Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا إِسْمَاعِيلُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، أَنْبَأَنَا أَيُّوبُ، عَنْ مُجَاهِدٍ، قَالَ قَالَ عَلِيٌّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ جُعْتُ مَرَّةً بِالْمَدِينَةِ جُوعًا شَدِيدًا فَخَرَجْتُ أَطْلُبُ الْعَمَلَ فِي عَوَالِي الْمَدِينَةِ فَإِذَا أَنَا بِامْرَأَةٍ قَدْ جَمَعَتْ مَدَرًا فَظَنَنْتُهَا تُرِيدُ بَلَّهُ فَأَتَيْتُهَا فَقَاطَعْتُهَا كُلَّ ذَنُوبٍ عَلَى تَمْرَةٍ فَمَدَدْتُ سِتَّةَ عَشَرَ ذَنُوبًا حَتَّى مَجَلَتْ يَدَايَ ثُمَّ أَتَيْتُ الْمَاءَ فَأَصَبْتُ مِنْهُ ثُمَّ أَتَيْتُهَا فَقُلْتُ بِكَفَّيَّ هَكَذَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهَا وَبَسَطَ إِسْمَاعِيلُ يَدَيْهِ وَجَمَعَهُمَا فَعَدَّتْ لِي سِتَّةَ عَشْرَ تَمْرَةً فَأَتَيْتُ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَأَخْبَرْتُهُ فَأَكَلَ مَعِي مِنْهَا.
English Translation
It was narrated that Mujahid said: `Hadrat Ali (may Allah be well pleased with him) said: I got very hungry once in Madinah, so I went out to look for work in `Awali al-Madinah. I saw a woman who had collected some mud and I thought that she wanted to add water to it. So I made a deal with her, for each bucket one date, I brought sixteen buckets full, until it left marks on my hands, then I went to the water and drank some. Then I came to her and opened my hands in front of her like this - Isma`eel spread his hands and put them together - and she counted out sixteen dates for true. Then I came to the Noble Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and told him, and he ate some of them with me.