Sunan an-Nasa'i 4353

"The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) dispatched us, and there were three-hundred of us. We were carrying our provisions on our shoulders. Then our provisions ran out such that each man among us could eat only a date per day." It was said to him: "O Abu 'Abdullah! How could one date be enough for a man?'" He said: "We realized its value when we did not even have that. Then we came to the sea where we saw a whale that the sea had tossed (on the shore). So we ate as much as we liked from it for eighteen days." Other chains report similar narrations.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent us on an expedition and made Abu ‘Ubaidah b. al-Jarrah our leader. We had to meet a caravan of the Quraish. He gave us a bag of dates as a light meal during the journey. We had nothing except that. Abu ‘Ubaidah would give each of us one date. We used to suck them as a child sucks, and drink water after that and it sufficed us that day till night. We used to beat leaves off the trees with our sticks (for food), wetted them with water and ate them. We then went to the coast of the sea. There appeared to us a body like a great mound. When we came to it, we found that it was an animal called al-anbar. Abu ‘Ubaidah said: It is a carrion, and it is not lawful for us. He then said: No, we are the Messengers of the Apostel of Allah (ﷺ) and we are in the path of Allah. If you are forced by necessity (to eat it), then eat it. We stayed feeding on it for one mouth, till we became fat, and we were three hundred in number. When we came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), we mentioned it to him. He said : It is a provision which Allah has brought forth for you, and give us some to eat if you have any meat of it with you. So we sent some of it to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and he ate (it).

"The Messenger of Allah sent us with Abu Ubaidah and we numbered over three hundred men. He supplied us with a sack of dates and gave them out by the handful. When he ran short, he gave us one date at a time, until we used to suck on it like an infant, and we would drink water with it. When we ran out of them it became very difficult for us. We used to hit the Khabat leaves with our bows to knock them down) and swallow them, then drink water with it. We became known as Jaish Al-Khabat (the Khabat army). Then, when we were about to turn inland, we saw a beast like a hill, caloled Al-'Anbar. Abu 'Ubaidah said: 'It is dead meat, do not eat it.' Then he said: 'The army of the Messenger of Allah in the cause of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, and we are forced by necessity; eat in the name of Allah. 'So we arte from it and we made some if it into jerked meat. Thirteen men could sit in its eye-socket. Abu Ubaidah took one of its ribs and seated a man on the biggest camel that the people had, and they passed beneath it. When we came to the Messenger of Allah, he said: 'What kept you so long?' We said: The Quraish' and we told him about the beast. He said: 'That is provision that Allah granted to you. Do you have anything of it with you? "We said: ' Yes."

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent us in an expedition under the command of Abu 'Ubaidah (May Allah be pleased with him) to intercept a caravan of the Quraish. He provided us with a bag of dates, apart from which he found nothing for us. Abu 'Ubaidah (May Allah be pleased with him) gave each of us one date (every day). He (the narrator) was asked: "What did you do with that?" He said: We sucked that just like a baby and then drank water over that, and it was sufficient for us for the day until night. We beat off leaves with the help of our sticks, then drenched them with water and ate them. We then went to the seaside, when there appeared before us something like a big mound. We came near it and we found that it was a beast called Al-Anbar. Abu 'Ubaidah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "It is dead (so it useless for us)." He then said: "No (but it does not matter), we have been sent by Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) in the way of Allah and you are hard-pressed (on account of the scarcity of food), so you can eat that." We, three hundred in number, stayed there for a month until we fattened up (having plenty to eat of that fish). He (Jabir) said: I saw how we extracted pitcher after pitcher full of fat from the cavity of its eye, and sliced from it compact piece of meat equal to a bull or almost like a bull. Abu 'Ubaidah (May Allah be pleased with him) called thirteen men from us and he made them sit in the cavity of its eye, and he held one of its ribs and raised it erect and then saddled the biggest of the camels we had with us and it passed through it (the arched rib), and we carried large pieces of meat for use in our journey. When we came back to Al-Madinah we went to Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and told him about that, whereupon he said, "That was a sustenance Allah had brought forth for you. Do you have any piece of meat left with you, for us to eat." Jabir (May Allah be pleased with him) said: We sent to Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) some of that (meat) and he ate it. <b>[Muslim]</b>.