The Book of Greetings

"‏ إِنْ كَانَ الشُّؤْمُ فِي شَىْءٍ فَفِي الْفَرَسِ وَالْمَسْكَنِ وَالْمَرْأَةِ ‏"

If there is bad luck in anything, it is the horse, the abode and the woman.

"‏ إِنْ كَانَ فَفِي الْمَرْأَةِ وَالْفَرَسِ وَالْمَسْكَنِ ‏"

If bad luck were to be in anything, it is found in the woman, the horse and the abode.

وَحَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا الْفَضْلُ بْنُ دُكَيْنٍ، حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامُ بْنُ سَعْدٍ، عَنْ أَبِي حَازِمٍ، عَنْ سَهْلِ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِمِثْلِهِ ‏.‏

This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Sahl b. Sa'd with a different chain of transmitters.

"‏ إِنْ كَانَ فِي شَىْءٍ فَفِي الرَّبْعِ وَالْخَادِمِ وَالْفَرَسِ ‏"

If bad luck were to be in anything, it is found in the land, in the servant and in the horse.

"‏ تِلْكَ الْكَلِمَةُ الْحَقُّ يَخْطَفُهَا الْجِنِّيُّ فَيَقْذِفُهَا فِي أُذُنِ وَلِيِّهِ وَيَزِيدُ فِيهَا مِائَةَ كَذْبَةٍ ‏"

I said: Allah's Messenger, the kahins used to tell us about things (unseen) and we found them to be true. Thereupon he said: That is a word pertaining to truth which a jinn snatches and throws into the ear of his friend, and makes an addition of one hundred lies to it.

حَدَّثَنِي سَلَمَةُ بْنُ شَبِيبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا الْحَسَنُ بْنُ أَعْيَنَ، حَدَّثَنَا مَعْقِلٌ، - وَهْوَ ابْنُ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ - عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، أَخْبَرَنِي يَحْيَى بْنُ عُرْوَةَ، أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ عُرْوَةَ، يَقُولُ قَالَتْ عَائِشَةُ سَأَلَ أُنَاسٌ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَنِ الْكُهَّانِ فَقَالَ لَهُمْ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ لَيْسُوا بِشَىْءٍ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَإِنَّهُمْ يُحَدِّثُونَ أَحْيَانًا الشَّىْءَ يَكُونُ حَقًّا ‏.‏ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ تِلْكَ الْكَلِمَةُ مِنَ الْجِنِّ يَخْطَفُهَا الْجِنِّيُّ فَيَقُرُّهَا فِي أُذُنِ وَلِيِّهِ قَرَّ الدَّجَاجَةِ فَيَخْلِطُونَ فِيهَا أَكْثَرَ مِنْ مِائَةِ كَذْبَةٍ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

It is nothing (i. e. it is a mere superstition). They said: Allah's Messenger, they at times narrate to us things which we find true. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: That is a word pertaining to truth which a jinn snatches away and then cackles into the ear of his friend as the hen does. And then they mix in it more than one hundred lies.

وَحَدَّثَنِي أَبُو الطَّاهِرِ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ وَهْبٍ، أَخْبَرَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَمْرٍو، عَنِ ابْنِ جُرَيْجٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، بِهَذَا الإِسْنَادِ نَحْوَ رِوَايَةِ مَعْقِلٍ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، ‏.‏

This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Zuhri with the same chain of transmitters.

