Kitabul Ilm

باب: ما جاء في العلم. وقوله تعالى: {وقل رب زدني علما}
Chapter 6 :What is said about knowledge and the saying of Allah: “My Lord! Increase me in knowledge”. (20:114)
 
Hadith No. 60
حدثنا عبد الله بن يوسف قال: حدثنا الليث، عن سعيد، هو المقبري، عن شريك بن عبد الله بن أبي نمر: أنه سمع أنس بن مالك يقول: بينما نحن جلوس مع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم في المسجد، دخل رجل على جمل، فأناخه في المسجد ثم عقله، ثم قال لهم: أيكم محمد؟ والنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم متكىء بين ظهرانيهم، فقلنا: هذا الرجل الأبيض المتكىء. فقال له الرجل: ابن عبد المطلب؟ فقال له النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: (قد أجبتك). فقال الرجل للنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: إني سائلك فمشدد عليك في المسألة، فلا تجد علي في نفسك. فقال: (سل عما بدا لك). فقال: أسألك بربك ورب من قبلك، آلله أرسلك إلى الناس كلهم؟ فقال: (اللهم نعم). قال: أنشدك بالله، آلله أمرك أن نصلي الصلوات الخمس في اليوم والليلة؟ قال: (اللهم نعم). قال أنشدك بالله، آلله أمرك أن نصوم هذا الشهر من السنة؟ قال: (اللهم نعم). قال: أنشدك بالله، آلله أمرك أن تأخذ هذه الصدقة من أغنيائنا فتقسمها على فقرائنا؟ فقال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: (اللهم نعم). فقال الرجل: آمنت بما جئت به، وأنا رسول من ورائي من قومي، وأنا ضمام بن ثعلبة، أخو بني سعد بن بكر.
رواه موسى وعلي بن عبد الحميد، عن سليمان عن ثابت، عن أنس، عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بهذا.
 
Narrated Anas bin Malik:
While we were sitting with the Prophet in the mosque, a man came riding on a camel. He made his camel kneel down in the mosque, tied its foreleg and then said: "Who amongst you is Muhammad?" At that time the Prophet was sitting amongst us (his companions) leaning on his arm. We replied, "This white man reclining on his arm." He then addressed him, "O Son of 'Abdul Muttalib."
The Prophet said, "I am here to answer your questions." The man said to the Prophet, "I want to ask you something and will be hard in questioning. So do not get angry." The Prophet said, "Ask whatever you want." The man said, "I ask you by your Lord, and the Lord of those who were before you, has Allah sent you as an Apostle to all the mankind?" The Prophet replied, "By Allah, yes." The man further said, "I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to offer five prayers in a day and night (24 hours).? He replied, "By Allah, Yes." The man further said, "I ask you by Allah! Has Allah ordered you to observe fasts during this month of the year (i.e. Ramadan)?" He replied, "By Allah, Yes." The man further said, "I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to take Zakat (obligatory charity) from our rich people and distribute it amongst our poor people?" The Prophet replied, "By Allah, yes." Thereupon that man said, "I have believed in all that with which you have been sent, and I have been sent by my people as a messenger, and I am Dimam bin Tha'laba from the brothers of Bani Sa'd bin Bakr."
 
Purpose of Tarjamatul Baab
In the previous Baab Imam Bukhari stated that one method of narrating an authentic Hadith is that the teacher narrates it and the student listens. (قراء الشيخ) In this Baab Imam Bukhari says that if a student reads a Hadith along with the chain in presence of his teacher and the teacher listens and ratifies (قراء علي الشيخ) that is also an authentic way of narrating Hadith.
 
