أَخْبَرَنَا سَهْلُ بْنُ حَمَّادٍ ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ ، عَنْ الْأَشْعَثِ ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ ، وَكَانَ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ : رَأَيْتُ مَعَ رَجُلٍ صَحِيفَةً فِيهَا : سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ، وَلَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ، وَاللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ، فَقُلْتُ لَهً : أَنْسِخْنِيهَا، فَكَأَنَّهُ بَخِلَ بِهَا، ثُمَّ وَعَدَنِي أَنْ يُعْطِيَنِيهَا، فَأَتَيْتُ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ، فَقَالَ :" إِنَّ مَا فِي هَذَا الْكِتَابِ بِدْعَةٌ، وَفِتْنَةٌ، وَضَلَالَةٌ، وَإِنَّمَا أَهْلَكَ مَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ هَذَا وَأَشْبَاهُ هَذَا، إِنَّهُمْ كَتَبُوهَا، فَاسْتَلَذَّتْهَا أَلْسِنَتُهُمْ، وَأُشْرِبَتْهَا قُلُوبُهُمْ، فَأَعْزِمُ عَلَى كُلِّ امْرِئٍ يَعْلَمُ بِمَكَانِ كِتَابٍ إِلَّا دَلَّ عَلَيْهِ، وَأُقْسِمُ بِاللَّهِ، قَالَ شُعْبَةُ : فَأَقْسَمَ بِاللَّهِ؟، قَالَ : أَحْسَبُهُ أَقْسَمَ : لَوْ أَنَّهَا ذُكِرَتْ لَهُ بِدَيْرٍ الْهِنْدِ نَرَاهُ يَعْنِي مَكَانًا بِالْكُوفَةِ بَعِيدًا، لآَتَيْتُهُ وَلَوْ مَشْيًا "

Sahl bin Hammad told us, Shu’bah told us, on the authority of Al-Ash’ath, on the authority of his father, and he was one of Abdullah’s companions. He said: I saw him with a man A page containing: Glory be to God, praise be to God, there is no god but God, and God is great. So I said to him: Copy it, as if he was stingy with it. Then he promised me that he would give it to me, so I went to Abdullah, may God be pleased with him, and behold, it was in his hands. He said: “What is in this book is an innovation. And temptation, and misguidance, but those before you were destroyed by this and the like. They wrote it down, and their tongues took pleasure in it. And their hearts drank it, so I resolve that every person who knows the location of a book should point to it, and I swear by God. Shu’bah said: So he swore By God? He said: I think he swore: If Deir al-Hind had been mentioned to him – we see him meaning a place in Kufa far away – I would have come to him, even on foot.