Tarikh (al-Tabari) 383
the accounts of past peoples from the Israelites and others
قَالَ الْإِمَامُ أَحْمَدُ بسنده: قَالَ أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ: بَيْنَمَا رَجُلٌ وَامْرَأَةٌ لَهُ فِي السَّلَفِ الْخَالِي، لَا يَقْدِرَانِ عَلَى شَيْءٍ فَجَاءَ الرَّجُلُ مِنْ سَفَرِهِ فَدَخَلَ عَلَى امْرَأَتِهِ جَائِعًا قَدْ أَصَابَتْهُ مَسْغَبَةٌ شَدِيدَةٌ فَقَالَ لِامْرَأَتِهِ: أَعِنْدَكِ شَيْءٌ ؟ قَالَتْ: نَعَمْ أَبْشِرْ أَتَاكَ رِزْقُ اللَّهِ. فَاسْتَحَثَّهَا فَقَالَ: وَيَحَكِ ابْتَغِي إِنْ كَانَ عِنْدَكِ شَيْءٌ قَالَتْ: نَعَمْ هُنَيَّةً نَرْجُو رَحْمَةَ اللَّهِ حَتَّى إِذَا طَالَ عَلَيْهِ الطَّوَى قَالَ: وَيْحَكِ قُومِي فَابْتَغِي إِنْ كَانَ عِنْدَكِ خُبْزٌ فَأْتِينِي بِهِ فَإِنِّي قَدْ بَلَغْتُ وَجَهَدْتُ فَقَالَتْ: نَعَمِ الْآنَ يُنْضِجُ التَّنُّورُ فَلَا تَعْجَلْ، فَلَمَّا أَنْ سَكَتَ عَنْهَا سَاعَةً، وَتَحَيَّنَتْ أَيْضًا أَنْ يَقُولَ لَهَا قَالَتْ هِيَ مِنْ عِنْدِ نَفْسِهَا: لَوْ قُمْتُ فَنَظَرْتُ إِلَى تَنُّورِي فَقَامَتْ فَوَجَدَتْ تَنُّورَهَا مَلْآنَ مِنْ جُنُوبِ الْغَنَمِ، وَرَحْيَيْهَا تَطْحَنَانِ فَقَامَتْ إِلَى الرَّحَى فَنَفَضَتْهَا وَأَخْرَجَتْ مَا فِي تَنُّورِهَا مِنْ جُنُوبِ الْغَنَمِ. قَالَ أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ فَوَالَّذِي نَفْسُ أَبِي الْقَاسِمِ بِيَدِهِ - عَنْ قَوْلِ مُحَمَّدٍ ﷺ - لَوْ أَخَذَتْ مَا فِي رَحْيَيْهَا وَلَمْ تَنْفُضْهَا، لَطَحَنَتْهَا إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ. وعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ قَالَ: دَخَلَ رَجُلٌ عَلَى أَهْلِهِ فَلَمَّا رَأَى مَا بِهِمْ مِنَ الْحَاجَةِ خَرَجَ إِلَى الْبَرِّيَّةِ فَلَمَّا رَأَتِ امْرَأَتُهُ قَامَتْ إِلَى الرَّحَى فَوَضَعَتْهَا، وَإِلَى التَّنُّورِ فَسَجَرَتْهُ، ثُمَّ قَالَتِ: اللَّهُمَّ ارْزُقْنَا فَنَظَرَتْ فَإِذَا الْجَفْنَةُ قَدِ امْتَلَأَتْ. قَالَ: وَذَهَبَتْ إِلَى التَّنُّورِ فَوَجَدَتْهُ مُمْتَلِئًا قَالَ: فَرَجَعَ الزَّوْجُ قَالَ: أَصَبْتُمْ بَعْدِي شَيْئًا قَالَتِ امْرَأَتُهُ: نَعَمْ مِنْ رَبِّنَا. قَامَ إِلَى الرَّحَى فَرَفَعَهَا فَذُكِرَ ذَلِكَ لِلنَّبِيِّ ﷺ فَقَالَ أَمَا إِنَّهُ لَوْ لَمْ يَرْفَعْهَا، لَمْ تَزَلْ تَدُورُ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ شَهِدْتُ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ وَهُوَ يَقُولُ وَاللَّهِ لَأَنْ يَأْتِيَ أَحَدَكُمْ صَبِيرًا، ثُمَّ يَحْمِلَهُ فَيَبِيعَهُ فَيَسْتَعِفَّ مِنْهُ، خَيْرٌ لَهُ مِنْ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ رَجُلًا فَيَسْأَلَهُ.
Translation
✧ Imām Aḥmad said with his chain of transmission: Abū Hurayrah said: While a man and his wife were among the bygone generations, unable to obtain anything, the man came from his journey and entered upon his wife hungry, having been stricken with severe hunger. He said to his wife: "Do you have anything?" She said: "Yes, rejoice; Allah's provision has come to you." He urged her on, saying: "Woe to you! Seek out if you have anything." She said: "Yes, a little something; we hope for Allah's mercy." Until when the hunger had gone on long for him, he said: "Woe to you! Get up and seek out if you have any bread, and bring it to me, for I have reached my limit and am exhausted." She said: "Yes, now the oven is baking; do not be hasty." When he fell silent for a while, and she anticipated that he would say something to her again, she said of her own accord: "If only I got up and looked at my oven." She got up and found her oven full of sides of sheep, and her two millstones were grinding. She went to the mill, shook it out, and took out from her oven the sides of sheep. Abū Hurayrah said: By the One in Whose hand is the soul of Abū al-Qāsim—referring to the saying of Muḥammad ﷺ—had she taken what was in her two millstones and not shaken it out, it would have ground for her until the Day of Resurrection. And from Abū Hurayrah, he said: A man entered upon his family, and when he saw the need they were in, he went out to the desert. When his wife saw that, she went to the mill and set it up, and to the oven and lit it, then she said: "O Allah, provide for us." She looked, and behold, the large bowl had filled up. He said: And she went to the oven and found it full. He said: The husband returned and said: "Did you obtain anything after I left?" His wife said: "Yes, from our Lord." He went to the mill and lifted it up. That was mentioned to the Prophet ﷺ, and he said: "Indeed, had he not lifted it up, it would not have ceased turning until the Day of Resurrection. I witnessed the Prophet ﷺ saying: By Allah, for one of you to come with a bundle of firewood, then carry it and sell it and thereby keep himself from asking, is better for him than to come to a man and ask him."
Grades by grader
No grade is recorded for this wording.