Comments
Dimam bin Tha'laba, who belonged to the clan of Bani bin Bakr, came to Rasulullah (S) riding on a camel. Ibn Sa’d has quoted from Al Waqdi that Tha’lba came during the 5th Hijra. Qurtubi has quoted that this incident is of 6th Hijra, while some others say that it is of 8th or 9th Hijra. It seems that this incident is of later years as here Tha’laba had come as a delegate and delegations (وفود) came to Rasulullah (S) mostly during 9th Hijra. Secondly, here Tha’laba says that the delegate of Rasulullah (S) had come to them; and Rasulullah (S) sent the delegates to different places after the peace treaty of Hudaifa, which took place in 6th Hijra. Tha’laba tied his camel at the gate of Masjid Nabwi and came to Rasulullah (S) who was in sitting leaning on his arm among his Sahaba in Masjid Nabwi (grand mosque of Madina). Imam Maalik has concluded from this Hadith that the urine of the camel is pure, as regards the Salaah etc., as Tha’laba was allowed to tie his camel in the mosque. Others differ with Imam maalik on this as they say that the camel was tied at the gate in such a way that his body was outside the mosque. Then Tha’laba asked the people sitting there as to who was Muhammad (S) amongst them. This shows that Rasulullah (S) was living like a common man amongst the Sahaba as the people coming from outside didn't find him sitting in some distinguished manner. The Sahaba replied that the white man reclining on his arm was Muhammad (S). The whiteness of Rasulullah (S) was not like lime-white but was the whiteness mixed with redness giving him extreme beauty.
Tha’laba asked Rasulullah (S) that he would be asking him some questions and that he will be very hard in questioning. This was the time that the Sahaba were banned from asking the questions by the following verse of the Al-Qura’n,
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لا تَسْأَلُوا عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ إِنْ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ تَسُؤْكُمْ وَإِنْ تَسْأَلُوا عَنْهَا حِينَ يُنَزَّلُ الْقُرْآنُ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ عَفَا اللَّهُ عَنْهَا وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ حَلِيمٌ
O ye who believe! Ask not questions about things which, if made plain to you, may cause you trouble. But if ye ask about things when the Qur'an is being revealed, they will be made plain to you, Allah will forgive those: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Forbearing. (5:101)
Therefore, Sahaba usually looked forward for some outsider to come and ask some questions to Rasulullah (S).
 
Why was Tha’laba was hard in questioning?
Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) had sent a messenger to the people of Bani Sa'd bin Bakr inviting them to enter into the fold of Islam. Tha’laba heard the massage of Islam from this messenger and then he wanted to confirm the same from Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam). He wanted to know the truth and thought to ask some questions to Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) in frank terms without any formalities. Some people say that he wanted to test the patience of Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam). Some are of the opinion that by this he meant to ask Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) question in such a way so as to make him take oaths repeatedly.
 
Has Allah sent you as an apostle to whole mankind?
Imam Muslim has quoted that Tha’laba told Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) that his {Rasulullah’s (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)} messenger had come to them and he informed them that he{Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)} was the apostle of Allah. Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “he told the truth”. Then Tha’laba asked as to who created the skies? Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “Allah”. Then he asked as to who created the earth and the mountains? Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “Allah”. Then he asked as to who placed the usefulness in them? Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “Allah”. Then he told him that he was asking him by the one who created the skies and earth, fixed the mountains and placed the utilities in them, “Has Allah sent you as the apostle? Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “yes”.
The man further said, “I ask you by Allah, has Allah ordered you to offer five prayers in a day and night (i.e., 24 hours).?” He replied, “By Allah, Yes”. The man further said, “I ask you by Allah, has Allah ordered you to observe fasts during this month of the year (i.e., Ramadan)?” He replied, “By Allah, Yes”. The man further said, “I ask you by Allah, has Allah ordered you to take Zakat (obligatory charity) from our rich people and distribute it amongst our poor people?” The Prophet replied, “By Allah, yes”.
Thereupon that man said, “I have believed in all that with which you have been sent”.
Imam Bukhari and Imam Haakim are of the opinion that this man had already embraced Islam when he learnt about it from the messenger of Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) and that he had just come to Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) to authenticate what he had heard from the messenger. Ulema prove by this act of Tha’laba that it is preferable to try to have more authentic chain (sanad) of narrators as regards the Qura’n and Hadith. Imam Qurtubi, Imam Abu Dawood and some others are of the opinion that this man accepted Islam there only and was not a believer before.
 
There is no mention of Haj in this Hadith
Ulema have given different answers for this query, some say that the Haj had not become obligatory by that time, some say that the narrators have omitted it for the sake of brevity, while some others say that Haj was a routine act even among the infidels of Makkah, so there was no need to ask about it.