Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ بَكْرٍ حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامٌ عَنِ الْحَسَنِ عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ سَمُرَةَ عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ قَالَ لَهُ يَا عَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ لَا تَسْأَلْ الْإِمَارَةَ فَإِنَّكَ إِنْ أُعْطِيتَهَا عَنْ مَسْأَلَةٍ وُكِلْتَ إِلَيْهَا وَإِنْ أُعْطِيتَهَا عَنْ غَيْرِ مَسْأَلَةٍ أُعِنْتَ عَلَيْهَا وَإِذَا حَلَفْتَ عَلَى يَمِينٍ فَرَأَيْتَ غَيْرَهَا خَيْرًا مِنْهَا فَكَفِّرْ عَنْ يَمِينِكَ وَأْتِ الَّذِي هُوَ خَيْرٌ.
English Translation
'Abdullah ibn Bakr told us, Hisham told us, from al-Hasan, from 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samura, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: that he said to him, "O 'Abd al-Rahman, do not seek leadership, for if you are given it upon asking for it, you will be entrusted to it alone; but if you are given it without asking, you will be helped in it. And if you swear an oath and then see something better than it, make expiation for your oath and do the thing that is better."