مسند امام احمد بن حنبل · Hadith 5546

Abu Ja'far said: If'Abdullah ibn 'Umar heard something from the Prophet of Allah (PBUH) or was present at an event with him, he would not fall short in any way (in conveying what he had heard or seen) and he would not go beyond that. Whilst he was sitting and 'Ubayd ibn 'Umayr was talking to the people of Makkah, 'Ubayd ibn 'Umayr said: The likeness of the hypocrites is that of a sheep between two flocks; if i comes to one flock they push it away, and if it comes to the other flock they push it away. 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar said: It is not like that. And 'Ubayd ibn 'Umayr got angry. 'Abdullah ibn Safwaan also present in the gathering and he said: O Abu 'Abd ar-Rahmaan, how did (the Prophet (PBUH)) say it, may Allah have mercy on you? He said: He said: likeness of the hypocrites is that of a sheep between two pens, if it goes to one pen, they push it away, and if it goes to the other pen, they push it away." He said to him: May Allah have mercy on you, they are the same! He said: This is how I heard it, this is how I heard it.

Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020