We were at Mirbad. A man with dishevelled hair and holding a piece of red skin in his hand came. We said: You appear to be a bedouin. He said: Yes. We said: Give us this piece of skin in your hand. He then gave it to us and we read it. It contained the text: "From Muhammad, Messenger of Allah ﷺ, to Banu Zuhayr ibn Uqaysh. If you bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, offer prayer, pay zakat, pay the fifth from the booty, and the portion of the Prophet ﷺ and his special portion (safi), you will be under by the protection of Allah and His Apostle." We then asked: Who wrote this document for you? He replied: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ.  

كُنَّا بِالْمِرْبَدِ فَجَاءَ رَجُلٌ أَشْعَثُ الرَّأْسِ بِيَدِهِ قِطْعَةُ أَدِيمٍ أَحْمَرَ فَقُلْنَا كَأَنَّكَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَادِيَةِ فَقَالَ أَجَلْ قُلْنَا نَاوِلْنَا هَذِهِ الْقِطْعَةَ الأَدِيمَ الَّتِي فِي يَدِكَ فَنَاوَلَنَاهَا فَقَرَأْنَاهَا فَإِذَا فِيهَا مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ إِلَى بَنِي زُهَيْرِ بْنِ أُقَيْشٍ إِنَّكُمْ إِنْ شَهِدْتُمْ أَنْ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَأَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلاَةَ وَآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ وَأَدَّيْتُمُ الْخُمُسَ مِنَ الْمَغْنَمِ وَسَهْمَ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ وَسَهْمَ الصَّفِيِّ أَنْتُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ فَقُلْنَا مَنْ كَتَبَ لَكَ هَذَا الْكِتَابَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ  

[Machine] Then came a bedouin with a piece of cloth or a piece of goat skin, and he said, "This is a book that the Prophet ﷺ wrote for me." Abu Al-Ala' said, "So I took it and read it to the people. Indeed, it contained 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. This is a book from Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ , to the Banu Zuheyr Ibn Uqaysh. Verily, if you establish prayer, pay the zakat, give one-fifth of the spoils, and give a share to the Prophet and the warriors, you shall be safe under the protection of Allah and the protection of His Messenger.'" They said, "What have you heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ?" He said, "I have heard him say, 'Fasting during the month of patience and three days of every month will remove the heat of the heart.'"  

فَجَاءَ أَعْرَابِيٌّ مَعَهُ قِطْعَةُ أَدِيمٍ أَوْ قِطْعَةُ جِرَابٍ فَقَالَ هَذَا كِتَابٌ كَتَبَهُ لِي النَّبِيُّ ﷺ قَالَ أَبُو الْعَلَاءِ فَأَخَذْتُهُ فَقَرَأْتُهُ عَلَى الْقَوْمِ فَإِذَا فِيهِ بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ هَذَا كِتَابٌ مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ لِبَنِي زُهَيْرِ بْنِ أُقَيْشٍ إِنَّكُمْ إِنْ أَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَأَدَّيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ وَأَعْطَيْتُمْ مِنَ الْمَغَانِمِ الْخُمُسَ وَسَهْمَ النَّبِيِّ وَالصَّفِيَّ فَأَنْتُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللهِ وَأَمَانِ رَسُولِهِ قَالَ قُلْنَا مَا سَمِعْتَ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ؟ فَقَالَ سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ صَوْمُ شَهْرِ الصَّبْرِ وَثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ مِنْ كُلِّ شَهْرٍ يُذْهِبْنَ وَحَرَ الصَّدْرِ  

[Machine] We were in Al-Mirbad when suddenly a man with disheveled hair in his hand a piece of parchment. We said to him, "Are you a man from the desert?" He replied, "Yes." We told him, "Give us this piece of parchment that you have in your hand." So, we took it and read what was written on it. It said, "From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, to the Banu Zuhayr: Give one-fifth of the spoils and the share of the Prophet and Al-Saffi. And you are safe under the protection of Allah and His Messenger." We asked him, "Who wrote this for you?" He said, "The Messenger of Allah, ﷺ ." We asked him, "Did you hear anything from him?" He said, "Yes, I heard the Messenger of Allah, ﷺ , say, 'Fasting during the month of patience and three days from every month will remove the burning sensation from the chests.'" We said to him, "Did you hear anything from the Messenger of Allah, ﷺ ?" He replied, "Do you not accuse me? By Allah, I will not tell you anything more." Then, he left.  

