Mishkat al-Masabih
Mishkat al-Masabih 1053
وَعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: " وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَقَدْ هَمَمْتُ أَنْ آمُرَ بِحَطَبٍ فَيُحْطَبَ ثُمَّ آمُرَ بِالصَّلَاةِ فَيُؤَذَّنَ لَهَا ثُمَّ آمُرَ رَجُلًا فَيَؤُمَّ النَّاسَ ثُمَّ أُخَالِفَ إِلَى رِجَالٍ. وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: لَا يَشْهَدُونَ الصَّلَاةَ فَأُحَرِّقَ عَلَيْهِمْ بُيُوتَهُمْ وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَوْ يَعْلَمُ أَحَدُهُمْ أَنَّهُ يَجِدُ عَرْقًا سَمِينًا أَوْ مِرْمَاتَيْنِ حَسَنَتَيْنِ لَشَهِدَ الْعِشَاءَ ". رَوَاهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ وَلمُسلم نَحوه
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Abu Hurayrah (may God be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) said: ‘By the One in whose hand is my soul, I considered ordering firewood to be gathered, then ordering the prayer and having its call made, then appointing a man to lead the people, and then going to men who are absent from the prayer and burning their houses over them.’ In another version: ‘They do not attend the prayer.’ By the One in whose hand is my soul, if one of them knew he would find a fatty piece of meat or two good morsels, he would attend the night prayer.’ Al-Bukhari transmitted it; Muslim transmitted something similar.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
وَعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: " وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَقَدْ هَمَمْتُ أَنْ آمُرَ بِحَطَبٍ فَيُحْطَبَ ثُمَّ آمُرَ بِالصَّلَاةِ فَيُؤَذَّنَ لَهَا ثُمَّ آمُرَ رَجُلًا فَيَؤُمَّ النَّاسَ ثُمَّ أُخَالِفَ إِلَى رِجَالٍ. وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: لَا يَشْهَدُونَ الصَّلَاةَ فَأُحَرِّقَ عَلَيْهِمْ بُيُوتَهُمْ وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَوْ يَعْلَمُ أَحَدُهُمْ أَنَّهُ يَجِدُ عَرْقًا سَمِينًا أَوْ مِرْمَاتَيْنِ حَسَنَتَيْنِ لَشَهِدَ الْعِشَاءَ ". رَوَاهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ وَلمُسلم نَحوه
The Arabic uses عرقًا سمينًا and مرماة حسنتين, food terms with uncertain exact referents in this context; the English witness also renders them as a meaty bone and sheep’s hoofs.
Can these food terms be checked against another reliable recension or lexicon before fixing a more precise English equivalent?