'No. What did you do?' He said: 'My affairs have all been completed except for one thing; a certain woman has lost her husband, so I gave her a dowry of one thousand dinars, and she came to me with it and as much again with it.' The believer said to him: 'Did you really do that?'
He said: 'Yes.' He said: So the believer returned, and when it was night, he prayed as much as Allah willed him to pray. When he finished, he took the remaining one thousand dinars, placed them before him, and said: 'O Allah, such-and-such person—meaning his disbelieving partner—has married a wife from the wives of the world, and he will die tomorrow and leave her, or she will die and leave him. O Allah, I seek in marriage from You with these one thousand dinars a fair, wide-eyed maiden in Paradise.' Then he woke up and distributed it among the poor. He said: The believer was left with nothing. He said: So he wore a cotton shirt and a wool cloak, then took a mattock and placed it on his shoulder, working at something and digging something for his sustenance. He said:
A man came to him and said: 'O servant of Allah, will you hire yourself out to me on a monthly basis, month by month, to tend to my beasts, feed them, and sweep their dung?' He said: 'Yes.' He said: So he hired himself out to him on a monthly basis, month by month, tending to his beasts. He said: The owner of the beasts would go out every day to look at his beasts; if he saw one of them gaunt, he would take him by the head, strike his neck, and then say to him: 'Did you steal the barley of this one last night?' When the believer saw this severity, he said: 'I shall surely go to my disbelieving partner, work on his land, so he may feed me this morsel a day, and clothe me with these two garments when they wear out.' He said: So he set out to find him, and when he reached his door, it was dusk. Behold, there was a lofty palace reaching into the sky, and around him were the gatekeepers. He said to them: 'Seek permission for me from the owner of this palace, for if you do that, it will please him.'
They said to him: 'Go, if you are truthful, then sleep in a corner, and when morning comes, present yourself to him.' He said: So the believer went, cast half of his cloak beneath him and half over him, and slept. When he woke up in the morning, he came to his partner and presented himself to him. His disbelieving partner came out riding; when he saw him, he recognized him, stopped for him, greeted him, and shook his hand. Then he said: 'Did you not take from the wealth as I did?' He said: 'Yes, and this is my condition and this is your condition?' He said: 'Relate to me, what did you do with your wealth?' He said: 'Do not ask me about it.' He said: 'Then what brought you?'
He said: 'I have come to work on this land of yours, so you may feed me this morsel from day to day, and clothe me with these two garments when they wear out.' He said: 'No, rather I will do for you what is better than this, but you shall see no good from me until you tell me what you did with your wealth?' He said: 'I loaned it out.' He said: 'To whom?' He said: 'To the Rich, the Faithful.'
