54. The Book of Zuhd and Softening of Hearts
٥٤۔ كتاب الزهد والرقائق
Abu Bakr came to my father who was at home and purchased a saddle from him. He said to ʿAzib. "Tell your son to carry it with me." So I carried it with him and my father followed us so as to take the price (of the saddle). My father said, "O Abu Bakr! Tell me what happened to you on your night journey with Messenger of Allah ﷺ (during Migration)." He said, "Yes, we travelled the whole night and also the next day till midday. when nobody could be seen on the way ( because of the severe heat) . Then there appeared a long rock having shade beneath it, and the sunshine had not come to it yet. So we dismounted there and I levelled a place and covered it with an animal hide or dry grass for the Prophet ﷺ to sleep on (for a while). I then said, 'Sleep, O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and I will guard you.' So he slept and I went out to guard him. Suddenly I saw a shepherd coming with his sheep to that rock with the same intention we had when we came to it. I asked (him). 'To whom do you belong, O boy?' He replied, 'I belong to a man from Medina or Mecca.' I said, 'Do your sheep have milk?' He said, 'Yes.' I said, 'Will you milk for us?' He said, 'Yes.' He caught hold of a sheep and I asked him to clean its teat from dust, hairs and dirt. (The sub-narrator said that he saw Al-Bara' striking one of his hands with the other, demonstrating how the shepherd removed the dust.) The shepherd milked a little milk in a wooden container and I had a leather container which I carried for the Prophet ﷺ to drink and perform the ablution from. I went to the Prophet, hating to wake him up, but when I reached there, the Prophet ﷺ had already awakened; so I poured water over the middle part of the milk container, till the milk was cold. Then I said, 'Drink, O Messenger of Allah ﷺ!' He drank till I was pleased. Then he asked, 'Has the time for our departure come?' I said, 'Yes.' So we departed after midday. Suraqa bin Malik followed us and I said, 'We have been discovered, O Messenger of Allah ﷺ!' He said, Don't grieve for Allah is with us.' The Prophet ﷺ invoked evil on him (i.e. Suraqa) and so the legs of his horse sank into the earth up to its belly. (The subnarrator, Zuhair is not sure whether Abu Bakr said, "(It sank) into solid earth.") Suraqa said, 'I see that you have invoked evil on me. Please invoke good on me, and by Allah, I will cause those who are seeking after you to return.' The Prophet ﷺ invoked good on him and he was saved. Then, whenever he met somebody on the way, he would say, 'I have looked for him here in vain.' So he caused whomever he met to return. Thus Suraqa fulfilled his promise."
فَحَمَلْتُهُ مَعَهُ وَخَرَجَ أَبِي يَنْتَقِدُ ثَمَنَهُ فَقَالَ لَهُ أَبِي يَا أَبَا بَكْرٍ حَدِّثْنِي كَيْفَ صَنَعْتُمَا حِينَ سَرَيْتَ مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ نَعَمْ أَسْرَيْنَا لَيْلَتَنَا وَمِنَ الْغَدِ حَتَّى قَامَ قَائِمُ الظَّهِيرَةِ وَخَلاَ الطَّرِيقُ لاَ يَمُرُّ فِيهِ أَحَدٌ فَرُفِعَتْ لَنَا صَخْرَةٌ طَوِيلَةٌ لَهَا ظِلٌّ لَمْ تَأْتِ عَلَيْهِ الشَّمْسُ فَنَزَلْنَا عِنْدَهُ وَسَوَّيْتُ لِلنَّبِيِّ ﷺ مَكَانًا بِيَدِي يَنَامُ عَلَيْهِ وَبَسَطْتُ فِيهِ فَرْوَةً وَقُلْتُ نَمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَأَنَا أَنْفُضُ لَكَ مَا حَوْلَكَ فَنَامَ وَخَرَجْتُ أَنْفُضُ مَا حَوْلَهُ فَإِذَا أَنَا بِرَاعٍ مُقْبِلٍ بِغَنَمِهِ إِلَى الصَّخْرَةِ يُرِيدُ مِنْهَا مِثْلَ الَّذِي أَرَدْنَا فَقُلْتُ لِمَنْ أَنْتَ يَا غُلاَمُ فَقَالَ لِرَجُلٍ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ أَوْ مَكَّةَ قُلْتُ أَفِي غَنَمِكَ لَبَنٌ قَالَ نَعَمُ قُلْتُ أَفَتَحْلُبُ قَالَ نَعَمْ فَأَخَذَ شَاةً فَقُلْتُ انْفُضِ الضَّرْعَ مِنَ التُّرَابِ وَالشَّعَرِ وَالْقَذَى قَالَ فَرَأَيْتُ الْبَرَاءَ يَضْرِبُ إِحْدَى يَدَيْهِ عَلَى الأُخْرَى يَنْفُضُ فَحَلَبَ فِي قَعْبٍ كُثْبَةً مِنْ لَبَنٍ وَمَعِي إِدَاوَةٌ حَمَلْتُهَا لِلنَّبِيِّ ﷺ يَرْتَوِي مِنْهَا يَشْرَبُ وَيَتَوَضَّأُ فَأَتَيْتُ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ فَكَرِهْتُ أَنْ أُوقِظَهُ فَوَافَقْتُهُ حِينَ اسْتَيْقَظَ فَصَبَبْتُ مِنَ الْمَاءِ عَلَى اللَّبَنِ حَتَّى بَرَدَ أَسْفَلُهُ فَقُلْتُ اشْرَبْ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ فَشَرِبَ حَتَّى رَضِيتُ ثُمَّ قَالَ أَلَمْ يَأْنِ لِلرَّحِيلِ قُلْتُ بَلَى قَالَ فَارْتَحَلْنَا بَعْدَ مَا مَالَتِ الشَّمْشُ وَاتَّبَعَنَا سُرَاقَةُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ فَقُلْتُ أُتِينَا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ لاَ تَحْزَنْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَنَا فَدَعَا عَلَيْهِ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ فَارْتَطَمَتْ بِهِ فَرَسُهُ إِلَى بَطْنِهَا أُرَى فِي جَلَدٍ مِنَ الأَرْضِ شَكَّ زُهَيْرٌ فَقَالَ إِنِّي أُرَاكُمَا قَدْ دَعَوْتُمَا عَلَىَّ فَادْعُوَا لِي فَاللَّهُ لَكُمَا أَنْ أَرُدَّ عَنْكُمَا الطَّلَبَ فَدَعَا لَهُ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ فَنَجَا فَجَعَلَ لاَ يَلْقَى أَحَدًا إِلاَّ قَالَ كَفَيْتُكُمْ مَا هُنَا فَلاَ يَلْقَى أَحَدًا إِلاَّ رَدَّهُ قَالَ وَوَفَى لَنَا