كُنَّا بِالْمِرْبَدِ فَإِذَا أَنَا بِرَجُلٍ أَشْعَثَ الرَّأْسِ بِيَدِهِ قِطْعَةُ أَدِيمٍ فَقُلْنَا لَهُ كَأَنَّكَ رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَادِيَةِ؟ قَالَ أَجَلْ فَقُلْنَا لَهُ نَاوِلْنَا هَذِهِ الْقِطْعَةَ الْأَدِيمِ الَّتِي فِي يَدِكَ فَأَخْذَنَاهَا فَقَرَأْنَا مَا فِيهَا فَإِذَا فِيهَا « مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ إِلَى بَنِي زُهَيْرٍ أَعْطُوا الْخُمُسَ مِنَ الْغَنِيمَةِ وَسَهْمَ النَّبِيِّ وَالصَّفِيِّ وَأَنْتُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللَّهِ وَأَمَانِ رَسُولِهِ» قَالَ فَقُلْنَا مَنْ كَتَبَ لَكَ هَذَا؟ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ قُلْنَا مَا سَمِعْتَ مِنْهُ شَيْئًا؟ قَالَ نَعَمْ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ «صَوْمُ شَهْرِ الصَّبْرِ وَثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ مِنْ كُلِّ شَهْرٍ يُذْهِبْنَ وَحَرَ الصُّدُورِ» فَقُلْنَا لَهُ أَسَمِعْتَ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ؟ فَقَالَ أَلَا أَرَاكُمْ تَتَّهِمُونِي فَوَاللَّهِ لَا أُحَدِّثُكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ ثُمَّ ذَهَبَ  

[Machine] We were sitting in the mirbad and I appeared to be the youngest among the people. Then, a man from the Bedouins came to us, and when we saw him, we said, "It seems that this man is not from the people of this town." He said, "Yes, and he has a book wrapped in a piece of red leather or perhaps he said a piece of cloth." He said, "This is a book that was written for me by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ . It has the phrase 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' in it, and it is from Muhammad the Prophet to the sons of Zuhayr bin Uqaysh, and they are still alive from the tribe of Ukl. Verily, if you establish the prayer, give the Zakat, separate from the polytheists, give one fifth of the booty, and then give the Prophet his portion and Safiyah her portion, and perhaps he said that he gave them their portion, then you are safe in the protection of Allah and the protection of His Messenger." They said, "Come, tell us what you have heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ." He leaned against a sheet and took it, then he hurried away, and said, "Don't you see that you fear that I will lie about the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ? By Allah, I will not tell you a narration today."  

كُنَّا بِالْمِرْبَدِ جُلُوسًا وَأُرَانِي أَحْدَثَ الْقَوْمِ أَوْ مِنْ أَحْدَثِهِمْ سِنًّا قَالَ فَأَتَى عَلَيْنَا رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَادِيَةِ فَلَمَّا رَأَيْنَاهُ قُلْنَا كَأَنَّ هَذَا رَجُلٌ لَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَلَدِ؟ قَالَ أَجَلْ فَإِذَا مَعَهُ كِتَابٌ فِي قِطْعَةِ أَدَمٍ وَرُبَّمَا قَالَ فِي قِطْعَةِ جِرَابٍ فَقَالَ هَذَا كِتَابٌ كَتَبَهُ لِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فَإِذَا فِيهِ بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ النَّبِيِّ لِبَنِي زُهَيْرِ بْنِ أُقَيْشٍ وَهُمْ حَيٌّ مِنْ عُكْلٍ إِنَّكُمْ إِنْ أَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ وَفَارَقْتُمُ الْمُشْرِكِينَ وَأَعْطَيْتُمُ الْخُمُسَ مِنَ الْمَغْنَمِ ثُمَّ سَهْمَ النَّبِيِّ وَالصَّفِيِّ وَرُبَّمَا قَالَ صَفِيَّةً فَأَنْتُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللهِ وَأَمَانِ رَسُولِهِ قَالُوا هَاتِ حَدِّثْنَا أَصْلَحَكَ اللهُ بِمَا سَمِعْتَ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ صَوْمُ شَهْرِ الصَّبْرِ وَثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ مِنْ كُلِّ شَهْرٍ تُذْهِبُ كَثِيرًا مِنْ وَحَرِ الصَّدْرِ قَالَ قُرَّةُ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ وَغْرِ الصَّدْرِ؟ فَقَالَ وَحَرِ الصَّدْرِ فَقَالَ الْقَوْمُ أَنْتَ سَمِعْتَ هَذَا مِنْ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ يُحَدِّثُ بِهِ؟ فَأَهْوَى إِلَى صَحِيفَةٍ فَأَخَذَهَا ثُمَّ انْطَلَقَ مُسْرِعًا ثُمَّ قَالَ أَلَا أَرَاكُمْ تَخَافُونَ أَنْ أَكْذِبَ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ وَاللهِ لَا أُحَدِّثُكُمْ حَدِيثًا الْيَوْمَ  

[Machine] While we were in Murbad, a Bedouin came to us, his hair disheveled, carrying a piece of cloth or a piece of a bag. We said, "It seems that he is not from the people of this land." He said, "No, this is a book that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ wrote for me." The people then said, "Bring it to us." So I took it and read it, and it began with "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. This is a book from Muhammad, the Prophet, the Messenger of Allah, to the Bani Zuhair ibn Uqaysh." Abu Al-Ala' said, "They are a noble tribe from the 'Ukl tribe. Indeed, if you testify that there is no god but Allah, establish prayer, pay Zakat, separate from the polytheists, and give one-fifth of the spoils and the Prophet's share, as well as the share of Safiyah, then you are guaranteed the security of Allah and the security of His Messenger."  

