حَدَّثَنَا مَخْلَدُ بْنُ خَالِدٍ الشُّعَيْرِيُّ حَدَّثَنَا عُمَرُ بْنُ يُونُسَ حَدَّثَنَا عِکْرِمَةُ يَعْنِي ابْنَ عَمَّارٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي إِسْحَقُ يَعْنِي ابْنَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ أَبِي طَلْحَةَ قَالَ قَالَ أَنَسٌ کَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّی اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنْ أَحْسَنِ النَّاسِ خُلُقًا فَأَرْسَلَنِي يَوْمًا لِحَاجَةٍ فَقُلْتُ وَاللَّهِ لَا أَذْهَبُ وَفِي نَفْسِي أَنْ أَذْهَبَ لِمَا أَمَرَنِي بِهِ نَبِيُّ اللَّهِ صَلَّی اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ فَخَرَجْتُ حَتَّی أَمُرَّ عَلَی صِبْيَانٍ وَهُمْ يَلْعَبُونَ فِي السُّوقِ فَإِذَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّی اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَابِضٌ بِقَفَايَ مِنْ وَرَائِي فَنَظَرْتُ إِلَيْهِ وَهُوَ يَضْحَکُ فَقَالَ يَا أُنَيْسُ اذْهَبْ حَيْثُ أَمَرْتُکَ قُلْتُ نَعَمْ أَنَا أَذْهَبُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ أَنَسٌ وَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ خَدَمْتُهُ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ أَوْ تِسْعَ سِنِينَ مَا عَلِمْتُ قَالَ لِشَيْئٍ صَنَعْتُ لِمَ فَعَلْتَ کَذَا وَکَذَا وَلَا لِشَيْئٍ تَرَکْتُ هَلَّا فَعَلْتَ کَذَا وَکَذَا
سنن ابودوٗد · Hadith 4773
Anas said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was one of the best of men in character. One day he sent me to do something, and I said: I swear by Allah that i will not go. But in my heart I felt that I should go to do what the prophet of Allah ﷺ had commanded me; so I went out and came upon some boys who were playing in the street. All of a sudden the Messenger of Allah ﷺ who had come up behind caught me by the back of the neck, and when I looked at him he was laughing. He said: Go where I ordered you, little Anas. I replied: Yes, I am going, Messenger of Allah! Anas said: I swear by Allah, I served him for seven or nine years, and he never said to me about a thing which I had done: Why did you do such and such? Nor about a thing which I left: Why did not do such and such?
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020