In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
The Abridged Prophetic Biography (Seerah),
Authored by Sheikh Musa ibn Rashid Al-Azimi,
May Allah preserve him.
The Arrival of Dimam ibn Tha'labah, may Allah be pleased with him.
Banu Sa'd ibn Bakr sent Dimam ibn Tha'labah, may Allah be pleased with him,
As an emissary on their behalf to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
The two Shaykhs [al-Bukhari and Muslim] narrated in their Sahih collections,
With the wording being that of al-Bukhari,
On the authority of Anas ibn Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
"While we were sitting with the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the mosque,
A man entered riding a camel.
He made it kneel down in the mosque courtyard,
Then tethered it,
And said to them:
'Which of you is Muhammad?'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) was
Reclining among them.
So we said:
'This fair-complexioned man who is reclining.'
The man said to him:
'O Son of Abd al-Muttalib!'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied:
'I am listening to you.'
The man said to the Prophet (peace be upon him):
'I am going to ask you, and I will be harsh in questioning you,
So do not harbor any resentment against me.'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
'Ask whatever seems fit to you.'
He said:
'I ask you by your Lord and the Lord of those before you:
Did Allah truly send you to all mankind?'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) answered:
'By Allah, yes!'
He said:
'I adjure you by Allah:
Did Allah command you that we perform the five daily prayers throughout the day and night?'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) answered:
'By Allah, yes!'
He said:
'I adjure you by Allah:
Did Allah command you to fast this month of the year?'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) answered:
'By Allah, yes!'
He said:
'I adjure you by Allah:
Did Allah command you to collect this zakat from our wealthy
And distribute it among our poor?'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) answered:
'By Allah, yes!'
The man then said:
'I believe in all that you have brought,
And I am an emissary of those whom I left behind of my people.
I am Dimam ibn Tha'labah,
A brother of the clan of Banu Sa'd ibn Bakr.'"
And in another narration in the Musnad of Imam Ahmad with a good chain of transmission,
On the authority of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said:
"Banu Sa'd ibn Bakr dispatched Dimam ibn Tha'labah as an emissary to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
He arrived before him,
Made his camel kneel at the gate of the mosque, tethered it,
And then entered the mosque
While the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was sitting among his Companions.
Dimam was a sturdy, hairy man with two braids.
He approached until he stood over the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) who was surrounded by his Companions,
And asked, 'Which of you is the son of Abd al-Muttalib?'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) replied,
'I am the son of Abd al-Muttalib.'
He said, 'O Muhammad!'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) replied,
'Yes.'
He said, 'O son of Abd al-Muttalib!
I am going to question you and be stringent in my questioning,
So do not hold any offense in your heart.'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said,
'I feel no offense;
Ask whatever you wish.'
He said, 'I adjure you by Allah, your God,
The God of those before you,
And the God of whoever shall come after you:
Did Allah truly dispatch you to us as a messenger?'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) answered,
'By Allah, yes!'
He said, 'I adjure you by Allah, your God,
The God of those before you,
And the God of whoever shall come after you:
Did Allah command you to enjoin upon us
That we worship Him alone without associating anything with Him,
And that we cast off these false rivals that our forefathers used to worship beside Him?'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) replied,
'By Allah, yes!'
He said, 'I adjure you by Allah, your God,
The God of those before you,
And the God of whoever shall come after you:
Did Allah command you that we perform these five daily prayers?'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) answered,
'By Allah, yes!'
He [Ibn Abbas] said:
Then he proceeded to mention the obligatory duties of Islam, one by one:
Zakat, fasting, Hajj,
And all the ordinances of Islam,
Adjuring him concerning each obligation just as he had adjured him regarding the previous one.
When he had finished, he declared:
'I bear witness that there is no god but Allah,
And I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
I shall fulfill these obligatory duties
And shun whatever you have forbidden me,
Adding nothing and omitting nothing.'
He then turned around to return to his camel.
As he turned away, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
'If the one with the two braids has spoken the truth, he will surely enter Paradise.'
He [the narrator] said:
So he went to his camel, untied its tether,
And departed until he returned to his people.
They gathered around him,
And the very first words he uttered were:
'Vile are al-Lat and al-Uzza!'
They cried:
'Stop, O Dimam!
Beware of leukoderma and leprosy!
Beware of madness!'
He replied:
'Woe unto you!
By Allah, they can neither cause harm nor bring benefit.
Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, has indeed sent a Messenger
And revealed to you a Book through which He has rescued you from your former state.
I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, having no partner,
And that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger.
I have brought you from him that which he has commanded you to do and that which he has forbidden you.'
He [the narrator] said:
By Allah, evening had not fallen upon that very day
Before every single man and woman in his settlement had embraced Islam.
Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, said:
'We never heard of an emissary of any people who was more noble than Dimam ibn Tha'labah.'"
The Abridged Prophetic Biography (Seerah).
Though the longing of mortals for one another may endure,
The longing toward you knows no bound nor measure.
May Allah shower blessings upon you as long as the call to prayer is raised,
And as long as lips move in enduring remembrance.