بَيْنَا نَحْنُ بِالْمِرْبَدِ إِذْ أَتَى عَلَيْنَا أَعْرَابِيٌّ شَعِثُ الرَّأْسِ مَعَهُ قِطْعَةُ أَدِيمٍ أَوْ قِطْعَةُ جِرَابٍ فَقُلْنَا كَأَنَّ هَذَا لَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَلَدِ فَقَالَ أَجَلْ لَا هَذَا كِتَابٌ كَتَبَهُ لِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فَقَالَ الْقَوْمُ هَاتِ فَأَخَذْتُهُ فَقَرَأْتُهُ فَإِذَا فِيهِ بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ هَذَا كِتَابٌ مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ النَّبِيِّ رَسُولِ اللهِ لِبَنِي زُهَيْرِ بْنِ أُقَيْشٍ قَالَ أَبُو الْعَلَاءِ وَهُمْ حِيُّ مِنْ عُكْلٍ إِنَّكُمْ إِنْ شَهِدْتُمْ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَأَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ وَفَارَقْتُمُ الْمُشْرِكِينَ وَأَعْطَيْتُمْ مِنَ الْغَنَائِمِ الْخُمُسَ وَسَهْمَ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ وَالصَّفِيَّ وَرُبَّمَا قَالَ وَصَفِيَّهُ فَأَنْتُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللهِ وَأَمَانِ رَسُولِهِ  

We were at Mirbad. A man with dishevelled hair and holding a piece of red skin in his hand came. We said: You appear to be a bedouin. He said: Yes. We said: Give us this piece of skin in your hand. He then gave it to us and we read it. It contained the text: "From Muhammad, Messenger of Allah ﷺ, to Banu Zuhayr ibn Uqaysh. If you bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, offer prayer, pay zakat, pay the fifth from the booty, and the portion of the Prophet ﷺ and his special portion (safi), you will be under by the protection of Allah and His Apostle." We then asked: Who wrote this document for you? He replied: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ. (Using translation from Abū Dāʾūd 2999)   

كُنَّا بِالْمِرْبَدِ فَجَاءَ رَجُلٌ أَشْعَثُ الرَّأْسِ بِيَدِهِ قِطْعَةُ أَدِيمٍ أَحْمَرَ فَقُلْنَا كَأَنَّكَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَادِيَةِ قَالَ أَجَلْ قُلْنَا نَاوِلْنَا هَذِهِ الْقِطْعَةَ الْأَدِيمَ فَنَاوَلَنَاهَا فَقَرَأْنَا مَا فِيهَا فَإِذَا فِيهَا مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ رَسُولِ اللهِ إِلَى بَنِي زُهَيْرِ بْنِ أُقَيْشٍ إِنَّكُمْ إِنْ شَهِدْتُمْ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللهِ وَأَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ وَأَدَّيْتُمُ الْخُمُسَ مِنَ الْمَغْنَمِ وَسَهْمَ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ وَسَهْمَ الصَّفِيِّ أَنْتُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللهِ وَرَسُولِهِ قُلْنَا مَنْ كَتَبَ هَذَا لَكَ؟ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ  

"عَنْ يَزِيدَ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللهِ بْنِ الشَّخَّيْرِ قَالَ: كُنَّا جُلُوسًا بِهَذَا المرْبَد بِالْبَصْرَةِ فَجَاءَ أَعْرَابِيٌّ مَعَه قِطْعَةٌ مِنْ أدِيِمٍ، أَوْ قِطْعَةٌ مِنْ جِرابٍ فَقَالَ: هَذَا كِتَابٌ وكَتَبَهُ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ فَأَخَذْتُهُ فَقَرَأتُهُ عَلَى الْقَوْمِ، فَإِذَا فِيهِ: بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ، مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ رَسُولِ اللهِ لبَنِي زُهَيْرِ بْن أُقَيش إِنَّكُمْ إِنْ أَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ، وآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ، وَأَعْطَيْتُمْ مِنَ الْمغَانِمِ الْخُمسَ، وسهم النَّبِي والصَّفى فَإِنَّكُمْ آمِنُونَ بِأَمَانِ اللهِ - تَعَالَى- وَأَمَان رَسُولِهِ قال: فَمَا سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ شَيْئًا قَالَ: سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ: صَوْمُ شَهْرِ الصَّبْرِ، وَصَوْمُ ثَلَاثَةِ أَيَامٍ مِنْ كُلِّ شَهْرٍ، يُذْهِبْنَ وَحْرَ الصَّدْرِ".