Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا عَفَّانُ حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادٌ أَخْبَرَنَا ثَابِتٌ وَحُمَيْدٌ عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ قَالَ لَمَّا قَدِمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ الْمَدِينَةَ أُخْبِرَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ سَلَامٍ بِقُدُومِهِ وَهُوَ فِي نَخْلِهِ فَأَتَاهُ فَقَالَ إِنِّي سَائِلُكَ عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ لَا يَعْلَمُهَا إِلَّا نَبِيٌّ فَإِنْ أَخْبَرْتَنِي بِهَا آمَنْتُ بِكَ وَإِنْ لَمْ تَعْلَمْهُنَّ عَرَفْتُ أَنَّكَ لَسْتَ بِنَبِيٍّ قَالَ فَسَأَلَهُ عَنْ الشَّبَهِ وَعَنْ أَوَّلِ شَيْءٍ يَأْكُلُهُ أَهْلُ الْجَنَّةِ وَعَنْ أَوَّلِ شَيْءٍ يَحْشُرُ النَّاسَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَخْبَرَنِي بِهِنَّ جِبْرِيلُ آنِفًا قَالَ ذَاكَ عَدُوُّ الْيَهُودِ قَالَ أَمَّا الشَّبَهُ إِذَا سَبَقَ مَاءُ الرَّجُلِ مَاءَ الْمَرْأَةِ ذَهَبَ بِالشَّبَهِ وَإِذَا سَبَقَ مَاءُ الْمَرْأَةِ مَاءَ الرَّجُلِ ذَهَبَتْ بِالشَّبَهِ وَأَمَّا أَوَّلُ شَيْءٍ يَأْكُلُهُ أَهْلُ الْجَنَّةِ فَزِيَادَةُ كَبِدِ الْحُوتِ وَأَمَّا أَوَّلُ شَيْءٍ يَحْشُرُ النَّاسَ فَنَارٌ تَخْرُجُ مِنْ قِبَلِ الْمَشْرِقِ فَتَحْشُرُهُمْ إِلَى الْمَغْرِبِ فَآمَنَ وَقَالَ أَشْهَدُ أَنَّكَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ قَالَ ابْنُ سَلَامٍ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ الْيَهُودَ قَوْمٌ بُهْتٌ وَإِنَّهُمْ إِنْ سَمِعُوا بِإِسْلَامِي يَبْهَتُونِي فَأَخْبِئْنِي عِنْدَكَ وَابْعَثْ إِلَيْهِمْ فَتَسْأَلَهُمْ عَنِّي فَخَبَّأَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَبَعَثَ إِلَيْهِمْ فَجَاءُوا فَقَالَ أَيُّ رَجُلٍ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ سَلَامٍ فِيكُمْ قَالُوا هُوَ خَيْرُنَا وَابْنُ خَيْرِنَا وَسَيِّدُنَا وَابْنُ سَيِّدِنَا وَعَالِمُنَا وَابْنُ عَالِمِنَا فَقَالَ أَرَأَيْتُمْ إِنْ أَسْلَمَ تُسْلِمُونَ فَقَالُوا أَعَاذَهُ اللَّهُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ فَقَالَ يَا عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ سَلَامٍ اخْرُجْ إِلَيْهِمْ فَأَخْبِرْهُمْ فَخَرَجَ فَقَالَ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ فَقَالُوا أَشَرُّنَا وَابْنُ أَشَرِّنَا وَجَاهِلُنَا وَابْنُ جَاهِلِنَا فَقَالَ ابْنُ سَلَامٍ قَدْ أَخْبَرْتُكَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَنَّ الْيَهُودَ قَوْمٌ بُهْتٌ.
English Translation
When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) arrived in Madinah, Abdullah ibn Salam was informed of his arrival while he was among his palm trees. He came and said: 'I will ask you about things that only a prophet would know. If you inform me of them, I will believe in you.' He asked him about resemblance (of children to parents), the first food the people of Paradise will eat, and the first thing that will gather people (on the Day of Judgment). The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: 'Jibril informed me of these just now.' He (Ibn Salam) said: 'That is the enemy of the Jews.' The Prophet said: 'As for resemblance, when the man's fluid precedes the woman's, the child resembles the father, and when the woman's fluid precedes the man's, the child resembles the mother. As for the first food the people of Paradise will eat, it is the caudate lobe of the liver of a whale. As for the first thing that will gather people, it is a fire that will emerge from the east and drive them to the west.' So he believed and said: 'I bear witness that you are the Messenger of Allah.' Ibn Salam said: 'O Messenger of Allah, the Jews are a slanderous people. If they hear of my Islam, they will slander me. So hide me and send for them and ask them about me.' The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) hid him and sent for them. They came, and he asked: 'What kind of man is Abdullah ibn Salam among you?' They said: 'He is the best of us and the son of the best of us, our master and the son of our master, our scholar and the son of our scholar.' He said: 'What if he becomes Muslim — would you become Muslim?' They said: 'May Allah protect him from that!' He said: 'O Abdullah ibn Salam, come out to them and inform them.' He came out and said: 'I bear witness that there is no deity except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.' They said: 'He is the worst of us and the son of the worst of us, the most ignorant of us and the son of the most ignorant of us.' Ibn Salam said: 'I told you, O Messenger of Allah, that the Jews are a slanderous people.'