Sunan an-Nasa'i
Sunan an-Nasa'i 3215
أَخْبَرَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ مُوسَى، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَنَسُ بْنُ عِيَاضٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا الأَوْزَاعِيُّ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ أَبِي سَلَمَةَ، أَنَّ أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنِّي رَجُلٌ شَابٌّ قَدْ خَشِيتُ عَلَى نَفْسِي الْعَنَتَ وَلاَ أَجِدُ طَوْلاً أَتَزَوَّجُ النِّسَاءَ أَفَأَخْتَصِي فَأَعْرَضَ عَنْهُ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم حَتَّى قَالَ ثَلاَثًا فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم " يَا أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ جَفَّ الْقَلَمُ بِمَا أَنْتَ لاَقٍ فَاخْتَصِ عَلَى ذَلِكَ أَوْ دَعْ " . قَالَ أَبُو عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ الأَوْزَاعِيُّ لَمْ يَسْمَعْ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ مِنَ الزُّهْرِيِّ وَهَذَا حَدِيثٌ صَحِيحٌ قَدْ رَوَاهُ يُونُسُ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ .
Yahya ibn Musa reported to us; he said: Anas ibn Iyad narrated to us; he said: al-Awzai narrated to us, from Ibn Shihab, from Abu Salamah, that Abu Hurayrah said: I said, ‘Messenger of Allah, I am a young man and fear hardship for myself, but I cannot afford to marry women. Should I castrate myself?’ The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) turned away from him until he had asked three times. Then the Prophet said: ‘Abu Hurayrah, the Pen has dried concerning what you will encounter. So castrate yourself on that basis, or leave it.’ Abu Abd al-Rahman said: al-Awzai did not hear this hadith from al-Zuhri. This hadith is sound; Yunus narrated it from al-Zuhri.
Translation notes
The report includes a question about castration and a response invoking what has already been decreed. The source then gives a transmission note concerning al-Awzai and Yunus.
قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنِّي رَجُلٌ شَابٌّ قَدْ خَشِيتُ عَلَى نَفْسِي الْعَنَتَ وَلاَ أَجِدُ طَوْلاً أَتَزَوَّجُ النِّسَاءَ أَفَأَخْتَصِي فَأَعْرَضَ عَنْهُ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم حَتَّى قَالَ ثَلاَثًا فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم " يَا أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ جَفَّ الْقَلَمُ بِمَا أَنْتَ لاَقٍ فَاخْتَصِ عَلَى ذَلِكَ أَوْ دَعْ " .
The response فَاخْتَصِ عَلَى ذَلِكَ أَوْ دَعْ is terse and may be a rebuke or a literal leave-it-to-destiny statement.
Does “castrate yourself on that basis, or leave it” best preserve the wording, despite its unusual force?