Messenger of Allah (may peace he upon him) sent us (on an expedition) and appointed Abu 'Ubaida our chief that we might intercept a caravan of the Quraish and provided us with a bag of dates. And he found for us nothing besides it. Abu Ubaida gave each of us one date (everyday). I (Abu Zubair, one of the narrators) said: What did you do with that? He said: We sucked that just as a baby sucks and then drank water over that, and it sufficed us for the day until night. We beat off leaves with the help of our staffs, then drenched them with water and ate them. We then went to the coast of the sea, and there rose before us on the coast of the sea something like a big mound. We came near that and we found that it was a beast, called al-'Anbar (spermaceti whale). Abu 'Ubaida said. It is dead. He then said: No (but it does not matter), we have been sent by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in the path of Allah and you are hard pressed (on account of the scarcity of food), so you eat that. We three hundred in number stayed there for a month, until we grew bulky. He (Jabir) said: I saw how we extracted pitcher after pitcher full of fat from the cavity of its eye, and sliced from it compact piece of meat equal to a bull or like a bull. Abu 'Ubaida called forth thirteen men from us and he made them sit in the cavity of its eye, and he took hold of one of the ribs of its chest and made it stand and then saddled the biggest of the camels we had with us and it passed under it (the arched rib), and we provided ourselves with pieces of boiled meat (especially for use in our journey). When we came back to Medina, we went to Messenger of Allah ﷺ and made a mention of that to him, whereupon he said: That was a provision which Allah had brought forth for you. Is there any piece of meat (left) with you, so tnat you give to us that? He (Jabir) said: We sent to Messenger of Allah ﷺ tome of that (a piece of meat) and he ate it.  

بَعَثَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَأَمَّرَ عَلَيْنَا أَبَا عُبَيْدَةَ نَتَلَقَّى عِيرًا لِقُرَيْشٍ وَزَوَّدَنَا جِرَابًا مِنْ تَمْرٍ لَمْ يَجِدْ لَنَا غَيْرَهُ فَكَانَ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ يُعْطِينَا تَمْرَةً تَمْرَةً قَالَ فَقُلْتُ كَيْفَ كُنْتُمْ تَصْنَعُونَ بِهَا قَالَ نَمَصُّهَا كَمَا يَمَصُّ الصَّبِيُّ ثُمَّ نَشْرَبُ عَلَيْهَا مِنَ الْمَاءِ فَتَكْفِينَا يَوْمَنَا إِلَى اللَّيْلِ وَكُنَّا نَضْرِبُ بِعِصِيِّنَا الْخَبَطَ ثُمَّ نَبُلُّهُ بِالْمَاءِ فَنَأْكُلُهُ قَالَ وَانْطَلَقْنَا عَلَى سَاحِلِ الْبَحْرِ فَرُفِعَ لَنَا عَلَى سَاحِلِ الْبَحْرِ كَهَيْئَةِ الْكَثِيبِ الضَّخْمِ فَأَتَيْنَاهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ دَابَّةٌ تُدْعَى الْعَنْبَرَ قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ مَيْتَةٌ ثُمَّ قَالَ لاَ بَلْ نَحْنُ رُسُلُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَقَدِ اضْطُرِرْتُمْ فَكُلُوا قَالَ فَأَقَمْنَا عَلَيْهِ شَهْرًا وَنَحْنُ ثَلاَثُ مِائَةٍ حَتَّى سَمِنَّا قَالَ وَلَقَدْ رَأَيْتُنَا نَغْتَرِفُ مِنْ وَقْبِ عَيْنِهِ بِالْقِلاَلِ الدُّهْنَ وَنَقْتَطِعُ مِنْهُ الْفِدَرَ كَالثَّوْرِ أَوْ كَقَدْرِ الثَّوْرِ فَلَقَدْ أَخَذَ مِنَّا أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ ثَلاَثَةَ عَشَرَ رَجُلاً فَأَقْعَدَهُمْ فِي وَقْبِ عَيْنِهِ وَأَخَذَ ضِلَعًا مِنْ أَضْلاَعِهِ فَأَقَامَهَا ثُمَّ رَحَلَ أَعْظَمَ بَعِيرٍ مَعَنَا فَمَرَّ مِنْ تَحْتِهَا وَتَزَوَّدْنَا مِنْ لَحْمِهِ وَشَائِقَ فَلَمَّا قَدِمْنَا الْمَدِينَةَ أَتَيْنَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَذَكَرْنَا ذَلِكَ لَهُ فَقَالَ هُوَ رِزْقٌ أَخْرَجَهُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ فَهَلْ مَعَكُمْ مِنْ لَحْمِهِ شَىْءٌ فَتُطْعِمُونَا قَالَ فَأَرْسَلْنَا إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْهُ فَأَكَلَهُ  

Messenger of Allah (may peace he upon him) sent us (on an expedition). We were three hundred riders and our chief (leader) was 'Ubaida b. al-Jarrah. We were on the look out for a caravan of the Quraish. So we stayed on the coast for half a month, and were so much afflicted by extreme hunger that we (were obliged) to eat leaves. That is why it was called the Detachment of the Leaves. The ocean cast out for us an animal which was called al-'Anbar (whale). We ate of that for half of the month and rubbed its fat on our (bodies) until our bodies became stout. Abu 'Ubaida caught hold of one of its ribs and fixed that up. He then cast a glance at the tallest man of the army and the highest of the camels. and then made him ride over that, and that-tnan passed beneath it (the rib), and many a man could sit in its eye-socket, and we extracted many pitchers of fat from the cavity of its eye. We had small bags containing dates with us (before finding the whale). 'Ubaida gave every person amongst us a handful of dates (and when the provision ran short), he then gave each one of us one date. And when that (stock) was exhausted, we felt its loss.  

بَعَثَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَنَحْنُ ثَلاَثُمِائَةِ رَاكِبٍ وَأَمِيرُنَا أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ بْنُ الْجَرَّاحِ نَرْصُدُ عِيرًا لِقُرَيْشٍ فَأَقَمْنَا بِالسَّاحِلِ نِصْفَ شَهْرٍ فَأَصَابَنَا جُوعٌ شَدِيدٌ حَتَّى أَكَلْنَا الْخَبَطَ فَسُمِّيَ جَيْشَ الْخَبَطِ فَأَلْقَى لَنَا الْبَحْرُ دَابَّةً يُقَالُ لَهَا الْعَنْبَرُ فَأَكَلْنَا مِنْهَا نِصْفَ شَهْرٍ وَادَّهَنَّا مِنْ وَدَكِهَا حَتَّى ثَابَتْ أَجْسَامُنَا قَالَ فَأَخَذَ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ ضِلَعًا مِنْ أَضْلاَعِهِ فَنَصَبَهُ ثُمَّ نَظَرَ إِلَى أَطْوَلِ رَجُلٍ فِي الْجَيْشِ وَأَطْوَلِ جَمَلٍ فَحَمَلَهُ عَلَيْهِ فَمَرَّ تَحْتَهُ قَالَ وَجَلَسَ فِي حَجَاجِ عَيْنِهِ نَفَرٌ قَالَ وَأَخْرَجْنَا مِنْ وَقْبِ عَيْنِهِ كَذَا وَكَذَا قُلَّةَ وَدَكٍ قَالَ وَكَانَ مَعَنَا جِرَابٌ مِنْ تَمْرٍ فَكَانَ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ يُعْطِي كُلَّ رَجُلٍ مِنَّا قَبْضَةً قَبْضَةً ثُمَّ أَعْطَانَا تَمْرَةً تَمْرَةً فَلَمَّا فَنِيَ وَجَدْنَا فَقْدَهُ  

'Amr reported on the authority of Jabir that in the expedition of Khabat (leaves) a person slaughtered three camels, then three, then three, then Abu 'Ubaida forbade him (to do so fearing that the rides may become short).  

سَمِعَ عَمْرٌو جَابِرًا يَقُولُ فِي جَيْشِ الْخَبَطِ إِنَّ رَجُلاً نَحَرَ ثَلاَثَ جَزَائِرَ ثُمَّ ثَلاَثًا ثُمَّ ثَلاَثًا ثُمَّ نَهَاهُ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ  

Allah's Apostle ﷺ sent us (on an expedition), and we were three hundred in number, and we were carrying our bags of provisions around our necks.  

بَعَثَنَا النَّبِيُّ ﷺ وَنَحْنُ ثَلاَثُمِائَةٍ نَحْمِلُ أَزْوَادَنَا عَلَى رِقَابِنَا  

'Abu 'Ubaida collected their provisions in the provision bag. and he fed us (for some time). Later on when the provisions ran short he gave us one date every day.  

أَخْبَرَهُ قَالَ بَعَثَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ سَرِيَّةً ثَلاَثَمِائَةٍ وَأَمَّرَ عَلَيْهِمْ أَبَا عُبَيْدَةَ بْنَ الْجَرَّاحِ فَفَنِيَ زَادُهُمْ فَجَمَعَ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ زَادَهُمْ فِي مِزْوَدٍ فَكَانَ يُقَوِّتُنَا حَتَّى كَانَ يُصِيبُنَا كُلَّ يَوْمٍ تَمْرَةٌ  

" The army ate out of that (the whale) for eighteen days."  

سَمِعْتُ جَابِرَ بْنَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ يَقُولُ بَعَثَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ سَرِيَّةً أَنَا فِيهِمْ إِلَى سِيفِ الْبَحْرِ وَسَاقُوا جَمِيعًا بَقِيَّةَ الْحَدِيثِ كَنَحْوِ حَدِيثِ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ وَأَبِي الزُّبَيْرِ غَيْرَ أَنَّ فِي حَدِيثِ وَهْبِ بْنِ كَيْسَانَ فَأَكَلَ مِنْهَا الْجَيْشُ ثَمَانِيَ عَشْرَةَ لَيْلَةً  

Jabir b. Abdullah reported that Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent an expedition to the land of the tribe of Juhaina, and appointed a person as a chief over them.  

بَعَثَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ بَعْثًا إِلَى أَرْضِ جُهَيْنَةَ وَاسْتَعْمَلَ عَلَيْهِمْ رَجُلاً وَسَاقَ الْحَدِيثَ بِنَحْوِ حَدِيثِهِمْ