al-Mustadrak (al-Hakim) 3254

Translation

✧ "Do you know Aylah?" I said, "What is Aylah?" He said, "A village where some Jews lived. Allah forbade them fish on the Sabbath. Their fish used to come to them on their Sabbath, appearing at the surface—white, fat, like pregnant camels—near their courtyards and buildings. On other than the Sabbath, they could not find them or catch them except with hardship and great effort. Some of them said to others, or whoever among them said it: 'Perhaps if we caught them on the Sabbath and ate them on another day...' A household among them did that. They caught fish and grilled them. Their neighbors smelled the aroma of grilling and said, 'By Allah, we do not think the people of Banu So-and-so are doing anything.' Then others caught them, until the practice spread among them and became widespread. They split into three groups: a group that ate, a group that forbade, and a group that said: {Why do you admonish a people whom Allah will destroy or punish with a severe punishment?} [Al-A'raf 164]. The group that forbade said: 'We warn you of Allah's anger and His punishment—that He may strike you with a sinking of the earth, a pelting from the sky, or some of the punishment He has. By Allah, we will not stay overnight in a place where you are.' They left the walled town. The next morning, they went to the gate of the town and knocked, but no one answered. They brought a ladder, leaned it against the wall, and one of them climbed up. He said, 'O servants of Allah! Monkeys, by Allah, with tails, howling!' He said it three times, then descended from the wall and opened the gate. The people entered upon them. The monkeys recognized their human relatives, but the humans did not recognize their monkey relatives. A monkey would come to its human relative or kinsman, rub against him, and cling to him. The human would say, 'Are you So-and-so?' The monkey would nod its head, meaning yes, and weep. A female monkey would come to her human relative or kinswoman, and the human would say, 'Are you So-and-so?' She would nod her head, meaning yes, and weep. Then the humans said to them, 'We warned you of Allah's anger and His punishment—that He may strike you with a sinking of the earth, a metamorphosis, or some of the punishment He has.'" Ibn Abbas said: "Listen to what Allah says: 'We saved those who forbade evil and seized those who did wrong with a dreadful punishment because they were defiantly disobeying.' I do not know what happened to the third group." Ibn Abbas said: "How many evil deeds have we seen and not forbidden?" Ikrimah said: I said, "What do you think, may Allah make me your ransom? They did disapprove and dislike it when they said: 'Why do you admonish a people whom Allah will destroy or punish with a severe punishment?'" My words pleased him, and he ordered two thick cloaks for me and clothed me with them.

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