Hadith 14

ank until I was saturated, then I got up to bring my father and my uncle to the spring. I found one of them to have died, so I left him in his state and I took the other and continued in search for the spring. I struggled to see it, but could not see it, nor could I recognise its place, and the thirst intensified with him until he dies. I made sure of his affair until I buried him, and returned to the other and buried him as well. And I travelled alone until I ended up to the road and joined up with the people and entered Al-Medina, and my entry into it was during the day in which Rasool-Allah-saww had passed away. I saw the people dispersing away from burying him-saww. A grievous regret entered into my heart, and I came to Amir Al-Momineen Ali-asws Bin Abu Talib-asws and narrated to him-asws my narration. He lodged me and I stayed with him-asws for the duration of the caliphate of Abu Bakr, and Umar, and Usman, and during the days of his-asws caliphate until Abdul Rahman Bin Muljim-la killed him-asws at Al-Kufa. He (the narrator) said, ‘And when Usman Bin Affan was besieged in his house, he (Usman) called me and handed me a letter and a horse and instructed me with going out to Amir Al-Momineen Ali-asws Bin Abu Talib-asws; and Ali-asws was absent, being at Yanbu in his-asws estate and his-asws wealth. I took the letter and rode the horse and travelled until when I was in a place called Jinan Abu Abaya, I heard Quran (being recited). There was Amir Al-Momineen-asws reciting: Did you reckon that rather We had Created you in vain and that you would not be returning to Us? ” [23: 115]. He (the narrator) said, ‘When he-asws looked at me, he-asws said: ‘O Abu Al-Dunya, what is behind you? ’ I said, ‘This is a letter of Usman’. He-asws read it, and in it was (a couplet), ‘If I am devoured, I would become the best meal, or else come to my help, and when I am torn apart’. When he-asws had read it, he-asws said: ‘Travel! Travel! ’ We entered Al-Medina at the time Usman was killed. Amir Al-Momineen-asws went towards a garden of the clan of Al-Najjar, and the people knew of his-asws place. They came to him-asws running, and they were bent upon pledging allegiance to Talha. When they looked at him-asws, th