Sirat Ibn Hisham 30
The account of 'Abd Allah b. al-Thamir and the story of the people of the trench
أَمْرُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الثَّامِرِ، وَقِصَّةُ أَصْحَابِ الْأُخْدُودِ [ فَيْمِيُونُ وَابْنُ الثَّامِرِ وَاسْمُ اللَّهِ الْأَعْظَمُ ] قَالَ ابْنُ إسْحَاقَ: وَحَدَّثَنِي يَزِيدُ بْنُ زِيَادٍ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ كَعْبٍ الْقُرَظِيِّ، وَحَدَّثَنِي أَيْضًا بَعْضُ أَهْلِ نَجْرَانَ عَنْ أَهْلِهَا: أَنَّ أَهْلَ نَجْرَانَ كَانُوا أَهْلَ شِرْكٍ يَعْبُدُونَ الْأَوْثَانَ، وَكَانَ فِي قَرْيَةٍ مِنْ قُرَاهَا قَرِيبًا مِنْ نَجْرَانَ - وَنَجْرَانُ: الْقَرْيَةُ الْعُظْمَى الَّتِي إلَيْهَا جِمَاعُ أَهْلِ تِلْكَ الْبِلَادِ - سَاحِرٌ يُعَلِّمُ غِلْمَانَ أَهْلِ نَجْرَانَ السِّحْرَ، فَلَمَّا نَزَلَهَا فَيْمِيُونُ - وَلَمْ يُسَمُّوهُ لِي بِاسْمِهِ الَّذِي سَمَّاهُ بِهِ وَهْبُ بْنُ مُنَبِّهٍ، قَالُوا: رَجُلٌ نَزَلَهَا - ابْتَنَى خَيْمَةً بَيْنَ نَجْرَانَ وَبَيْنَ تِلْكَ الْقَرْيَةِ الَّتِي بِهَا السَّاحِرُ فَجَعَلَ أَهْلُ نَجْرَانَ يُرْسِلُونَ غِلْمَانَهُمْ إلَى ذَلِكَ السَّاحِرِ يُعَلِّمُهُمْ السِّحْرَ فَبَعَثَ إلَيْهِ الثَّامِرُ ابْنَهُ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ الثَّامِرِ، مَعَ غِلْمَانِ أَهْلِ نَجْرَانَ فَكَانَ إذَا مَرَّ بِصَاحِبِ الْخَيْمَةِ أَعْجَبَهُ مَا يَرَى مِنْهُ مِنْ صَلَاتِهِ وَعِبَادَتِهِ فَجَعَلَ يَجْلِسُ إلَيْهِ. وَيَسْمَعُ مِنْهُ حَتَّى أَسْلَمَ فَوَحَّدَ اللَّهَ وَعَبَدَهُ، وَجَعَلَ يَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ شَرَائِعِ الْإِسْلَامِ حَتَّى إذَا فَقِهَ فِيهِ جَعَلَ يَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ الِاسْمِ الْأَعْظَمِ. وَكَانَ يَعْلَمُهُ، فَكَتَمَهُ إيَّاهُ. وَقَالَ ( لَهُ ): يَا ابْنَ أَخِي، إنَّكَ لَنْ تَحْمِلَهُ أَخْشَى عَلَيْكَ ضَعْفَكَ عَنْهُ. وَالثَّامِرُ أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ لَا يَظُنُّ إلَّا أَنَّ ابْنَهُ يَخْتَلِفُ إلَى السَّاحِرِ كَمَا يَخْتَلِفُ الْغِلْمَانُ، فَلَمَّا رَأَى عَبْدُ اللَّهِ أَنَّ صَاحِبَهُ قَدْ ضَنَّ بِهِ عَنْهُ. وَتَخَوَّفَ ضَعْفَهُ فِيهِ عَمَدَ إلَى أَقْدَاحٍ فَجَمَعَهَا. ثُمَّ لَمْ يُبْقِ لِلَّهِ اسْمًا يَعْلَمُهُ إلَّا كَتَبَهُ فِي قِدْحٍ، وَلِكُلِّ اسْمٍ قِدْحٌ حَتَّى إذَا أَحْصَاهَا أَوْقَدَ لَهَا نَارًا، ثُمَّ جَعَلَ يَقْذِفُهَا فِيهَا قِدْحًا قِدْحًا. حَتَّى إذَا مَرَّ بِالِاسْمِ الْأَعْظَمِ قَذَفَ فِيهَا بِقِدْحِهِ. فَوَثَبَ الْقِدْحُ حَتَّى خَرَجَ مِنْهَا لَمْ تَضُرَّهُ شَيْئًا فَأَخَذَهُ ثُمَّ أَتَى صَاحِبَهُ فَأَخْبَرَهُ بِأَنَّهُ قَدْ عَلِمَ الِاسْمَ الَّذِي كَتَمَهُ ؟ فَقَالَ: وَمَا هُوَ ؟ قَالَ: هُوَ كَذَا وَكَذَا، وَكَيْفَ عَلِمْتَهُ ؟ فَأَخْبَرَهُ بِمَا صَنَعَ، قَالَ: أَيْ ابْنَ أَخِي، قَدْ أَصَبْتَهُ فَأَمْسِكْ عَلَى نَفْسِكَ، وَمَا أَظُنُّ أَنْ تَفْعَلَ.
Translation
✧ The affair of ʿAbdullāh b. al-Thāmir, and the story of the People of the Ditch [Faymiyūn and Ibn al-Thāmir and the Greatest Name of God] Ibn Isḥāq said: Yazīd b. Ziyād related to me from Muḥammad b. Kaʿb al-Quraẓī, and also some of the people of Najrān related to me from its people: that the people of Najrān were people of polytheism, worshipping idols. And in a village of its villages near Najrān—and Najrān is the great town to which the community of the people of that land belongs—there was a sorcerer who taught the boys of the people of Najrān sorcery. When Faymiyūn settled there—and they did not name him for me by the name with which Wahb b. Munabbih named him, they said: a man settled there—he built a tent between Najrān and that village in which the sorcerer was. The people of Najrān began sending their boys to that sorcerer to teach them sorcery. So al-Thāmir sent his son ʿAbdullāh b. al-Thāmir with the boys of the people of Najrān. He used, when he passed by the owner of the tent, to be impressed by what he saw from him of his prayer and worship, so he began sitting with him and listening to him until he became a Muslim. He declared God's oneness and worshipped Him, and began asking him about the laws of Islam. When he had become knowledgeable in it, he began asking him about the Greatest Name. He knew it, but he withheld it from him. He said to him: "O son of my brother, you will not be able to bear it; I fear for you your weakness regarding it." Al-Thāmir, the father of ʿAbdullāh, thought only that his son was going back and forth to the sorcerer as the boys went back and forth. When ʿAbdullāh saw that his companion had withheld it from him and feared his weakness in it, he went to some arrow shafts and gathered them. Then he did not leave any name of God that he knew but wrote it on an arrow shaft, each name having a shaft. When he had counted them all, he lit a fire for them, then began throwing them into it, shaft by shaft. When it came to the Greatest Name, he threw its shaft into it. The shaft leaped until it came out of it, and the fire did not harm it at all. He took it, then came to his companion and informed him that he had learned the name which he had withheld. He said: "And what is it?" He said: "It is such-and-such, and how did you learn it?" He informed him of what he had done. He said: "O son of my brother, you have attained it, so keep it to yourself, and I do not think you will do so."
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