Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ حَدَّثَنَا الْأَعْمَشُ عَنِ الشَّعْبِيِّ عَنِ النُّعْمَانِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَثَلُ الْقَائِمِ عَلَى حُدُودِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَالْمُدَّهِنِ فِيهَا كَمَثَلِ قَوْمٍ اسْتَهَمُوا عَلَى سَفِينَةٍ فِي الْبَحْرِ فَأَصَابَ بَعْضُهُمْ أَسْفَلَهَا وَأَصَابَ بَعْضُهُمْ أَعْلَاهَا فَكَانَ الَّذِينَ فِي أَسْفَلِهَا يَصْعَدُونَ فَيَسْتَقُونَ الْمَاءَ فَيَصُبُّونَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ فِي أَعْلَاهَا فَقَالَ الَّذِينَ فِي أَعْلَاهَا لَا نَدَعُكُمْ تَصْعَدُونَ فَتُؤْذُونَنَا فَقَالَ الَّذِينَ فِي أَسْفَلِهَا فَإِنَّنَا نَنْقُبُهَا مِنْ أَسْفَلِهَا فَنَسْتَقِي قَالَ فَإِنْ أَخَذُوا عَلَى أَيْدِيهِمْ فَمَنَعُوهُمْ نَجَوْا جَمِيعًا وَإِنْ تَرَكُوهُمْ غَرِقُوا جَمِيعًا.
English Translation
Abu Mu'awiyah narrated to us: Al-A'mash narrated to us, from al-Sha'bi, from al-Nu'man ibn Bashir, who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: The parable of the one who upholds the limits set by Allah, Exalted, and the one who transgresses them, is like a people who drew lots for places on a ship at sea, and some of them got the lower deck and some the upper deck. Those in the lower deck would climb up to draw water, passing over those in the upper deck. So those in the upper deck said: We will not let you climb up and disturb us. Those in the lower deck said: Then we will bore a hole in the bottom of the ship and draw water from there. If the others take hold of their hands and stop them, they will all be saved together; but if they leave them alone, they will all drown together.