I went to Sham and offered a two-rakʿat prayer and then said, "O Allah! Bless me with a good pious companion." So I went to some people and sat with them. An old man came and sat by my side. I asked, "Who is he?" They replied, "(He is) Abu-Ad-Darda.' I said (to him), "I prayed to Allah to bless me with a pious companion and He sent you to me." He asked me, "From where are you?" I replied, "From the people of Al-Kufa." He said, "Isn't there amongst you Ibn Um ʿAbd, the one who used to carry the shoes, the cushion(or pillow) and the water for ablution? Is there amongst you the one whom Allah gave Refuge from Satan through the request of His Prophet. Is there amongst you the one who keeps the secrets of the Prophet ﷺ which nobody knows except him?" Abu Darda further asked, "How does ʿAbdullah (bin Masʿud) recite the Sura starting with, 'By the Night as it conceals (the light)." (92.1) Then I recited before him: 'By the Night as it envelops: And by the Day as it appears in brightness; And by male and female.' (91.1-3) On this Abu Ad-Darda' said, "By Allah, the Prophet ﷺ made me recite the Sura in this way while I was listening to him (reciting it).  

قَدِمْتُ الشَّأْمَ فَصَلَّيْتُ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ قُلْتُ اللَّهُمَّ يَسِّرْ لِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا فَأَتَيْتُ قَوْمًا فَجَلَسْتُ إِلَيْهِمْ فَإِذَا شَيْخٌ قَدْ جَاءَ حَتَّى جَلَسَ إِلَى جَنْبِي قُلْتُ مَنْ هَذَا قَالُوا أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ فَقُلْتُ إِنِّي دَعَوْتُ اللَّهَ أَنْ يُيَسِّرَ لِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا فَيَسَّرَكَ لِي قَالَ مِمَّنْ أَنْتَ قُلْتُ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكُوفَةِ قَالَ أَوَلَيْسَ عِنْدَكُمُ ابْنُ أُمِّ عَبْدٍ صَاحِبُ النَّعْلَيْنِ وَالْوِسَادِ وَالْمِطْهَرَةِ وَفِيكُمُ الَّذِي أَجَارَهُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ عَلَى لِسَانِ نَبِيِّهِ ﷺ أَوَلَيْسَ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ سِرِّ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ الَّذِي لاَ يَعْلَمُ أَحَدٌ غَيْرُهُ ثُمَّ قَالَ كَيْفَ يَقْرَأُ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ {وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى} فَقَرَأْتُ عَلَيْهِ {وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى * وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّى * وَالذَّكَرِ وَالأُنْثَى} قَالَ وَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ أَقْرَأَنِيهَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ فِيهِ إِلَى فِيَّ  

I went to Sham and was offering a two-rakʿat prayer; I said, "O Allah! Bless me with a (pious) companion." Then I saw an old man coming towards me, and when he came near I said, (to myself), "I hope Allah has given me my request." The man asked (me), "Where are you from?" I replied, "I am from the people of Kufa." He said, "Weren't there amongst you the Carrier of the (Prophet's) shoes, Siwak and the ablution water container? Weren't there amongst you the man who was given Allah's Refuge from the Satan? And weren't there amongst you the man who used to keep the (Prophet's) secrets which nobody else knew? How did Ibn Um ʿAbd (i.e. ʿAbdullah bin Masʿud) use to recite Surat-al-lail (the Night:92)?" I recited:-- "By the Night as it envelops By the Day as it appears in brightness. And by male and female." (92.1- 3) On that, Abu Darda said, "By Allah, the Prophet ﷺ made me read the Verse in this way after listening to him, but these people (of Sham) tried their best to let me say something different."  

عَنْ عَلْقَمَةَ دَخَلْتُ الشَّأْمَ فَصَلَّيْتُ رَكْعَتَيْنِ فَقُلْتُ اللَّهُمَّ يَسِّرْ لِي جَلِيسًا فَرَأَيْتُ شَيْخًا مُقْبِلاً فَلَمَّا دَنَا قُلْتُ أَرْجُو أَنْ يَكُونَ اسْتَجَابَ قَالَ مِنْ أَيْنَ أَنْتَ قُلْتُ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكُوفَةِ قَالَ أَفَلَمْ يَكُنْ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ النَّعْلَيْنِ وَالْوِسَادِ وَالْمِطْهَرَةِ أَوَلَمْ يَكُنْ فِيكُمُ الَّذِي أُجِيرَ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ أَوَلَمْ يَكُنْ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ السِّرِّ الَّذِي لاَ يَعْلَمُهُ غَيْرُهُ كَيْفَ قَرَأَ ابْنُ أُمِّ عَبْدٍ {وَاللَّيْلِ} فَقَرَأْتُ {وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى * وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّى * وَالذَّكَرِ وَالأُنْثَى} قَالَ أَقْرَأَنِيهَا النَّبِيُّ ﷺ فَاهُ إِلَى فِيَّ فَمَا زَالَ هَؤُلاَءِ حَتَّى كَادُوا يَرُدُّونِي  

