حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ حَدَّثَنَا الْأَعْمَشُ عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ الْأَسْوَدِ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ قَالَ كُنَّا مَعَ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي غَارٍ وَقَدْ أُنْزِلَتْ عَلَيْهِ وَالْمُرْسَلَاتِ عُرْفًا قَالَ فَنَحْنُ نَأْخُذُهَا مِنْ فِيهِ رَطْبَةً إِذْ خَرَجَتْ عَلَيْنَا حَيَّةٌ فَقَالَ اقْتُلُوهَا قَالَ فَابْتَدَرْنَاهَا لِنَقْتُلَهَا فَسَبَقَتْنَا فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَقَاهَا اللَّهُ شَرَّكُمْ كَمَا وَقَاكُمْ شَرَّهَا
مسند امام احمد بن حنبل · Hadith 4357
It was narrated that 'Abdullah said: We were with the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) in a cave and (the soorah) "By the winds (or angels or the Messengers of Allah) sent forth one after another" [al- Mursalat 77:1] was revealed to him. As we were learning it fresh from his lips, a snake came out of its hole and he said, "Kill it." We rushed to kill it but it got away from us. And the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: "Allah protected it from your evil as He protected you from its evil."
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020