Hadithcore
Sahih al-Bukhari, 2691
sahih

Narrated Anas:

It was said to the Prophet (ﷺ) "Would that you see `Abdullah bin Ubai." So, the Prophet (ﷺ) went to him, riding a donkey, and the Muslims accompanied him, walking on salty barren land. When the Prophet (ﷺ) reached `Abdullah bin Ubai, the latter said, "Keep away from me! By Allah, the bad smell of your donkey has harmed me." On that an Ansari man said (to `Abdullah), "By Allah! The smell of the donkey of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) is better than your smell." On that a man from `Abdullah's tribe got angry for `Abdullah's sake, and the two men abused each other which caused the friends of the two men to get angry, and the two groups started fighting with sticks, shoes and hands. We were informed that the following Divine Verse was revealed (in this concern):-- "And if two groups of Believers fall to fighting then, make peace between them." (49:9)

حَدَّثَنَا مُسَدَّدٌ، حَدَّثَنَا مُعْتَمِرٌ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبِي أَنَّ أَنَسًا ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ قِيلَ لِلنَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم لَوْ أَتَيْتَ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ أُبَىٍّ‏.‏ فَانْطَلَقَ إِلَيْهِ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَرَكِبَ حِمَارًا، فَانْطَلَقَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ يَمْشُونَ مَعَهُ، وَهْىَ أَرْضٌ سَبِخَةٌ، فَلَمَّا أَتَاهُ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَ إِلَيْكَ عَنِّي، وَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ آذَانِي نَتْنُ حِمَارِكَ‏.‏ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مِنَ الأَنْصَارِ مِنْهُمْ وَاللَّهِ لَحِمَارُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَطْيَبُ رِيحًا مِنْكَ‏.‏ فَغَضِبَ لِعَبْدِ اللَّهِ رَجُلٌ مِنْ قَوْمِهِ فَشَتَمَا، فَغَضِبَ لِكُلِّ وَاحِدٍ مِنْهُمَا أَصْحَابُهُ، فَكَانَ بَيْنَهُمَا ضَرْبٌ بِالْجَرِيدِ وَالأَيْدِي وَالنِّعَالِ، فَبَلَغَنَا أَنَّهَا أُنْزِلَتْ ‏{‏وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا‏}‏‏.‏

References2 variants
In-Book Reference
Book 53, Hadith 2
USC-MSA web (English) reference
Vol. 3, Book 49, Hadith 856 (deprecated numbering scheme)
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salool was one of the leaders and chiefs of the Khazraj tribe. When he was invited to embrace Islam, he converted outwardly only, but harbored disbelief. He was the head of the hypocrites in Al-Madeenah, and nursed hostility against the Prophet ﷺ and Muslims. In this hadeeth, Narrated Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that it was said to the Prophet ﷺ, "Would you, please, visit ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy?" They were asking the Prophet ﷺ to go to ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy to invite him to Islam, and this took place upon his arrival to Al-Madeenah. TheProphet ﷺwent to him, riding a donkey, and Muslims accompanied him, walking on salty barren land. When the Prophet ﷺreached ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy, the latter said, "Keep away from me! By Allah, the bad smell of your donkey has harmed me." On that, a man from the Ansaar said (to ‘Abdullah), "By Allah! The smell of the Prophet’s donkey is better than your smell." This Companion (may Allah be pleased with him) retorted to ‘Abadullaah, defending the Prophet ﷺ. Thereupon, a man from ‘Abdullah's tribe got angry for ‘Abdullah's sake, and the two men verbally abused each other, which caused their friends to get angry and agitated,” meaning that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with him) got angry for the sake of the Prophet ﷺ and the friends of Ibn Salool got angry for his sake. The two groups started fighting with palm branches, shoes, and hands. A version of the hadeeth compiled by Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim, reads: “The Prophet ﷺ continued to calm them until they kept silent.” He ﷺ continued to calm them until they stopped fighting. Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) added: “We were informed that the following ayah was revealed (in this regard). Allah, Exalted is He, Says (what means): {And if two factions among the believers should fight, then reconcile between the two.} [Quran 49:9].” It was argued that this ayah talked specifically about the believers, whereas the incident related in this hadeeth was between the Prophet ﷺ and Ibn Salool before his conversion to Islam. In response, it was said that some of Ibn Salool’s friends and men were believers. It was also said that the statement of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), ‘We were informed,” indicates that that incident was not the actual reason for which this ayah was revealed, and Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) did not explicitly say so. His saying, ‘We were informed,’ does not necessitate that the ayah was revealed on that particular occasion; the chapter in which the concerned ayah is included was revealed in 9 A.H., when the delegations of the Arab tribes came to Al-Madeenah. It is also said that the ayah about the reconciliation between the disputing groups of the believers was revealed earlier than the rest of the chapter, and this would eliminate any problematic aspect. The hadeeth highlights the unmatched forbearance of the Prophet ﷺ and his endurance of people’s harm. It also underlines how the believers revered the Prophet ﷺ. .
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