Sahih Muslim 1935a

Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.

Ahmad ibn Yunus narrated to us: Zuhayr narrated to us: Abu al-Zubayr narrated to us, from Jabir. Yahya ibn Yahya narrated this to us: Abu Khaythamah informed us, from Abu al-Zubayr, from Jabir, who said: The Messenger of Allah sent us and appointed Abu Ubaydah as our commander, to intercept a Quraysh caravan. He provisioned us with a leather bag of dates, for he had found nothing else for us. Abu Ubaydah would give us one date at a time. I asked: What did you do with it? He said: We sucked it as a child sucks, then drank water after it, and it sufficed us for the day until night. We would strike leaves from the trees with our staffs, soak them in water, and eat them. We then set out along the seashore. A huge mound-like shape appeared to us on the shore. When we came to it, it was a creature called al-Anbar. Abu Ubaydah said: It is carrion. Then he said: No; we are messengers of the Messenger of Allah, serving in the way of Allah, and you are compelled by necessity, so eat it. We stayed beside it for a month, all three hundred of us, until we grew plump. I saw us drawing pitcher after pitcher of fat from its eye socket and cutting pieces of its flesh as large as a bull, or the size of a bull. Abu Ubaydah took thirteen men from among us and seated them in its eye socket. He took one of its ribs and stood it upright, then saddled the largest camel we had. It passed underneath the rib. We took provisions of its meat and dried meat. When we arrived in Medina, we went to the Messenger of Allah and told him about it. He said: It is provision that Allah brought forth for you. Do you have any of its meat with you to give us? We sent some of it to the Messenger of Allah, and he ate it.