An A’rab(a nomadic Arab) came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said: People suffering distress, the children are hungry, the crops are withered, and the animals are perished, so ask Allah to grant us rain, for we seek you as our intercessor with Allah, and Allah as intercessor with you. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Woe to you: Do you know what you are saying? Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ declared Allah’s glory and he continued declaring His glory till the effect of that was apparent in the faces of his Companions. He then said: Woe to you: Allah is not to be sought as intercessor with anyone. Allah’s state is greater than that. Woe to you! Do you know how great Allah is? His throne is above the heavens thus(indicating with his fingers like a dome over him), and it groans on account of Him as a saddle does because of the rider. Ibn Bashshar said in his version: Allah is above the throne, and the throne is above the heavens. He then mentioned the rest of the tradition. ‘Abd al-A’la, Ibn al- Muthana and Ibn Bashshar transmitted it from Ya’qub b. ‘Utbah and Jubair b. Muhammad b. Jubair from his father on the authority of his grandfather. Abu Dawud said: This tradition with the chain of Ahmad b. Sa’ad is sound. It has been approved by the body (of traditionists) , which includes Yahya b. Ma’in and ‘Ali b. al-Madani, and a group has transmitted it from Ibn Ishaq, as Ahmad also said. And so far as I have been informed ‘Abd al-A’la, Ibn al-Muthanna, and Ibn Bashshar had heard from the same copy(of the collection of tradition).

أَحْمَدُ كَتَبْنَاهُ مِنْ نُسْخَتِهِ وَهَذَا لَفْظُهُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ سَمِعْتُ مُحَمَّدَ بْنَ إِسْحَاقَ يُحَدِّثُ عَنْ يَعْقُوبَ بْنِ عُتْبَةَ عَنْ جُبَيْرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ جُبَيْرِ بْنِ مُطْعِمٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ جَدِّهِ قَالَ أَتَى رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَعْرَابِيٌّ فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ جُهِدَتِ الأَنْفُسُ وَضَاعَتِ الْعِيَالُ وَنُهِكَتِ الأَمْوَالُ وَهَلَكَتِ الأَنْعَامُ فَاسْتَسْقِ اللَّهَ لَنَا فَإِنَّا نَسْتَشْفِعُ بِكَ عَلَى اللَّهِ وَنَسْتَشْفِعُ بِاللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَيْحَكَ أَتَدْرِي مَا تَقُولُ وَسَبَّحَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَمَا زَالَ يُسَبِّحُ حَتَّى عُرِفَ ذَلِكَ فِي وُجُوهِ أَصْحَابِهِ ثُمَّ قَالَ وَيْحَكَ إِنَّهُ لاَ يُسْتَشْفَعُ بِاللَّهِ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْ خَلْقِهِ شَأْنُ اللَّهِ أَعْظَمُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ وَيْحَكَ أَتَدْرِي مَا اللَّهُ إِنَّ عَرْشَهُ عَلَى سَمَوَاتِهِ لَهَكَذَا وَقَالَ بِأَصَابِعِهِ مِثْلَ الْقُبَّةِ عَلَيْهِ وَإِنَّهُ لَيَئِطُّ بِهِ أَطِيطَ الرَّحْلِ بِالرَّاكِبِ قَالَ ابْنُ بَشَّارٍ فِي حَدِيثِهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ فَوْقَ عَرْشِهِ وَعَرْشُهُ فَوْقَ سَمَوَاتِهِ وَسَاقَ الْحَدِيثَ وَقَالَ عَبْدُ الأَعْلَى وَابْنُ الْمُثَنَّى وَابْنُ بَشَّارٍ عَنْ يَعْقُوبَ بْنِ عُتْبَةَ وَجُبَيْرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ جُبَيْرٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ جَدِّهِ

[AI] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came across a Bedouin man who said, "O Messenger of Allah, our souls have been exhausted, our families have been dispersed, our wealth has been annihilated, and our livestock have been slaughtered. So beseech Allah for rain for us, for we seek your intercession with Allah and seek Allah's intercession through you." The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Oh, you do not know what you are saying!" The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then started praising Allah and continued to do so until the people with him recognized this on their faces. He then said, "Oh, you do not know what you are saying! Intercession with Allah is greater than that. Oh, you do not know who Allah is! His throne extends over the heavens and the earth like this." He gestured with his fingers, forming a shape like a dome, and said, "And it creaks under Him like the creaking of a saddle when its rider dismounts."

جَاءَ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ أَعْرَابِيٌّ فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ جَهِدَتِ الْأَنْفُسُ وَضَاعَ الْعِيَالُ وَهَلَكَتِ الْأَمْوَالُ وَنَهَكَتِ الْأَنْعَامُ فَاسْتَسْقِ اللهَ ﷻ لَنَا فَإِنَّا نَسْتَشْفِعُ بِكَ عَلَى اللهِ وَنَسْتَشْفِعُ بِاللهِ عَلَيْكَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ «وَيْحَكَ تَدْرِي مَا تَقُولُ؟» فَسَبَّحَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فَمَا زَالَ يُسَبِّحُ حَتَّى عَرَفَ ذَلِكَ فِي وُجُوهِ أَصْحَابِهِ ثُمَّ قَالَ «وَيْحَكَ لَا يُسْتَشْفَعُ بِاللهِ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْ خَلْقِهِ شَأْنُ اللهِ أَعْظَمُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ وَيْحَكَ تَدْرِي مَا اللهُ ﷻ؟ إِنَّ عَرْشَهُ عَلَى سَمَاوَاتِهِ وَأَرْضِهِ هَكَذَا» وَقَالَ بِإِصْبَعَيْهِ «مِثْلَ الْقُبَّةِ وَإِنَّهُ لَيَئِطُّ بِهِ أَطِيطَ الرَّحْلِ بِالرَّاكِبِ»