"I came to Al-Madinah, so I asked Allah to make it easy for me to sit with one who is righteous. He made Abu Hurairah accessible to me, so I sat with him and said to him: 'Indeed, I asked Allah to make it easy for me to sit with one who is righteous, and it is to you that I was guided.' So he said to me: 'From where are you?' I said: 'From the people of Al-Kufah, I came to search out good and to seek it.' So he said: 'Is there not among you Sa'd bin Malik whose supplication is answered, Ibn Mas'ud, the one who used to carry the water for purification and the sandals of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and Hudhaifah, the keeper of the secrets of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and 'Ammar whom Allah has guarded from Shaitan upon the tongue of His Prophet, and Salman the companion of the Two Books?'"  

أَنْ يُيَسِّرَ لِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا فَيَسَّرَ لِي أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ فَجَلَسْتُ إِلَيْهِ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ إِنِّي سَأَلْتُ اللَّهَ أَنْ يُيَسِّرَ لِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا فَوُفِّقْتَ لِي فَقَالَ لِي مِنْ أَيْنَ أَنْتَ قُلْتُ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكُوفَةِ جِئْتُ أَلْتَمِسُ الْخَيْرَ وَأَطْلُبُهُ قَالَ أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمْ سَعْدُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ مُجَابُ الدَّعْوَةِ وَابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ صَاحِبُ طَهُورِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَنَعْلَيْهِ وَحُذَيْفَةُ صَاحِبُ سِرِّ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَعَمَّارُ الَّذِي أَجَارَهُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ عَلَى لِسَانِ نَبِيِّهِ وَسَلْمَانُ صَاحِبُ الْكِتَابَيْنِ قَالَ قَتَادَةُ وَالْكِتَابَانِ الإِنْجِيلُ وَالْقُرْآنُ هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ غَرِيبٌ وَخَيْثَمَةُ هُوَ ابْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ أَبِي سَبْرَةَ نُسِبَ إِلَى جَدِّهِ  

[Machine] He arrived in Damascus and entered the mosque of Damascus and prayed two units of prayer in it and said, "O Allah, grant me a righteous companion." Then he came and sat with Abu Darda and Abu Darda said to him, "Who are you?" He said, "I am from the people of Kufa." Abu Darda said, "How did you hear Ibn Umm Abd reciting: 'By the night when it covers, and [by] the day when it appears?' He said, 'Alqamah and Zikr and An-Nisa.' Abu Darda said, 'I heard it from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ .' So they continued to question me until they doubted me. Then he said, 'Wasn't there among you the one who had the sleeping mat and the one who had the secret that no one else knew, and the one who was saved from the devil by the tongue of the Prophet ﷺ ?' The one with the sleeping mat was Ibn Mas'ud, and the one with the secret was Hudhaifah, and the one who was saved from the devil was 'Ammar.  

أَنَّهُ قَدِمَ الشَّامَ فَدَخَلَ مَسْجِدَ دِمَشْقَ فَصَلَّى فِيهِ رَكْعَتَيْنِ وَقَالَ اللهُمَّ ارْزُقْنِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا قَالَ فَجَاءَ فَجَلَسَ إِلَى أَبِي الدَّرْدَاءِ فَقَالَ لَهُ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ مِمَّنْ أَنْتَ؟ قَالَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكُوفَةِ قَالَ كَيْفَ سَمِعْتَ ابْنَ أُمِّ عَبْدٍ يَقْرَأُ وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّى؟ قَالَ عَلْقَمَةُ وَالذَّكَرِ وَالْأُنْثَى فَقَالَ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ لَقَدْ سَمِعْتُهَا مِنْ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ فَمَا زَالَ هَؤُلَاءِ حَتَّى شَكَّكُونِي ثُمَّ قَالَ أَلَمْ يَكُنْ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ الْوِسَادِ وَصَاحِبُ السِّرِّ الَّذِي لَا يَعْلَمُهُ أَحَدٌ غَيْرُهُ وَالَّذِي أُجِيرَ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ عَلَى لِسَانِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ؟ وَصَاحِبُ الْوِسَادِ ابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ وَصَاحِبُ السِّرِّ حُذَيْفَةُ وَالَّذِي أُجِيرَ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِعَمَّارٌ  

