? How did I see Him when He is light? No eye can see Him like they see things in this world.” This would then be identical to what ᶜIkramah said. He said, “When Allāh appears in His light nothing can see Him.” What supports the latter interpretation is what the leader of the scholars of his time, Muhammad b. Bashshār Bundār, has narrated to us:
43. Muᶜādh b. Hishām → his father → Qatādah → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq:
I said to Abū Dharr, “Had I met the Prophet, I would have asked him something.” He said, “What would you ask him about?” I said that I would ask him, “Have you seen your Lord?” Abū Dharr said, “I did ask him this question once and he replied, “I saw a light.””
44. Yaḥyā b. Ḥakīm also narrated the same narrative from ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān from Abū Mūsā from the Prophet:
He is light (nūran). I have indeed (innī arāhu) seen Him.
45. Bundār → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Mahdī → Yazīd b. Ibrāhīm al-Tustarī → Qatādah → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Shaqīq:
I said to Abū Dharr, “Had I met the Prophet, I would have asked him something.” He said, “What is it that you wanted to ask him about?” I said that I would have asked him, “Have you seen your Lord?” He said, “I have asked the Prophet this question and he replied, “He is light. How could I have seen Him (annā arāhu)?”” Bundār has quoted the words* annā arāhu* (how could have I seen Him) instead of* innī arāhu* (I have indeed seen Him) as Abū Mūsā said.
Abū Bakr said: The words annā/innī bear two meanings. It implies negation as well as approval. Allāh Almighty says: Your wives are as a tilth unto you; so approach your tilth when (annā) you will Q 2:223). So the word* annā* here can mean ‘where’ [you desire]. Therefore, it is possible that the words spoken by Abū Dharr,* annā arāhu* mean [the same thing i.e. he saw him where.] Also, the meaning of the word* annā* in the verse can be that* kayfa shiᵓtum* and* ayna shiᵓtum* (when and how you desire). Analogously the meaning of the words used by Abū Mūsā then will be as follows: “Where did I see Him? Or how did I see Him? For He is light.”
This corresponds to what has been reported by Muᶜādh b. Hishām from his father that Abū Dharr reported that the Prophet said, “I saw a light.”
According to this interpretation, the meaning of the words annā arāhu would be: “Where did I see Him?” Or “How did I see Him?” We know that the Arabs use this word to connote negation. The following verse is an example: “How can he exercise authority over us?” (Q 2:247)
The implication is that they ask, how is it possible that this man be appointed our king when we deserve the kingdom better than him. If the words ascribed to Abū Dharr reported by Yazīd b. Ibrāhīm al-Tustarī which are innī arāhu or* annā arāhu* implied negation of the possibility of seeing Allah, then the meaning of the tradition under consideration would deny that the Prophet saw the Almighty. This is corroborated by the fact that it is known through another sound narrative that Abū Dharr clarified that the Prophet saw the Lord through the eyes of his heart.
46. Aḥmad b. Manīᶜ → Hushaym → Manṣūr (b. Zādhān) → al-Ḥakam → Yazīd b. Sharīk b. al-Rashk → Abū Dharr:
Abū Dharr said while commenting on the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent” (Q 53:13), “He (the Prophet) saw Him with the eyes of heart.”
(….) Abū Hāshim Ziyād b. Ayūb → Hushaym al-ᶜAwwām→ Manṣūr → al-Ḥakam → Yazīd b al-Rashk → Abū Dharr:
The Prophet saw Him with the eyes of his heart, not the exact eyes.
47. Abū Hāshim → Hushaym al-ᶜAwwām (Ibn Ḥawshab) → Ibrāhīm al-Taymī:
While explaining the verse: “For indeed he saw Him at a second descent,” (Q 53:13), he said, “He saw Him with his heart and not with eyes.”
48. Muhammad b. Maᶜmar → Rawḥ b. Ubādah → Sālim Abū ᶜUbayd Allāh → ᶜAbd Allāh b. al-Ḥarath b. Nawfal:
The Prophet saw Him with the eyes of heart, not with his eyes.
49. Ibn Maᶜmar → al-Rawḥ → Saᶜīd → Qatādah:
[About the verse]: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent” (Q 53:13), he said, “He saw a great light near the sidrah al-muntahā.”
