English
Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “The nations will soon gather 1 against you as diners gather around their dish.” A speaker said: “Is it because we will be few in number that day?” He said: “No, you will be numerous that day, but you will be like the foam of a flood. Allah will surely remove the awe of you from your enemies’ hearts, and He will surely cast weakness into your hearts.” A speaker said: “O Messenger of Allah, what is weakness?” He said: “Love of the world and aversion to death.”
Possible references (unverified, pending editorial review)
- Candidate: Sunan Abi Dawud 4297 (unverified) 99% confidence
- Candidate: Mishkat al-Masabih 5369 (unverified) 96% confidence
Mishkat (candidate) 5369
Confidence and text similarity are not editorial verification.
Commentary and footnotes (2)
Note 1
(1) His statement: “gather against you” means they will call one another to fight you, break your strength, and seize your lands and wealth. His statement: “as diners gather” – with a stretched vowel, as narrated in Abu Dawud’s book, describing a group or party. This Hadith is unique to him. If “diners” were read with two open vowels as the plural of “eater,” it would have a valid meaning. The sense is that just as diners call one another to their dish, eating freely without hindrance or opposition, so too will they take what is in your hands without effort, harm, or resistance. His statement: “but you will be like foam” refers to their lack of courage, low worth, and feeble minds. In summary, you will be divided, weak in state, and light in resolve. (Extracted from Al-Mirqat)
Note 1
(۱) قوله: أن تداعى عليكم بأن يدعو بعضهم بعضا لمقاتلتكم وكسر شوكتكم وسلب ما ملكتموه من الديار والأموال. وقوله: كما تداعى الأكلة بالمد، وهي الرواية على نعت الفئة والجماعة، أو نحو ذلك، كذا روي لنا عن كتاب أبي داود وهذا الحديث من أفراده، ذكره الطيبي له، ولو روي الأكلة بفتحتين على أنه جمع آكل اسم فاعل لكان له وجه وجيه، والمعنى كما يدعو أكلة الطعام بعضهم بعضًا إلى قصعتها، أي التي يتناولون منها بلا مانع ولا منازع، فيأكلونها عفوا صفوا، كذلك يأخذون ما في أيديكم بلا تعب ينالهم أو ضرر يلحقهم، أو بأس يمنعهم. وقوله: ولكنكم غثاء» لقلة شجاعتهم ودناءة قدرهم وخفة أحلامهم، وخلاصته ولكنكم تكونون متفرقين ضعيفي الحال خفيفي البال. التقطته من «المرقاة».