العربية (الأصل)
أَنَّهُ قَالَ فَقَالَ زَيْدٌ يَا أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ لَا تَجْعَلْ شَجَرَةً نَبَتَتْ فَانْشَعَبَ مِنْهَا غُصْنٌ فَانْشَعَبَ فِي الْغُصْنِ غُصْنَانِ فَمَا جَعَلَ الْأَوَّلَ أَوْلَى مِنَ الثَّانِي وَقَدْ خَرَجَ الْغُصْنَانِ مِنَ الْغُصْنِ الْأَوَّلِ؟ فَأَرْسَلَ إِلَى عَلِيٍّ ؓ فَسَأَلَهُ فَقَالَ لِعَلِيٍّ ؓ كَمَا قَالَ لِزَيْدٍ فَقَالَ عَلِيٌّ كَمَا قَالَ زَيْدٌ إِلَّا أَنَّ عَلِيًّا جَعَلَهُ سَيْلًا سَالَ فَانْشَعَبَتْ مِنْهُ شُعْبَةٌ ثُمَّ انْشَعَبَتْ مِنْهُ شُعْبَتَانِ فَقَالَ أَرَأَيْتَ لَوْ أَنَّ مَاءَ هَذِهِ الشُّعْبَةِ الْوُسْطَى يَبُسَ أَكَانَ يَرْجِعُ إِلَى الشُّعْبَتَيْنِ جَمِيعًا أَخْبَرَنَاهُ أَبُو بَكْرٍ الْأَرْدَسْتَانِيُّ ثنا أَبُو نَصْرٍ الْعِرَاقِيُّ ثنا سُفْيَانُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ ثنا عَلِيُّ بْنُ الْحَسَنِ ثنا عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ الْوَلِيدِ فَذَكَرَهُ قَالَ الشَّيْخُ وَكَانَ عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ مَسْعُودٍ يُشْرِكُ بَيْنَ الْجَدِّ وَالْإِخْوَةِ وَالْأَخَوَاتِ لِأَبٍ وَأُمٍّ أَوْ لِأَبٍ البيهقي ١٢٤٣١: عن
الترجمة الإنجليزية
Zayd said: 'O Commander of the Faithful, do not say a tree grew and a branch split from it, then two branches split from that branch - what makes the first more entitled than the second when both branches came from the first branch?' He sent for Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) and asked him as he had asked Zayd. Ali gave the same answer as Zayd, except Ali used the analogy of a flowing stream from which a channel branched, then two more channels branched from it. He said: 'Consider, if the water of the middle channel dried up, would it not return to both channels?' Abdullah ibn Mas'ud used to share between the grandfather and siblings from father and mother or from father alone.