Narrated Mahmud bin Ar-rabi Al-Ansari,
that he remembered Allahs Apostle ﷺ and he also remembered a mouthful of water which he had thrown on his face, after taking it from a well that was in their house. Mahmud said that he had heard Itban bin Malik, who was present with Allahs Apostle ﷺ in the battle of Badr saying, "I used to lead my people at Bani Salim in the prayer and there was a valley between me and those people. Whenever it rained it used to be difficult for me to cross it to go to their mosque. So I went to Allahs Apostle ﷺ and said, I have weak eye-sight and the valley between me and my people flows during the rainy season and it becomes difficult for me to cross it; I wish you would come to my house and pray at a place so that I could take that place as a praying place. Allahs Apostle ﷺ said, I will do so. So Allahs Apostle ﷺ and Abu Bakr (RA) came to my house in the (next) morning after the sun had risen high. Allahs Apostle ﷺ asked my permission to let him in and I admitted him. He did not sit before saying, Where do you want us to offer the prayer in your house? I pointed to the place where I wanted him to pray. So Allahs Apostle ﷺ stood up for the prayer and started the prayer with Takbir and we aligned in rows behind him; and he offered two Rakat, and finished them with Taslim, and we also performed Taslim with him. I detained him for a meal called "Khazir" which I had prepared for him.--("Khazir" is a special type of dish prepared from barley flour and meat soup)--
When the neighbors got the news that Allahs Apostle ﷺ was in my house, they poured it till there were a great number of men in the house. One of them said, What is wrong with Malik, for I do not see him? One of them replied, He is a hypocrite and does not love Allah and His Apostle. On that Allahs Apostle ﷺ said, Dont say this. Havent you seen that he said, None has the right to be worshipped but Allah for Allahs sake only. The man replied, Allah and His Apostle ﷺ know better; but by Allah, we never saw him but helping and talking with the hypocrites. Allahs Apostle ﷺ replied, No doubt, whoever says. None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and by that he wants the pleasures of Allah, then Allah will save him from Hell." Mahmud added, "I told the above narration to some people, one of whom was Ab-u Aiyub, the companion of Allahs Apostle ﷺ in the battle in which he (Ab-u Aiyub) died and Yazid bin Muaw7ya was their leader in Roman Territory. Abu Aiyub denounced the narration and said, I doubt that Allahs Apostle ﷺ ever said what you have said. I felt that too much, and I vowed to Allah that if I remained alive in that holy battle, I would (go to Madinah and) ask Itban bin Malik if he was still living in the mosque of his people. So when he returned, I assumed Ihram for Hajj or Umra and then I proceeded on till I reached Medina. I went to Bani Salim and Itban bin Malik, who was by then an old blind man, was leading his people in the prayer. When he finished the prayer, I greeted him and introduced myself to him and then asked him about that narration. He told that narration again in the same manner as he had narrated it the first time."
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