Jami' at-Tirmidhi
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1823
حَدَّثَنَا مَحْمُودُ بْنُ غَيْلاَنَ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو النَّضْرِ، هَاشِمُ بْنُ الْقَاسِمِ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا زِيَادُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُلاَثَةَ، عَنْ مُوسَى بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ التَّيْمِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، وَأَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ، قَالاَ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم إِذَا دَعَا عَلَى الْجَرَادِ قَالَ " اللَّهُمَّ أَهْلِكِ الْجَرَادَ اقْتُلْ كِبَارَهُ وَأَهْلِكْ صِغَارَهُ وَأَفْسِدْ بَيْضَهُ وَاقْطَعْ دَابِرَهُ وَخُذْ بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ عَنْ مَعَاشِنَا وَأَرْزَاقِنَا إِنَّكَ سَمِيعُ الدُّعَاءِ " . قَالَ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ كَيْفَ تَدْعُو عَلَى جُنْدٍ مِنْ أَجْنَادِ اللَّهِ بِقَطْعِ دَابِرِهِ قَالَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " إِنَّهَا نَثْرَةُ حُوتٍ فِي الْبَحْرِ " . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ غَرِيبٌ لاَ نَعْرِفُهُ إِلاَّ مِنْ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ . وَمُوسَى بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ التَّيْمِيُّ قَدْ تُكُلِّمَ فِيهِ وَهُوَ كَثِيرُ الْغَرَائِبِ وَالْمَنَاكِيرِ وَأَبُوهُ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ ثِقَةٌ وَهُوَ مَدَنِيٌّ .
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Mahmud ibn Ghaylan narrated to us: Abu al-Nadr—Hashim ibn al-Qasim—narrated to us: Ziyad ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Ullathah narrated to us, from Musa ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Taymi, from his father, from Jabir ibn ‘Abd Allah and Anas ibn Malik, who both said: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed against locusts, he would say: ‘O Allah, destroy the locusts; kill the large ones and destroy the small ones; ruin their eggs; cut off their remnants; and turn their mouths away from our livelihood and sustenance. You indeed hear supplication.’ A man said: ‘Messenger of Allah, how can you pray against one of Allah’s armies, asking that it be cut off?’ The Messenger of Allah replied: ‘They are a nathrah of a fish in the sea.’
Abu ‘Isa said: This hadith is gharīb (rare); we know it only by this route. Musa ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Taymi has been criticized and reports many unusual and rejected narrations. His father, Muhammad ibn Ibrahim, is trustworthy and was a Medinan.
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The expression nathrah of a fish is unusual and its precise sense is unclear; it is retained transliterated rather than forced into an interpretation. The chain is also assessed critically in the compiler's note.
حَدَّثَنَا مَحْمُودُ بْنُ غَيْلاَنَ،
The English witness omits the full chain from Mahmud ibn Ghaylan through Ziyad ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Ullathah.
Should the complete chain be included?
قَالَ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ كَيْفَ تَدْعُو عَلَى جُنْدٍ مِنْ أَجْنَادِ اللَّهِ بِقَطْعِ دَابِرِهِ قَالَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " إِنَّهَا نَثْرَةُ حُوتٍ فِي الْبَحْرِ " .
The Arabic uses the rare expression nathrah of a fish in the sea; the witness's ‘bit scattered’ is unclear and possibly a transcription or translation error.
Can the intended meaning of this rare phrase be verified from an authoritative commentary or edition?