English Translation

Isma'il b. Abd al-Karim b. Ma'qil b. Munabbih told us: Abd al-Samad, meaning Ibn Ma'qil, told me, he said: I heard Wahb say: al-Nu'man b. Bashir told me that he heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, mention al-Raqim, and he said: "Three men were in a cave, and a mountain fell over the mouth of the cave, sealing them in. One of them said, 'Let each of us mention a good deed he did, so that perhaps Allah, Mighty and Majestic, in His mercy, may have mercy on us.' One of them said, 'I once did a good deed: I had laborers working for me, and workers came to me, and I hired every man of them for a fixed wage. Then a man came to me one day in the middle of the day, and I hired him for half of what the others were getting. He worked the rest of his day as much as each of the others had worked their whole day. I felt it my duty in fairness not to reduce him below what I had hired the others for, given how hard he had worked. So one of them said, "Do you give this one the same as you gave me, when he worked only half a day?" I said, "O servant of Allah, I have not wronged you in any part of your agreement; it is my wealth and I decide about it as I wish." He became angry and left, abandoning his wage. So I set aside his due in a corner of the house for as long as Allah willed. Later, some cattle passed by me, so I bought with it a young cow, which grew as Allah willed. After a while, a weak old man whom I did not recognize passed by me and said, "I have a claim upon you," and he reminded me of it until I recognized him. I said, "It is exactly you I am seeking - this is your due." I offered him all of it, but he said, "O servant of Allah, do not mock me - if you will not give me charity, then just give me my due." I said, "By Allah, I am not mocking you; it is indeed your due, I have no share in it," and I gave it all to him. O Allah, if I did that seeking Your face, then relieve us of our plight.' He said: The mountain split apart so that they could see through it and observe. Another of them said, 'I once did a good deed: I had surplus wealth, and hardship struck the people. A woman came to me seeking a favor from me. I said, "By Allah, not without yourself," but she refused. She left, then came back and reminded me by Allah, but I refused her, saying, "No, by Allah, not without yourself," and she refused again and left. She mentioned it to her husband, and he said to her, "Give him yourself and relieve your family's hardship." So she came back to me and implored me by Allah, but I refused her, saying, "By Allah, not without yourself." When she saw that, she surrendered herself to me. When I had uncovered her and was about to have my way with her, she trembled beneath me. I said to her, "What is wrong with you?" She said, "I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds." I said to myself, "You feared Him in hardship, when I did not fear Him in ease of opportunity." So I left her and gave her what was rightfully hers despite having uncovered her. O Allah, if I did that seeking Your face, then relieve us of our plight.' He said: It split further, so that they could recognize and it became clear to them. The last one said, 'I once did a good deed: I had two elderly parents, and I had sheep. I used to feed and give drink to my parents, then return to my sheep. One day rain delayed me, and I did not manage to return until evening. I came to my family and took my milking vessel, and I milked while my sheep were standing. Then I went to my parents and found them asleep, so it was hard for me to wake them, and it was hard for me to leave my sheep. So I did not stop sitting there with my milking vessel in my hand until dawn woke them, and I gave them to drink. O Allah, if I did that seeking Your face, then relieve us of our plight.'" Al-Nu'man said: "It is as if I can hear this from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him": He said, "The mountain split apart, and Allah relieved them, and they went out."