حَدَّثَنَا حَسَنُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ الْحُلْوَانِيُّ، وَعَبْدُ بْنُ حُمَيْدٍ، قَالَ حَسَنٌ حَدَّثَنَا يَعْقُوبُ، وَقَالَ، عَبْدٌ حَدَّثَنِي يَعْقُوبُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي، عَنْ صَالِحٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، حَدَّثَنِي عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُسَيْنٍ، أَنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَبَّاسٍ، قَالَ أَخْبَرَنِي رَجُلٌ، مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم مِنَ الأَنْصَارِ أَنَّهُمْ بَيْنَمَا هُمْ جُلُوسٌ لَيْلَةً مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم رُمِيَ بِنَجْمٍ فَاسْتَنَارَ فَقَالَ لَهُمْ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ مَاذَا كُنْتُمْ تَقُولُونَ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ إِذَا رُمِيَ بِمِثْلِ هَذَا ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالُوا اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ كُنَّا نَقُولُ وُلِدَ اللَّيْلَةَ رَجُلٌ عَظِيمٌ وَمَاتَ رَجُلٌ عَظِيمٌ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ فَإِنَّهَا لاَ يُرْمَى بِهَا لِمَوْتِ أَحَدٍ وَلاَ لِحَيَاتِهِ وَلَكِنْ رَبُّنَا تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى اسْمُهُ إِذَا قَضَى أَمْرًا سَبَّحَ حَمَلَةُ الْعَرْشِ ثُمَّ سَبَّحَ أَهْلُ السَّمَاءِ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ حَتَّى يَبْلُغَ التَّسْبِيحُ أَهْلَ هَذِهِ السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا ثُمَّ قَالَ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَ حَمَلَةَ الْعَرْشِ لِحَمَلَةِ الْعَرْشِ مَاذَا قَالَ رَبُّكُمْ فَيُخْبِرُونَهُمْ مَاذَا قَالَ - قَالَ - فَيَسْتَخْبِرُ بَعْضُ أَهْلِ السَّمَوَاتِ بَعْضًا حَتَّى يَبْلُغَ الْخَبَرُ هَذِهِ السَّمَاءَ الدُّنْيَا فَتَخْطَفُ الْجِنُّ السَّمْعَ فَيَقْذِفُونَ إِلَى أَوْلِيَائِهِمْ وَيُرْمَوْنَ بِهِ فَمَا جَاءُوا بِهِ عَلَى وَجْهِهِ فَهُوَ حَقٌّ وَلَكِنَّهُمْ يَقْرِفُونَ فِيهِ وَيَزِيدُونَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

A person from the Ansar who was amongst the Companions of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) reported to me: As we were sitting during the night with Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), a meteor shot gave a dazzling light. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: What did you say in the pre-Islamic days when there was such a shot (of meteor)? They said: Allah and His Messenger know best (the actual position), but we, however, used to say that that very night a great man had been born and a great man had died, whereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: (These meteors) are shot neither at the death of anyone nor on the birth of anyone. Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, issues Command when He decides to do a thing. Then (the Angels) supporting the Throne sing His glory, then sing the dwellers of heaven who are near to them until this glory of God reaches them who are in the heaven of this world. Then those who are near the supporters of the Throne ask these supporters of the Throne: What your Lord has said? And they accordingly inform them what He says. Then the dwellers of heaven seek information from them until this information reaches the heaven of the world. In this process of transmission (the jinn snatches) what he manages to overhear and he carries it to his friends. And when the Angels see the jinn they attack them with meteors. If they narrate only which they manage to snatch that is correct but they alloy it with lies and make additions to it.

وَحَدَّثَنَا زُهَيْرُ بْنُ حَرْبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا الْوَلِيدُ بْنُ مُسْلِمٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو عَمْرٍو الأَوْزَاعِيُّ، ح وَحَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الطَّاهِرِ، وَحَرْمَلَةُ، قَالاَ أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ وَهْبٍ، أَخْبَرَنِي يُونُسُ، ح وَحَدَّثَنِي سَلَمَةُ بْنُ، شَبِيبٍ حَدَّثَنَا الْحَسَنُ بْنُ أَعْيَنَ، حَدَّثَنَا مَعْقِلٌ، - يَعْنِي ابْنَ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ - كُلُّهُمْ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، بِهَذَا الإِسْنَادِ غَيْرَ أَنَّ يُونُسَ، قَالَ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَبَّاسٍ أَخْبَرَنِي رِجَالٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ مِنَ الأَنْصَارِ وَفِي حَدِيثِ الأَوْزَاعِيِّ ‏"‏ وَلَكِنْ يَقْرِفُونَ فِيهِ وَيَزِيدُونَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ وَفِي حَدِيثِ يُونُسَ ‏"‏ وَلَكِنَّهُمْ يَرْقَوْنَ فِيهِ وَيَزِيدُونَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ وَزَادَ فِي حَدِيثِ يُونُسَ وَقَالَ اللَّهُ ‏"‏ حَتَّى إِذَا فُزِّعَ عَنْ قُلُوبِهِمْ قَالُوا مَاذَا قَالَ رَبُّكُمْ قَالُوا الْحَقَّ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ وَفِي حَدِيثِ مَعْقِلٍ كَمَا قَالَ الأَوْزَاعِيُّ ‏"‏ وَلَكِنَّهُمْ يَقْرِفُونَ فِيهِ وَيَزِيدُونَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

The hadith has been narrated on the authority of Zuhri through the same chain of transmitters but with a slight variation of wording.

"‏ مَنْ أَتَى عَرَّافًا فَسَأَلَهُ عَنْ شَىْءٍ لَمْ تُقْبَلْ لَهُ صَلاَةٌ أَرْبَعِينَ لَيْلَةً ‏"

He who visits a diviner ('Arraf) and asks him about anything, his prayers extending to forty nights will not be accepted.