Abū Bakr said: Had Abū Dharr interpreted the Prophetic statement nūran annā ra’aytuhū as negation of seeing his Lord with eyes as well as heart, he would not have interpreted the next verse which says: “for indeed he saw him at a second descent,” (Q 53:13) in such a way as negating what he heard and understood from the Prophet. But we see he interpreted the next verse and said that the Prophet saw the Lord through the eye of the heart. Here he only negated seeing Allah by the Prophet in general sense of the word.
It is absolutely certain that the Messenger does not contradict the Book. Correspondingly, the Book does not contradict what is soundly ascribed to the Prophet. The statement of the Prophet always accords with the Book. It never contradicts the words of Allah. However, the Book sometimes uses a word which is apparently general but in fact it is specific. I have presented many such examples in my books where a general term of the Book has been specified by the Sunnah. These discussions sufficiently explain this fact and we do not need to repeat the whole discussion here.
If a sound and authentic interpretation of the verse by the Prophet had not reached us which contradicts one of its interpretations by Abū Dharr then we could count the two reports ascribed to Abū Dharr to be given at two different points of time. Thus we could say that it is possible that Abū Dharr asked the Prophet if he had seen the Lord at the time when he had not seen Him. Later on, the Prophet saw Allah and Abū Dharr again asked him the same question. This time he had seen the Lord and he told Abū Dharr that he had seen Allah by his eyes. However, sound and established narratives tell us that he was asked about the verse under discussion, and he told that he had seen Gabriel in his real form. This proves that the verse: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent,” (Q 53:13) refers to the Prophet’s seeing of Gabriel and not his Lord. It is also possible and valid that the Prophet saw His Lord as has been reported by Ibn ᶜAbbās and as has been held by those who stated that the Prophet indeed saw his Lord basing on their interpretation of the: “For indeed he saw him at a second descent” (Q 53:13). Abū ᶜImrān al-Jawnī’s report from Anas b. Mālik contains the same meaning as of that reported by Abū Dharr according to which the Prophet said, “I saw a light.”
50. Zakariyyā b. Yaḥyā b. Abān → Saᶜīd (Ibn Manṣūr) → al-Ḥarath b. ᶜAbīd al-Ayādī → Abū ᶜImrān al-Jawnī → Anas b. Mālik → the Prophet:
While I was sitting when Gabriel came, and he nudged me between my two shoulders. I stood near a tree which was like a nest of a bird. He sat at the one and me on the other. It rose higher till it stopped fluttering while I turned my eyes. I could have touched the heaven if I wanted. I looked up to Gabriel. He looked like a hilsun latiᵓun. I thought he outdid me in his knowledge of Allah. Two doors to Paradise were opened for me. Then I saw a great light. Behold, there were, beyond the curtain, a carpet of diamond and rubies. There He revealed to me whatever he wanted to reveal.
Abū Bakr said: The Divine words: “Then he approached and came closer, and was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer” (Q 53:8-9), refer to the fact that the Prophet came closer to Allah. It does not refer to his meeting with Gabriel. This is established and proved by the following ḥadīth reported by Sharīk b. ᶜAbd Allāh b. Abī Nimr → Anas b. Mālik.
51. Similarly:
Al-Rabīᶜ b. Sulaymān al-Murādī → ᶜAbd Allāh b. Wahb → Sulaymān b. Bilāl → Sharīk b. ᶜAbd Allāh b. Abī Nimr:
Anas b. Mālik narrated the events on the night the Prophet ascended to the heavens: The night Allah’s Apostle was taken for a journey from Al-Kaᶜbah, three persons came to him, before his call, while he was standing [in worship] in the Sacred Mosque. One of them said, “Which of them is he?” The middle angel said, “He is the best of them.” The last angel said, “Take the best of them.” Only that much happened on that night. He did not see them till they came on another night when his heart saw [the happenings] and not eyes for he was asleep. Same is the case of all the prophets. Their eyes sleep while their hearts do not sleep. So those angels did not talk to him till they carried him and placed him beside the well of Zamzam. From among them, Gabriel took charge of him. Gabriel cut open his body between his throat and the middle of his chest and he made an opening into his heart and abdomen and then washed it with Zamzam water with his hands. Thus, he cleansed the inside of his body.
