Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ مَسْعَدَةَ عَنِ ابْنِ عَجْلَانَ وَصَفْوَانُ قَالَ أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ عَجْلَانَ الْمَعْنَى عَنِ الْقَعْقَاعِ بْنِ حَكِيمٍ أَنَّ عَبْدَ الْعَزِيزِ بْنَ مَرْوَانَ كَتَبَ إِلَى عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ أَنْ ارْفَعْ إِلَيَّ حَاجَتَكَ قَالَ فَكَتَبَ إِلَيْهِ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عُمَرَ إِنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ ابْدَأْ بِمَنْ تَعُولُ وَالْيَدُ الْعُلْيَا خَيْرٌ مِنْ الْيَدِ السُّفْلَى وَإِنِّي لَأَحْسِبُ الْيَدَ الْعُلْيَا الْمُعْطِيَةَ وَالسُّفْلَى السَّائِلَةَ وَإِنِّي غَيْرُ سَائِلِكَ شَيْئًا وَلَا رَادٍّ رِزْقًا سَاقَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَيَّ مِنْكَ.
English Translation
Hammad ibn Mas'adah told us, from Ibn Ajlan, and Safwan said: Ibn Ajlan informed us, with the same meaning, from al-Qa'qa' ibn Hakim, that Abdul-Aziz ibn Marwan wrote to Abdullah ibn Umar: Send me your request. So Abdullah ibn Umar wrote to him: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: Begin with those you are responsible for; and the upper hand is better than the lower hand. And I consider the upper hand to be the one that gives, and the lower hand the one that asks. And I am not asking you for anything, nor rejecting provision that Allah has sent me through you.