The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent for me in the middle of the night and said, "O Abu Muwayhibah, I have been commanded to seek forgiveness for the people of al-Baqi, so come with me." So I went with him. When he stood among them, he said, "Peace be upon you, people of the graves. How good is what you have come to this morning compared to what the people have come to this morning. If only you knew what Allah has saved you from! Trials have come like pieces of a dark night, each one following the other; the later one is worse than the first."

He said: Then he turned to me and said, "O Abu Muwayhibah, I have been given the keys to the treasures of the world, everlasting life in it, then Paradise; and I was given the choice between that and meeting my Lord ﷻ and Paradise." He said: I said, "May my father and mother be sacrificed for you; then take the keys of the world, everlasting life in it, then Paradise." He said, "No, by Allah, O Abu Muwayhibah, I have chosen the meeting with my Lord and Paradise." Then he sought forgiveness for the people of al-Baqi, then he left. When morning came, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was stricken with the illness in which Allah ﷻ took him.

بَعَثَنِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ مِنْ جَوْفِ اللَّيْلِ، فَقَالَ: «يَا أَبَا مُوَيْهِبَةَ، إِنِّي قَدْ أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَسْتَغْفِرَ لِأَهْلِ الْبَقِيعِ، فَانْطَلِقْ مَعِي». فَانْطَلَقْتُ مَعَهُ، فَلَمَّا وَقَفَ بَيْنَ أَظْهُرِهِمْ قَالَ: «السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ، يَا أَهْلَ الْمَقَابِرِ، لِيَهْنِ لَكُمْ مَا أَصْبَحْتُمْ فِيهِ مِمَّا أَصْبَحَ فِيهِ النَّاسُ. لَوْ تَعْلَمُونَ مَا نَجَّاكُمُ اللهُ مِنْهُ! أَقْبَلَتِ الْفِتَنُ كَقِطَعِ اللَّيْلِ الْمُظْلِمِ، يَتْبَعُ أَوَّلُهَا آخِرَهَا، الْآخِرَةُ شَرٌّ مِنَ الْأُولَى».

قَالَ: ثُمَّ أَقْبَلَ عَلَيَّ، فَقَالَ: «يَا أَبَا مُوَيْهِبَةَ، إِنِّي قَدْ أُوتِيتُ مَفَاتِيحَ خَزَائِنِ الدُّنْيَا وَالْخُلْدَ فِيهَا، ثُمَّ الْجَنَّةَ، وَخُيِّرْتُ بَيْنَ ذَلِكَ وَبَيْنَ لِقَاءِ رَبِّي ﷻ وَالْجَنَّةِ». قَالَ: قُلْتُ: بِأَبِي وَأُمِّي، فَخُذْ مَفَاتِيحَ الدُّنْيَا وَالْخُلْدَ فِيهَا، ثُمَّ الْجَنَّةَ. قَالَ: «لَا وَاللهِ، يَا أَبَا مُوَيْهِبَةَ، لَقَدِ اخْتَرْتُ لِقَاءَ رَبِّي وَالْجَنَّةَ». ثُمَّ اسْتَغْفَرَ لِأَهْلِ الْبَقِيعِ، ثُمَّ انْصَرَفَ، فَبُدِئَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فِي وَجَعِهِ الَّذِي قَبَضَهُ اللهُ ﷻ فِيهِ حِينَ أَصْبَحَ

[Machine] the Messenger of Allah, ﷺ , was commanded to pray for the people of Al-Baqi and he prayed for them three times in his night prayer. When he prayed for them the third time, he said, "O Abu Muawiyah, saddle my mount for me." So I saddled the mount for him, and he rode and went to the people of Al-Baqi. Then he alighted and stood among them. He said, "May you be refined by what you have faced from among the tribulations that come one after another, like pieces of a dark night. Some of them are worse than the others. May you be refined by what you have faced from them." Then the Messenger of Allah, ﷺ , came and said, "O Abu Muawiyah, I have been given, or I have been given the choice of the keys of what Allah will open for my nation after me, whether it is Paradise or meeting with my Lord." I said, "By my father and mother, O Messenger of Allah, I chose the meeting with my Lord." He said, "I have chosen the meeting with my Lord." The Messenger of Allah, ﷺ , did not stay except for seven or eight nights before he passed away.

أُمِرَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ أَنْ يُصَلِّيَ عَلَى أَهْلِ الْبَقِيعِ فَصَلَّى عَلَيْهِمْ فِي لَيْلَتِهِ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ فَلَمَّا كَانَتِ الثَّالِثَةُ قَالَ «يَا أَبَا مُوَيْهِبَةَ أَسْرِجْ لِي دَابَّتِي فَأَسْرَجْتُ فَرَكِبَ فَسَارَ إِلَى أَهْلِ الْبَقِيعِ ثُمَّ نَزَلَ فَأَمْسَكْتُ دَابَّتَهُ فَوَقَفَ عَلَيْهِمْ» فَقَالَ «لِيُهْنِكُمْ مَا أَنْتُمْ فِيهِ مِمَّا فِي النَّاسِ أَتَتْ فِتَنٌ كَقِطَعِ اللَّيْلِ الْمُظْلِمِ يَرْكَبُ بَعْضُهَا بَعْضًا الْأُخْرَى أَشَدُّ مِنَ الْأُولَى فَلْيُهْنِكُمْ مَا أَنْتُمْ فِيهِ» ثُمَّ جَاءَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فَقَالَ «يَا أَبَا مُوَيْهِبَةَ إِنِّي أَعْطَيْتُ» أَوْ قَالَ «خُيِّرْتُ مَفَاتِيحَ مَا يَفْتَحُ اللهُ عَلَى أُمَّتِي مِنْ بَعْدِي وَالْجَنَّةَ أَوْ لِقَاءَ رَبِّي» قُلْتُ بِأَبِي وَأُمِّي يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ اخْتَرْنَا قَالَ «اخْتَرْتُ لِقَاءَ رَبِّي» فَمَا مَكَثَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ إِلَّا سَبْعَ أَوْ ثَمَانَ حَتَّى قُبِضَ ﷺ