Then a gold tray containing a gold bowl full of belief and wisdom was brought and then Gabriel stuffed his chest and blood vessels with it and then closed it. He then ascended with him to the heaven of the world and knocked on one of its doors. The dwellers of the Heaven asked, “Who is it?” He said, “Gabriel.” They said, “Who is accompanying you?” He said, “Muhammad.” They said, “Has he been called?” He said, “Yes.” They said, “He is welcome.” So the dwellers of the Heaven became pleased with his arrival, and they would not know what Allah would do to the Prophet on earth unless Allah informed them. The Prophet met Adam over the nearest Heaven. Gabriel said to the Prophet, “He is your father; greet him.” The Prophet greeted him and Adam returned his greeting and said, “Welcome, O my son! O what a good son you are!” Behold, he saw two flowing rivers, while he was in the nearest sky. He asked, “What are these two rivers, O Gabriel?” Gabriel said, “These are the sources of the Nile and the Euphrates.” Then Gabriel took him around that Heaven and behold, he saw another river at the bank of which there was a palace built of pearls and emerald. He smelled its mud and found out that it was musk. He asked, “What is this, O Gabriel?” Gabriel said, “This is al-Kawthar which your Lord has kept for you.”
Then Gabriel ascended with him to the second Heaven and the angels asked the same questions as those on the first Heaven, i.e., “Who is it?” Gabriel replied, “Gabriel.” They asked, “Who is accompanying you?” He said, “Muhammad.” They asked, “Has he been sent for?” He said, “Yes.” Then they said, “He is welcome.” Then he (Gabriel) ascended with the Prophet to the third Heaven, and the angels said the same as the angels of the first and the second Heavens had said. Then he ascended with him to the fourth Heaven, and they said the same; and then he ascended with him to the fifth Heaven, and they said the same; and then he ascended with him to the sixth Heaven, and they said the same; then he ascended with him to the seventh Heaven, and they said the same. On each Heaven there were prophets whose names he had mentioned and of whom I remember Idrīs on the second Heaven, Aaron on the fourth Heavens another Prophet whose name I do not remember, on the fifth Heaven, Abraham on the sixth Heaven, and Moses on the seventh Heaven, because of his privilege of talking to Allah directly. Moses said, “O Lord! I thought that none would be raised up above me.”
But Gabriel ascended with him for a distance above that, the distance of which only Allah knows, till he reached the* Sidrah al-Muntahā*. Then the Irresistible, the Lord of Honour and Majesty approached and came closer till he was about two bow lengths or even nearer. Then Allah revealed to what He meant to reveal. Among the things which Allah revealed to him then, was fifty prayers enjoined on his followers in a day and a night.
Then he descended with the Prophet till the Prophet met Moses. Moses stopped him and asked, “O Muhammad! What did your Lord enjoin upon you?” The Prophet replied, “He enjoined upon me that my Ummah performs fifty prayers in a day and a night.” Moses said, “Your followers cannot afford that. Go back so that your Lord may reduce it for you and for them.” So the Prophet turned to Gabriel as if he wanted to consult him about that issue. Gabriel told him of his opinion, saying, “Yes, if you wish.”
So Gabriel ascended with him to the Irresistible Lord and said while he was in his place: O Lord, please lighten our burden as my followers cannot do that. So Allah lessened for him ten prayers where upon he returned to Moses who stopped him again and kept on sending him back to his Lord till the enjoined prayers were reduced to only five. Then Moses stopped him when the prayers had been reduced to five and said: O Muhammad! By Allah, I tried to persuade my nation, Banī Israel, to do less than this, but they could not do it and gave it up. However, your followers are weaker in body, heart, sight, and hearing, so return to your Lord so that He may lighten your burden. The Prophet turned towards Gabriel for advice and Gabriel did not disapprove of that. So he ascended with him for the fifth time. The Prophet said: O Lord, my followers are weak in their bodies, hearts, sight and hearing, so lighten our burden. On that the Irresistible said: O Muhammad! The Prophet replied: I am at your service, blessed by You. Allah said: The word that comes from Me does not change, so it will be as I enjoined on you. Upon you are five Prayers [daily]. He (the Prophet) returned to Moses who asked: What have you done? He said: He has lightened our burden: He has promised us for every good deed a tenfold reward. Moses said: By Allah! I tried to make Banī Israel to observe even less than that, but they gave it up. So go back to your Lord that He may lighten your burden further. Allah’s Apostle said: O Moses! By Allah, I feel shy of returning too many times to my Lord. On that Gabriel said: Descend in Allah’s Name. The Prophet then woke while he was in the Sacred Mosque.
52. Abū ᶜAwānah → Abū Maᶜmar → Rawḥ → ᶜAbbād b. Manṣūr:
I asked al-Ḥasan about the verse: “Then he approached and came closer.” (Q 53:8) I recited the verse and asked him, “Who is this entity drawing near O Abū Saᶜīd?” He said, “This is my Lord.”
Abū Bakr said: The report of Kathīr b. Ḥubaysh from Anas ascribed to the Prophet himself contains the words Sharīk b. ᶜAbd Allāh attributes to al-Ḥasan.
Similarly:
53. ᶜAmmār al-Ḥusayn b. Ḥurayth → al-Faḍl b. Mūsā → Muhammad Ibn ᶜAmr → Kathīr b. Ḥubaysh → Anas b. Mālik → the Prophet:
While I was lying in the Sacred Mosque, I saw that three persons came to me. One of them said, “He is there?” The middle one said, “Yes.” The last one said, “Take the leader of the nation.” So those angels came to me and carried me and laid me on by back beside the well of Zamzam. They split my chest open and washed it. I heard some of them advising the others telling them, “Clean him.” Then they cleaned the contents of my chest. Then a golden tray filled with faith and wisdom was brought. They put it in my heart. Then they mounted to heaven with me. He sought to open it. He (the keeper of Heaven) said, “Who is that?” He said, “It is Gabriel.” He said, “Who is with you?” He said, “It is Muhammad.” He said, “Has he been sent for?” He said, “Yes.” Then the door was opened. He saw Adam. When he looked to his right side, he smiled. And when he looked to his left, he wept. I said, “O Gabriel! Who is that?” He said, “This is your father, Adam. When he looks towards his right side and sees his children in Paradise, he smiles. When he looks at Hell and finds his children in it, he cries.” Anas said, “I can name them all if you so desire. But then I have to narrate a long story.” [The Prophet said], He mounted with me till he reached the sixth heaven. It was asked, “Who is that?” Gabriel said, “It is Gabriel.” It was then said, “Who is with you?” He said, “He is Muhammad.” It was asked, “Has he been sent for?” He answered in the affirmative. Moses was there.
He (the Prophet) said: Then he mounted with me till he reached the seventh heaven. Gabriel sought permission. It was said, “Who is that?” He said, “It is Gabriel.” It was then asked, “Who is with you?” He said, “He is Muhammad.” “Has he been sent for?” was the next question. He said, “Yes.”
The Prophet said: Then it was opened, and I entered the heaven and was bestowed with the river of Abundance. It is a river in Paradise, its banks are of rubies, and it is filled with diamonds. Then he mounted with me to Sidrah al-Muntahā. Then he approached his Lord and neared Him. Then he reached near to him a distance of two bow lengths or even nearer. Then He revealed to His servant whatever He wanted to reveal. Then He enjoined upon me and my Ummah fifty prayers. I returned and came across Moses. He said, “What did He give to you and your Ummah?” I said, “He gave us fifty prayers.” He said, “Go back to your Lord and get it lessened for you and your Ummah.” I returned to Him. He lessened ten prayers from the total enjoined upon me. Then I returned to Moses, and he said, “What did your Lord give you and your Ummah?” I said, “He obligated forty prayers for me and my Ummah.” He said, “Go back to your Lord and get it lightened for you and your Ummah.” I returned to Him, and he took ten more off me. I went on requesting till only ten prayers remained. When ten were finalized, he (Moses) said, “The Children of Isrāᵓīl were given a command easier than that but they could not fulfil that.” Then I returned again and He took five more off. Then He said, “Now it cannot be changed any more. My word cannot be changed, and My decree cannot be abrogated. Considering lessening your burden it is only five prayers upon you. However, the reward will be increased for you and [the five prayers] will be rewarded equal to fifty.” I came back to Moses, and he said, “How much did He oblige you and your Ummah?” I said, “These are five prayers.” He said, “Go back to your Lord and get it lessened further for you and your Ummah.” I said I had [repeatedly] approached my Lord and now I felt ashamed of it.
Al-Walīd b Muslim has narrated a report that confuses most of the seekers of knowledge with deficient understanding of the traditions. They can erroneously assume it as historically authentic one whereas it is not. I am going to explain its hidden defects (‘ilal) by the permission of Allah hoping that no seeker of Ḥadīth is misled by it, confusing the unsound narratives with the authentic ones. I have explained many times that I do not rely on distortions. Nor do I believe it is allowable to cheat the seekers of the traditions by adducing baseless narratives. I fear my Lord, the glorious Allah, and refrain from cheating the seekers of the traditions by adducing baseless narratives even if they support my point of view.
54. al-Walīd → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Yazīd b. Jābir → Khālid b. al-Lajlāj → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. ᶜĀᵓish al-Ḥaḍramī:
I heard the Prophet saying, “I saw my Lord in His best shape.” He said, “On what do the dwellers of the heavens vie with one another, O Muhammad?” I said twice, “On what O my Lord?” Then He put His hand between my shoulders, and I felt its cold. Then I knew what is in the heaven and the earth. Then he recited, “So also did We show Abraham the power and the laws of the heavens and the earth, that he might have certitude” (Q 6:75). He said, “On what the dwellers of the heavens struggle O Muhammad?” I said, “Upon expiations, my Lord.” He said, “What are these?” I said, “Walking to the Friday prayers, and sitting in the mosques and the waiting for prayer and performing the ablution in best manner in spite of its difficulties.” Allāh said, “Whoever does so, will live peacefully and will die easily and his mistakes will vanish. He will become as pure as he was when he was delivered by his mother. His good deeds will be multiplied. As for the deeds rewarded by excellence they include: feeding, speaking pure words, staying awake at nights while the world sleeps.” He said, “O My Lord, I ask from you the pure things. Help me leave bad deeds. Grant me love for the destitute. I beseech you to forgive my sins, show mercy to me. When you intend to put some nation to trial then raise me towards you safe from this trial. The Prophet said, “Learn this. By the Lord, in whose hand is my life, it is truth.”
(…) Abū Qudāmah, ᶜAbd Allāh b. Muhammad al-Zuhrī and Muhammad b. Maymūn al-Makkī → al-Walīd b. Muslim → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Yazīd b. Jābir also narrated the same.
The wording I have used is by Zuhrī. Abū Qadāmah differed in the wording and said in his report:
… between my shoulders and I felt its cold in my chest.
Similarly, he used the words, “He said, “What are these things (wamāhunna)?” He replied, “Going to the Friday Congregations, sitting in the mosques, waiting for the congregational Prayers.””
He used the words, “When you intend a trial….”
Abū Bakr said: His following words in the narrative, “He said, “I heard the Prophet”” give a false impression. This I say because ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. ᶜĀᵓish did not hear it from the Prophet. He has indeed reported this narrative from one of the companions of the Prophet. What is more, I even do not think that he heard it from a companion of the Prophet. For a variant has been reported by Yaḥyā b. Abī Kathīr. He reported it from Zayd b. Sallām from ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān al-Ḥaḍramī from Mālik b. Yukhāmir from Muᶜādh. Yazīd b. Jābir said that Khālid b. al-Lajlāj said that ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. ᶜĀᵓish reported from an individual from among the companions of the Prophet.
Similarly reported:
….. (55) Abū Mūsā Muhammad b. al-Mathannā → Abū ᶜĀmir ᶜAbd al-Malik b. ᶜAmr → Zuhayr (Ibn Muhammad) → Yazīd → Abū Mūsā (Yazīd b. Jābir) → Khālid al-Lajlāj → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. ᶜĀᵓish → a man from the Companion of the Prophet:
The Prophet came to us…(the whole narrative).
Abū Bakr said: Qatādah has used another isnād as well. It has been reported from Muᶜādh b. Hishām → his father → Qatādah → Abū Qilābah → Khālid b. al-Lajlāj → ᶜAbd Allāh b. ᶜAbbās.
56. Ibn Bundār and Abū Mūsā → Muᶜādh → his father → Qatādah → Abū Qilābah → Khālid b. al-Lajlāj → Ibn ᶜAbbās → the Prophet:
I saw my Lord in His best shape. He said, “O Muhammad.” I replied, “I am at your service, My Lord!” He said, “What do the people in the heavens argue over?” I said, “O My Lord. I do not know.” [The Prophet says:] Then He put His hands on my shoulders and I felt its coldness between my chests. I came to know whatever is on the heavens and the earth. He said, “O Muhammad.” I said, “I am at your service.” He said, “What do the people in the heavens argue over?” I said, “O My Lord! About expiations: Going to attend the Friday Congregations, best performance of ablution in spite of its difficulties and waiting for the next prayer. Whoever persists in these things will live peacefully and will die peacefully. He will become pure from his sins just as he was pure just after he was delivered by his mother.”
