Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal: Book 5, Hadith 256
Hujayyah bin ‘Adiyy, a man from Kindah, said: Abu `Abdur-Rahman as-Sulami and Hibban bin `Atiyyah had a dispute. `Abdur-Rahman said to Hibban: I know what made your companion – meaning `Ali (رضي الله عنه) – audacious. He said: What is it, may you be bereft of your father? He said. Something I heard `Ali (رضي الله عنه) say. He said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent me, az-Zubair and Abu Marthad on a mission, and we were all horsemen. He said: `Go to Rawdat Khakh, for there you will find a woman who has a letter with her from Hatib bin Abi Balta`ah to the mushrikeen; bring it to me.` So we went on our horses until we caught up with her where the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had told us, travelling on a camel of hers. He had written to the people of Makkah, telling them about the march of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). We said to her. Where is the letter you have with you? She said: I do not have any letter. We made her camel kneel down and searched her luggage for it, but we did not find anything. My two companions said: We do not see any letter with her, I said: You know that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) did not tell a lie. Then I swore: By the One by whom oaths are sworn, you will give us the letter or we will remove your clothes. She stretched out her hand to her girdle, which was wrapped around her, and brought out the letter. I brought it to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and they said: O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), he has betrayed Allah and His Messenger and the believers; let me strike his neck. He said: `O Hatib, what made you do what you did?` He said: O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), by Allah, it is not that I do not believe in Allah and His Messenger, but I wanted to do a favour for the people by means of which Allah might protect my family and my property, for every one of your Companions has some of his people there through whom Allah will protect his family and his property. He said: You have spoken the truth, do not say anything to him but good.` ʻUmar said: O, Messenger of Allah, he betrayed Allah and His Messenger and the believers, let me strike his neck. He said. `ls he not one of the people of Badr? How do you know? Perhaps Allah looked upon them and said. “Do what you like, for Paradise is guaranteed for you.ʻʼ ʻUmarʻs eyes filled with tears and he said: Allah, may He be exalted, and His Messenger know best.
حَدَّثَنَا عَفَّانُ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ، قَالَ سَلَمَةُ بْنُ كُهَيْلٍ أَنْبَأَنِي قَالَ سَمِعْتُ حُجَيَّةَ بْنَ عَدِيٍّ، رَجُلًا مِنْ كِنْدَةَ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ رَجُلًا، سَأَلَ عَلِيًّا رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ إِنِّي اشْتَرَيْتُ هَذِهِ الْبَقَرَةَ لِلْأَضْحَى قَالَ عَنْ سَبْعَةٍ قَالَ الْقَرْنُ قَالَ لَا يَضُرُّكَ قَالَ الْعَرَجُ قَالَ إِذَا بَلَغَتْ الْمَنْسَكَ فَانْحَرْ ثُمَّ قَالَ أَمَرَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنْ نَسْتَشْرِفَ الْعَيْنَ وَالْأُذُنَ.
Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal: Book 5, Hadith 256
The above hadith is from the Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal collection of hadiths. The Musnad of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal is a foundational work in Islamic hadith literature, highly valued for its comprehensive nature. Its most defining feature is its organizational method; it categorizes hadiths based on the companion of the Prophet who first reported them, with a dedicated section for each. This structure provides a unique window into the practices and sayings of the Prophet as witnessed and related by his diverse companions. Although the Musnad is held in extremely high regard and contains many authentic narrations, it is important to note that, due to its encyclopedic aim of collecting available reports, it also contains some hadiths with weaker chains of transmission that are subject to scholarly scrutiny.
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For more Hadith in Book 5: Musnad ‘Ali Ibn Abi Talib