Al-Adab Al-Mufrad
Al-Adab Al-Mufrad 98
وَعَنْ عَبْدَةَ، عَنْ هِشَامٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَا قَالَتْ: أَتَى النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَاسٌ مِنَ الأعْرَابِ، فَقَالَ لَهُ رَجُلٌ مِنْهُمْ: يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ، أَتُقَبِّلُونَ الصِّبْيَانَ، فَوَاللَّهِ مَا نُقَبِّلُهُمْ، فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم: أَوَ أَمْلِكُ إِنْ كَانَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ نَزَعَ مِنْ قَلْبِكَ الرَّحْمَةَ؟.
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
And from ‘Abdah, from Hisham, from his father, from ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said: Some Bedouins came to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. One of them said to him, ‘Messenger of Allah, do you kiss children? By Allah, we do not kiss them.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Can I do anything when Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has removed mercy from your heart?’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
أَوَ أَمْلِكُ إِنْ كَانَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ نَزَعَ مِنْ قَلْبِكَ الرَّحْمَةَ
The rhetorical question is idiomatic; the Arabic uses a singular ‘your heart’ even though the address concerns a group.
Would a collective English ‘your hearts’ be preferable, or should the singular be preserved?