This is the wording of the narrative of Abū Mūsā. Bundār’s version says that the Prophet said:
My Lord came to me in His best shape. I said, “Regarding excellent stations and expiations.”
Bundār also used the words, “Waiting for next congregation (ṣalāt) after one.” He did not use the word “Prayers (ṣalawāt)” (in plural form).
This narrative has also been narrated by Maᶜmar →Ayūb → Abū Qilābah → Ibn ᶜAbbās.
57. Muhammad b. Yaḥyā → Muhammad b. ᶜAbd al-Aᶜlā al-Ṣanᶜāᵓī, who was a reliable narrator (‘thiqah’) → Maᶜmar → Ayyūb → Abū Qilābah → Ibn ᶜAbbās → the Prophet:
My Lord came to me in His best shape.
Muhammad b. Yaḥyā related the complete ḥadīth.
Abū Bakr said: The report by Yazīd and ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Yazīd b. Jābir is more likely to be correct. They both have used the report which comes from ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. ᶜĀᵓish from ᶜAbd Allāh b. ᶜAbbās. It has been also reported from Yaḥyā b. Kathīr → Zayd b. Sallām → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān al-Ḥaḍramī (he is Ibn ᶜĀᵓish, God-willing) → Mālik b. Yukhāmir al-Saksakī → Muᶜādh b. Jabal:
Allah’s Messenger was detained one morning from observing the Morning Prayer along with us till the sun had almost appeared on the horizon. He then came out hurriedly and iqāmah for prayer was observed and he conducted it in brief form. When he had concluded the prayer by saying:* as-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah*, he called out to us saying, “Remain in your places as you were.” Then turning to us he said:
I am going to tell you what detained me from coming to you in the morning. I got up in the night and performed ablution and observed the Prayer as had been ordained for me. I dozed in my Prayer till I was overcome by sleep and lo, I found myself in the presence of my Lord, the Blessed and the Glorious, in the best form.
He said, “Muhammad!” I said, “At your service, my Lord.” He said, “What do these highest angels contend about?” I said, “I do not know.” He repeated it thrice.
He (the Prophet) said:
Then I saw Him put His palms between my shoulder blades till I felt the coldness of His fingers between the two sides of my chest. Then everything was illuminated for me, and I could recognize everything. He said, “Muhammad!” I said, “At Your service, my Lord.” He said, “What do these high angels contend about?” I said, “In regard to expiations.” He said, “What are these?” I said, “Going on foot to join congregational prayers, sitting in the mosques after the prayers, performing ablution well despite difficulties.” He again said, “Then what do they contend about?” I said, “In regard to the ranks.” He said, “What are these?” I said, “Providing of food, speaking gently, observing the prayer when the people are asleep.” He again said to me, “Beg and say: O Allah, I beg of you (power) to do good deeds, and abandon abominable deeds, to love the poor, that you forgive me and show mercy to me and when you intend to put people to trial you cause me to die unblemished and I beg of you your love and the love of the one who loves you and the love for a deed which brings me near to your love.”
Allah’s Messenger said, “It is a truth, so learn it and teach it.”
58. Abū Mūsā → Muᶜādh b. Hānī, Abū Hānī → Jahḍam b. ᶜAbd Allāh al-Qaysī → Yaḥyā b. Abī Kathīr → Zayd b. Sallām → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān al-Ḥaḍramī → Abū Mūsā (Ibn ᶜĀᵓish):
The same ḥadīth which accords to the above-mentioned wording.
(…) Muᶜāwiyah b. Ṣāliḥ → Ibn Yaḥyā (son of perhaps Sulaymān or Sulaym b. ᶜĀmir) → Abū Yazīd → Abū Salām al-Ḥabashī → Thawbān (the freed slave of the Prophet):
The Prophet delayed the Morning Prayer until the morning was bright. He said:
I was late because my Lord said to me, “What do these highest angels contend about?” I said, “I do not know.” He repeated the question twice or thrice. He (the Prophet) said:
Then I felt His palms between my shoulder blades till I felt its coldness between the two sides of my chest. Then everything was illuminated for me and I could recognize everything. I said, “Yes, O Lord. They argue about expiations, statuses, and ranks. The expiations include: Going on foot to join congregational prayers, performing ablution well despite difficulties, sitting in the mosques after the prayers waiting for the next congregation. And the status and ranks include: Providing of food, generously greeting people, speaking gently, and observing the night prayer when the people are asleep.” Then the Lord said, “O Muhammad, intercede you will be heard. Ask; you will be granted.”