[Machine] Alqamah Al-Shami came and prayed two units of prayer. He said, "O Allah, grant me a righteous companion." So, I sat next to a man and he turned out to be Abu Al-Darda. He asked me, "Who are you?" I said, "I am from the people of Kufa." He asked, "Do you know how Abdullah used to recite this verse?" [By the night when it covers, and by the day when it appears, and by He who created the male and female.] So, I said, "He used to recite it as: 'By the night when it covers, and by the day when it appears, and by the male and female.'" He said, "That is how I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recite it." He continued to question me until I began to doubt myself. Then, he said, "Isn't among you the one who uses the cushion and the tooth stick?" He meant Abdullah ibn Mas'ud. "Isn't among you the one whom Allah protected from the tongue of his Prophet from the Devil?" He meant Ammar ibn Yasar. "Isn't among you the one who knows the secret that no one else knows?" He meant Hudhayfah.  

أَتَى عَلْقَمَةُ الشَّامَ فَصَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ فَقَالَ اللهُمَّ وَفِّقْ لِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا قَالَ فَجَلَسْتُ إِلَى رَجُلٍ فَإِذَا هُوَ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ فَقَالَ مِمَّنْ أَنْتَ؟ قُلْتُ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكُوفَةِ فَقَالَ هَلْ تَدْرِي كَيْفَ كَانَ عَبْدُ اللهِ يَقْرَأُ هَذَا الْحَرْفَ؟ {وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّى وَمَا خَلَقَ الذَّكَرَ وَالْأُنْثَى} [الليل 2] فَقُلْتُ كَانَ يَقْرَؤُهَا وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّى وَالذَّكَرِ وَالْأُنْثَى فَقَالَ هَكَذَا سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ يَقْرَؤُهَا فَمَا زَالَ بِي هَؤُلَاءِ حَتَّى كَادُوا يُشَكِّكُونِي ثُمَّ قَالَ أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ الْوِسَادِ وَالسِّوَاكِ يَعْنِي عَبْدَ اللهِابْنَ مَسْعُودٍ أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمُ الَّذِي أَجَارَهُ اللهُ عَلَى لِسَانِ نَبِيِّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ يَعْنِي عَمَّارَ بْنَ يَاسِرٍ أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمُ الَّذِي يَعْلَمُ السِّرَّ وَلَا يَعْلَمُهُ غَيْرُهُ يَعْنِي حُذَيْفَةَ  

[Machine] I heard Ibrahim say that Alqamah went to Damascus. He came to the mosque and prayed two units of prayer, then said, "O Allah, grant me a righteous companion." He sat next to Abu Darda and asked, "Who are you?" Abu Darda said, "I am from the people of Kufa." Alqamah asked, "Do you not have the companion of the secret who no one else knew except Hudhaifah?" Alqamah continued, "Do you not have the one whom Allah entrusted with protection from the devil through the tongue of His Prophet ﷺ , Ammar ibn Yasir?" And do you not have the companion of the blackness, Abdullah ibn Mas'ud?" Then Alqamah asked, "How do you read this verse, 'And [by] the night when it covers and [by] the day when it appears'?" Abu Darda replied, "I said, 'And [by] the male and female.' He said, 'These people continued to doubt me, even though I heard it from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ .'"  

سَمِعْتُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ يَقُولُ ذَهَبَ عَلْقَمَةُ إِلَى الشَّامِ فَأَتَى الْمَسْجِدَ فَصَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ قَالَ اللَّهُمَّ ارْزُقْنِي جَلِيسًا صَالِحًا فَقَعَدَ إِلَى أَبِي الدَّرْدَاءِ فَقَالَ «مِمَّنْ أَنْتَ؟ » قَالَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكُوفَةِ قَالَ «أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ السِّرِّ الَّذِي كَانَ لَا يَعْلَمُهُ غَيْرُهُ حُذَيْفَةُ؟ » أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمُ الَّذِي أَجَارَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَى لِسَانِ نَبِيِّهِ ﷺ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ عَمَّارُ بْنُ يَاسِرٍ؟ أَلَيْسَ فِيكُمْ صَاحِبُ السَّوَادِ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مَسْعُودٍ؟ وَقَالَ كَيْفَ تَقْرَأُ هَذِهِ الْآيَةَ {وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَى وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّى} فَقُلْتُ وَالذَّكَرِ وَالْأُنْثَى قَالَ «فَمَا زَالَ هَؤُلَاءِ كَادُوا يُشَكِّكُونِي وَقَدْ سَمِعْتُهَا مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ»