Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَانُ بْنُ حَرْبٍ قَالَ ثَنَا عُمَرُ بْنُ عَلِيِّ بْنِ مُقَدَّمٍ قَالَ ثَنَا أَبُو عُمَيْسٍ عَن سَعِيدِ بْنِ أَبِي بُرْدَةَ عَن أَبِيهِ عَن أَبِي مُوسَى الْأَشْعَرِيِّ وَقَالَ أَتَانِي نَاسٌ مِنْ الْأَشْعَرِيِّينَ فَقَالُوا اذْهَبْ مَعَنَا إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَإِنَّ لَنَا حَاجَةً قَالَ فَقُمْتُ مَعَهُمْ فَقَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ اسْتَعِنْ بِنَا فِي عَمَلِكَ فَاعْتَذَرْتُ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِمَّا قَالُوا وَقُلْتُ لَمْ أَدْرِ مَا حَاجَتُهُمْ فَصَدَّقَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَعَذَرَنِي وَقَالَ إِنَّا لَا نَسْتَعِينُ فِي عَمَلِنَا مَنْ سَأَلَنَاهُ.
English Translation
Sulayman ibn Harb told us: Umar ibn Ali ibn Muqaddam told us: Abu Umays told us, from Sa'id ibn Abi Burdah, from his father, from Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, who said: Some people of the Ash'aris came to me and said, "Come with us to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, for we have a need." He said: So I rose with them, and they said, "O Messenger of Allah, employ us in your work." So I apologized to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, for what they said, and I said, "I did not know what their need was." The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, believed me and excused me, and said, "We do not employ in our work anyone who asks us for it."