Arabic (Original)
Ḥadīth | Ṭabarānī (الطبراني) tabarani:6352 حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ الصَّائِغُ الْمَكِّيُّ ثنا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الشَّافِعِيُّ ثنا الْحَارِثُ بْنُ عُمَيْرٍ عَنْ أَيُّوبَ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ سَلَمَةَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ قَالَ كُنَّا بِحَاضِرِ مَاءٍ عَظِيمٍ عَلَى ظَهْرِ الطَّرِيقِ فَيَأْتِينَا الرُّكْبَانُ فَنَسْأَلُهُمْ مَا يَقُولُ هَذَا الرَّجُلُ؟ يَعْنُونَ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ فَيَقُولُونَ يَقُولُ كَذَا وَيَأْمُرُهُمْ بِكَذَا وَيَنْهَاكُمْ عَنْ كَذَا وَأَنَا غُلَامٌ ابْنُ سِتِّ سِنِينَ لَا أَسْمَعُ شَيْئًا إِلَّا كَأَنَّمَا كُتِبَ فِي قَلْبِي وَكَانَ النَّاسُ يَقُولُونَ انْظُرُوا مَا يَصْنَعُ قَوْمُ الرَّجُلِ فَلَمَّا فُتِحَتْ مَكَّةُ بَعَثَ النَّاسُ وُفُودَهُمْ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ وَكَانَ أَبِي وَافِدَ قَوْمِهِ فَأَتَاهُمْ فَقَالَ «أَتَيْتُكُمْ مِنْ عِنْدِ رَسُولِ اللهِ يَأْمُرُكُمْ بِكَذَا وَيَنْهَاكُمْ عَنْ كَذَا وَإِذَا حَضَرَتِ الصَّلَاةُ فَلْيَؤُمَّكُمْ أَكْثَرُكُمْ قُرْآنًا» فَنَظَرُوا فَلَمْ يَجِدُوا أَكْثَرَ قُرْآنًا مِنِّي فَقَدَّمُونِي فَصَلَّيْتُ بِهِمْ عَلَيَّ بُرْدَةٌ لِي أَوْ شَمْلَةٌ لِي فَقَالَتْ عَجُوزٌ أَلَا تُغَطُّونَ عَنَّا اسْتَ قَارِئِكُمْ؟ فَاشْتُرِيَ ثَوْبٌ مِنْ مَقْعَدَةِ الْبَحْرَيْنِ فَقَطَعَتْهُ لِيَ امْرَأَةٌ مِنَ الْحَيِّ قَمِيصًا فَمَا فَرِحْتُ بِشَيْءٍ قَطُّ بَعْدَ الْإِسْلَامِ فَرَحِي بِذَلِكَ الْقَمِيصِ
English Translation
'Amr ibn Salamah narrated from his father a similar version of the story of the boy who led prayer because he had memorized the most Qur'an. He said: "When we arrived in Makkah, travelers would come and we would ask them: 'What does this man say?' — meaning the Prophet (peace be upon him). They would say: 'He says such and such, commands such and such, and forbids you from such and such.' I was a boy of six years, and I would not hear anything except it was as if written in my heart. The people were saying: 'Wait and see what happens with the man's people.' When Makkah was conquered, people sent their delegations to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), and my father was the delegate of our people. He came back and said: 'I have come to you from the Messenger of Allah who says: Let the one who has memorized the most Qur'an lead you in prayer.' They looked and found no one who had memorized more than me, so they put me forward. I prayed leading them wearing a striped cloak, and an old woman said: 'Won't you cover the backside of your reciter from us?' So a garment from Bahrain was bought and a woman of the clan cut it into a shirt for me. I was never happier about anything after Islam than I was about that shirt."