Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ جَعْفَرٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا السَّرِيُّ بْنُ يَحْيَى حَدَّثَنَا الْحَسَنُ عَنْ الْأَسْوَدِ بْنِ سَرِيعٍ وَكَانَ رَجُلًا مِنْ بَنِي سَعْدٍ قَالَ وَكَانَ أَوَّلَ مَنْ قَصَّ فِي هَذَا الْمَسْجِدِ يَعْنِي الْمَسْجِدَ الْجَامِعَ قَالَ غَزَوْتُ مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَرْبَعَ غَزَوَاتٍ قَالَ فَتَنَاوَلَ قَوْمٌ الذُّرِّيَّةَ بَعْدَمَا قَتَلُوا الْمُقَاتِلَةَ فَبَلَغَ ذَلِكَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَقَالَ أَلَا مَا بَالُ أَقْوَامٍ قَتَلُوا الْمُقَاتِلَةَ حَتَّى تَنَاوَلُوا الذُّرِّيَّةَ قَالَ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَوَلَيْسَ أَبْنَاءُ الْمُشْرِكِينَ قَالَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِنَّ خِيَارَكُمْ أَبْنَاءُ الْمُشْرِكِينَ إِنَّهَا لَيْسَتْ نَسَمَةٌ تُولَدُ إِلَّا وُلِدَتْ عَلَى الْفِطْرَةِ فَمَا تَزَالُ عَلَيْهَا حَتَّى يُبِينَ عَنْهَا لِسَانُهَا فَأَبَوَاهَا يُهَوِّدَانِهَا أَوْ يُنَصِّرَانِهَا قَالَ وَأَخْفَاهَا الْحَسَنُ.
English Translation
Muhammad ibn Ja'far told us: al-Sari ibn Yahya told us: al-Hasan told us, from al-Aswad ibn Sari' — who was a man of Banu Sa'd, and was the first to give storytelling sessions in this mosque, meaning the congregational mosque — he said: I fought alongside the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, in four campaigns. He said: Some people took to killing the offspring after having killed the combatants, and this reached the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, so he said: What is the matter with people who kill the combatants until they proceed to kill the offspring? A man said: O Messenger of Allah, are they not the children of the polytheists? The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Indeed, the best of you are the children of the polytheists. No infant is born except that it is born upon the natural disposition, and it remains upon it until its tongue makes it plain, and then its parents make it a Jew or a Christian. He said: And al-Hasan concealed this part.