I said, “O Allah, I beg of you power to do good deeds, and abandon abominable deeds, to love the poor, that you forgive me and show mercy to me and when you intend to put people to trial you cause me to die unblemished and I beg of you your love and the love of the one who loves you and the love for a deed which brings me near to your love.”
Allah’s Messenger said, “It is a truth, so learn it and teach it.”
….. 59. Aḥmad b. ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān → his uncle → Muᶜāwiyah:
Abū Bakr said: I do not know the status of Abū Yazīd with the perspective of jarḥ wa taᶜdīl (affirming and disaffirming the narrators as reliable transmitters).
(…) A Kūfī shaykh, Saᶜīd b. Suwayd al-Qarshī → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Isḥāq → ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Laylā → Muᶜādh. b. Jabal:
The shaykh narrated the whole story. His narration is similar to that of Yaḥyā b. Abī Kathīr.
Muhammad b. Abī Saᶜīd b. Suwayd al-Qarshī Kūfī → his father:
Abū Bakr said: I do not know the status of Shaykh Saᶜīd b. Suwayd in the light of jarḥ wa taᶜdīl (affirming and disaffirming the narrators as reliable transmitters).
The narrator in the chain named ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Isḥāq is Abū Shaybah al-Kūfī. He is ḍaᶜīf al-ḥadīth (weak narrator). He reports from al-Nuᶜmān b. Saᶜd → ᶜAlī b. Abī Ṭālib → the Prophet* munkarāt* (unacceptable) reports. ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Laylā has not heard from Muᶜādh b. Jabal (i.e. he did not receive reports directly from him). Muᶜādh died at the beginning of the reign of ᶜUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb in Syria along with a group of the Companions of the Prophet including Bilāl b. Ribāḥ, the freed slave of Abū Bakr during the plague in ᶜAmwās. I have visited their graves. Some of them are buried near ᶜAmwās between al-Ramlah and the Sacred House (bayt al-muqaddas) in Jerusalem. If you travel to the Sacred House via al-Ramalah their graves lie on your right side. Therefore, none of the reports, which I have quoted in the name of ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān b. ᶜĀᵓish, is authentic. So everything reported through this* isnād* is baseless. A novice in the discipline may be led into thinking that the narrative reported by Yaḥyā b. Abī Kathīr from Zayd b. Sallām is a sound narrative. For it has been stated in the narrative reported by Zayd that ᶜAbd al-Raḥmān al-Ḥaḍramī reported it to him. Yaḥyā b. Kathīr is one of the* mudallisīn.* He does not explicitly state that he heard the report from Zayd b. Sallām.
I have heard al-Dārimī Aḥmad b. Saᶜīd say that ᶜAbd al-Ṣamad b. ᶜAbd al-Wārith narrated from his father who narrated from Ḥusayn al-Muᶜallim who said, “When ᶜAbd Allāh b. Buraydah came to us, Maṭar al-Warrāq sent for me. He said, “Take this paper and the inkpot and come with me.” I took the paper and the inkpot and came along. He (ᶜAbd Allāh b. Buraydah) said, “My father narrated to me…..””
Similarly, ᶜAbd Allāh b. Mughaffal told me the following.
When Yaḥyā b. Abī Kathīr came, Maṭar al-Warrāq sent for me and required me to take the paper and the inkpot with me. When we reached him, he showed us the book of Abū Sallām. We said, “Did you hear it from Abū Sallām?” He said, “No.” We then said, “Is there anyone who has heard it from Abū Salām?” He said, “No.” We said, “Then you tell us reports that you have not heard from anybody and nobody has heard them from someone else?” [We] also said, “Do you think that a man comes to you carrying paper and the inkpot only to write fabrications ascribed to the Prophet?”
Abū Bakr said: Muslim b. al-Ḥajjāj wrote this story from me.
The above passage is translated from Kitāb al-Tawḥīd by Imām Abū Bakr Ibn Khuzaymah (d. 311 AH). English translation by Dr Tariq Mahmood Hashmi.
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