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Sahih Muslim 789a

The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: The example of a man who has memorised the Qur’an is like that of a hobbled camel. If he remained vigilant, he would be able to retain it…

Abdullahnarrated it
Sahihgraded sahih
4names in the chain
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حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ يَحْيَى، قَالَ قَرَأْتُ عَلَى مَالِكٍ عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: «إِنَّمَا مَثَلُ صَاحِبِ الْقُرْآنِ كَمَثَلِ الإِبِلِ الْمُعَقَّلَةِ إِنْ عَاهَدَ عَلَيْهَا أَمْسَكَهَا وَإِنْ أَطْلَقَهَا ذَهَبَتْ»

The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: The example of a man who has memorised the Qur’an is like that of a hobbled camel. If he remained vigilant, he would be able to retain it (with him), and if he loosened the hobbled camel it would escape.

ইবনু শিহাব বর্ণনা করেছেন, আমি সাঈদ ইবনু খালিদ ইবনু আমর ইবনু উসমান এর কাছে এ হাদীসটি বর্ণনা করেছিলাম। তখন তিনি আমাকে বললেন যে, তিনি আগুনে পাকানো খাবার খেয়ে ওযু করা সম্পর্কে উরওয়াহ ইবনু যুবায়রকে জিজ্ঞেস করলেন, তিনি বললেন, আমি নবী সাল্লাল্লাহু আলাইহি ওয়াসাল্লাম এর স্ত্রী আয়িশাহ (রাযিঃ) কে বলতে শুনেছি তিনি বলেছেন, তোমরা আগুনে রান্না করা খাবার খেয়ে ওযু করবে।

۔ ابن شہاب نے کہا : مجھے سعید بن خالد بن عمرو بن عثمان نے ، جب میں اسے ( سابقہ سند سے ) یہ حدیث سنا رہا تھا ، بتایا کہ اس نے عروہ بن زبیر ‌رضی ‌اللہ ‌عنہ ‌ ‌ سے ایسی چیز ( کھانے ) سے وضو کے بارے میں پوچھا جسے آگ نے چھوا ہے ، تو عروہ ‌رضی ‌اللہ ‌عنہ ‌ ‌ نے کہا : میں نے نبیﷺ کی اہلیہ حضرت عائشہؓ سے سنا ، انہوں نے کہا : رسول اللہﷺ نے فرمایا : ’’ایسی چیز سے وضو کرو جسے آگ نے چھوا ہو

{….} İbni Şihab dedi ki: ana Said b. Halid b. Amr b. Osman haber verdi. Ben kendisine bu hadîsi rivayet ederken o da: Ateşten pişen şeylerden dolayı abdest almak lazım gelip gelmiyeceğini Urvetü'bnü Zübeyr'e sorduğunu söyledi. Urve Şöyle demiş: Ben Nebi (Sallallahu Aleyhi ve Sellem)'in zevcesi Aişe'yi «Resulullah (Sallallahu Aleyhi ve Sellem) : «Ateşte pişen şeyler den sonra abdest alın.» buyurdular, derken işittim

Sahih Muslim 789a, Book 6, The Book of Prayer - Travellers, Hadith 267. 1 min read

What it means

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) compared the one who studies the Qur’an and is accustomed to reciting it—whether by looking at the Mus'haf or from memory—to a person with camels tied from their knees with a rope. If he keeps them tied, he will keep hold of them, but if he unties them, they will run away and escape.

Similarly, when the companion of the Qur’an recites it, he remembers it, and if he neglects it, he forgets it. As long as the connection is regularly maintained, the memorization remains intact.

What it teaches

  • Encouraging regularly maintaining the connection with the Qur’an and reciting it, and being cautious against exposing it to forgetfulness.
  • Constantly reciting the Qur’an humbles the tongue and makes its recitation easier. However, if it is neglected, recitation becomes difficult and burdensome.
  • Al-Qādi said: The meaning of "the companion of the Qur’an" is: the one who is familiar with it. Companionship: being familiar with. This is the same as saying: So-and-so is the companion of so-and-so or referring to the "companions of Paradise" and the "companions of Hellfire."
  • Using examples is one of the methods of Da‘wah (calling people to Islam).
  • Ibn Hajar said: He mentioned camels specifically because they are the most difficult domestic animals to tame. It is challenging to regain control over them once they have become accustomed to their freedom.

From the Encyclopedia of Translated Prophetic Hadiths, hadeethenc.com.

The chain

Who passed it on, from Imam Muslim back to the one who was there.

  1. 1Imam MuslimCompiler, died 261 AH
  2. 2يَحْيَى بْنُ يَحْيَى قَرَأْتُ عَلَى مَالِكٍTold us
  3. 3Nafi, the client of Ibn UmarFrom, Successor, died 116 AH
  4. 4Abdullah ibn UmarFrom, Companion, died 72 AH

Narrated also in

The same words, in another collection.

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