Jami' at-Tirmidhi
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3257
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ الأَسْوَدِ أَبُو عَمْرٍو الْبَصْرِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ رَبِيعَةَ، عَنِ ابْنِ جُرَيْجٍ، عَنْ عَطَاءٍ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، رضى الله عنها قَالَتْ كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم إِذَا رَأَى مَخِيلَةً أَقْبَلَ وَأَدْبَرَ فَإِذَا مَطَرَتْ سُرِّيَ عَنْهُ . قَالَتْ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ . فَقَالَ " وَمَا أَدْرِي لَعَلَّهُ كَمَا قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى : (فلمَّا رَأَوْهُ عَارِضًا مُسْتَقْبِلَ أَوْدِيَتِهِمْ قَالُوا هَذَا عَارِضٌ مُمْطِرُنَا ) " . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ .
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said: When the Prophet saw a rain-bearing cloud, he would pace back and forth. When it rained, he would feel relieved. I asked him about it, and he said, ‘I do not know; perhaps it is as Allah Most High said: “When they saw it as a cloud moving toward their valleys, they said, ‘This is a cloud that will bring us rain’”’ (Qur’an 46:24). Abu ‘Isa said: This is a hasan hadith.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
Preserved the Prophet’s uncertainty (‘I do not know; perhaps’) and the contrast between his unease at the cloud and relief once rain fell.