He said: 'Who?' He said: 'Allah, my Lord.' He said—and he was shaking his hand—so he pulled his hand away from his, then said: 'Are you indeed of those who believe? When we have died and become dust and bones, are we to be recompensed?' Al-Suddi said: 'Held to account.' He said:
لَا، فَمَا صَنَعْتَ أَنْتَ؟ قَالَ: أَمْرِي كُلُّهُ قَدْ تَمَّ إِلا شَيْئًا وَاحِدًا، فَلانَةُ قَدْ مَاتَ، عَنْهَا زَوْجُهَا فَأَصْدَقْتُهَا أَلْفَ دِينَارٍ فَجَاءَتْنِي بها ومثلها معها. فقال له المؤمن: أو فعلت؟
قَالَ: نَعَمْ: فَرَجَعَ الْمُؤْمِنُ حَتَّى إِذَا كَانَ الليل صلى ما شاء الله أن يصلي فَلَمَّا انْصَرَفَ أَخَذَ الْأَلْفَ دِينَارٍ الْبَاقِيَةَ، فَوَضَعَهَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ، وَقَالَ: «اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّ فُلانًا يَعْنِي شَرِيكَهُ الْكَافِرَ- تَزَوَّجَ زَوْجَةً مِنْ أَزْوَاجِ الدُّنْيَا فَيَمُوتَ غَدًا فَيَتْرُكُهَا، أَوْ تَمُوتُ فَتَتْرُكُهُ، اللَّهُمَّ وإني أخطب إليك بهذه الألف الدينار حَوْرَاءَ عَيْنَاءَ فِي الْجَنَّةِ، ثُمَّ أَصْبَحَ فَقَسَمَهَا بَيْنَ الْمَسَاكِينِ. قَالَ: فَبَقِيَ الْمُؤْمِنُ لَيْسَ، عِنْدَهُ شَيْءٌ. قَالَ: فَلَبِسَ قَمِيصًا مِنْ قُطْنٍ وَكِسَاءً مِنْ صُوفٍ ثُمَّ أَخَذَ مَرًّا فَجَعَلَهُ عَلَى رَقَبَتِهِ، يَعْمَلُ الشَّيْءَ وَيَحْفُرُ الشَّيْءَ بِقُوتِهِ. قَالَ:
فَجَاءَهُ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ: يَا عَبْدَ اللَّهِ أَتُؤَاجِرُنِي نَفْسَكَ مُشَاهَرَةً شَهْرًا بِشَهْرٍ تَقُومُ عَلَى دَوَابٍّ لِي تَعْلِفُهَا وَتَكْنِسُ سِرْقِينَهَا؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ: قَالَ فواجره نفسه مشاهرة شهر بِشَهْرٍ، يَقُومُ عَلَى دَوَابِّهِ قَالَ: فَكَانَ صَاحِبُ الدَّوَابِّ يَغْدُو كُلَّ يَوْمٍ ينْظُرُ إِلَى دَوَابِّهِ، فَإِذَا رَأَى مِنْهَا دَابَّةً ضَامِرَةً، أَخَذَ بِرَأْسِهِ فَوَجَأَ، عُنُقَهُ، ثُمَّ يَقُولُ لَهُ: سَرَقْتَ شَعِيرَ هَذِهِ الْبَارِحَةَ؟ فَلَمَّا رَأَى الْمُؤْمِنُ هَذِهِ الشِّدَّةَ قَالَ: لاتِيَنَّ شَرِيكِيَ الْكَافِرَ فَلْأَعْمَلَنَّ فِي أَرْضِهِ فَيُطْعِمُنِي هَذِهِ الْكِسْرَةَ يَوْمًا، وَيَكْسُونِي هَذَيْنِ الثَّوْبَيْنِ إِذَا بَلِيَا قَالَ: فَانْطَلَقَ يُرِيدُهُ فَلَمَّا انْتَهَى إِلَى بَابِهِ وَهُوَ مُمَّسٌ فَإِذَا قَصَرَ مَشِيدٌ فِي السَّمَاءِ، وَإِذَا حَوْلُهُ الْبَوَّابُونَ فَقَالَ لَهُمْ: اسْتَأْذِنُوا لِي صَاحِبَ هَذَا الْقَصْرِ، فَإِنَّكُمْ إِذَا فَعَلْتُمْ سَرَّهُ ذَلِكَ.
فَقَالُوا لَهُ: انْطَلِقْ إِنْ كُنْتَ صَادِقًا فَنَمْ فِي نَاحِيَةٍ، إِذَا أَصْبَحْتَ فَتُعْرَضُ لَهُ، قَالَ:
فَانْطَلَقَ الْمُؤْمِنُ، فَأَلْقَى نِصْفَ كِسَائِهِ تَحْتَهُ، وَنِصْفَهُ فَوْقَهُ، ثُمَّ نَامَ فَلَمَّا أَصْبَحَ أَتَى شَرِيكَهُ فَتَعَرَّضَ لَهُ، فَخَرَجَ شَرِيكُهُ الْكَافِرُ وَهُوَ رَاكِبٌ، فَلَمَّا رَآهُ عَرَفَهُ فَوَقَفَ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ وَصَافَحَهُ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: أَلَمْ تَأْخُذْ مِنَ الْمَالِ مِثْلَ مَا أَخَذْتُ؟ قَالَ: بلى وهذه حالي وهذه حالك؟ قال: أخرني مَا صَنَعْتَ فِي مَالِكَ؟ قَالَ: لَا تَسْأَلْنِي، عَنْهُ. قَالَ: فَمَا جَاءَ بِكَ؟
قَالَ: جِئْتُ أَعْمَلَ فِي أَرْضِكَ هَذِهِ، فَتُطْعِمُنِي هَذِهِ الْكِسْرَةَ يَوْمًا بِيَوْمٍ، وَتَكْسُونِي هَذَيْنِ الثَّوْبَيْنِ إِذَا بَلِيَا. قَالَ: لَا، وَلَكِنْ أَصْنَعُ بِكَ مَا هُوَ خَيْرٌ مِنْ هَذَا، وَلَكِنْ لَا تَرَى مِنِّي خَيْرًا حَتَّى تُخْبِرَنِي مَا صَنَعْتَ فِي مَالِكَ؟ قال: أقرضته قال: من؟ قال: الملئ الْوَفِيَّ.
قَالَ: مَنْ؟ قَالَ: اللَّهُ رَبِّي. قَالَ وَهُوَ مُصَافِحُهُ، فَانْتَزَعَ يَدَهُ مِنْ يَدِهِ، ثُمَّ قال: أإنك لمن المصدقين. أإذا متنا وكنا ترابا وعظاما أإنا لَمَدِينُونَ، قَالَ السُّدِّيُّ: مُحَاسَبُونَ قَالَ:
