Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى عَنِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ يَعْنِي ابْنَ أَبِي خَالِدٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي قَيْسُ بْنُ أَبِي حَازِمٍ قَالَ أَتَيْنَا أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ نُسَلِّمُ عَلَيْهِ قَالَ قُلْنَا حَدِّثْنَا فَقَالَ صَحِبْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ثَلَاثَ سِنِينَ مَا كُنْتُ سَنَوَاتٍ قَطُّ أَعْقَلَ مِنِّي فِيهِنَّ وَلَا أَحَبَّ إِلَيَّ أَنْ أَعِيَ مَا يَقُولُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِيهِنَّ وَإِنِّي رَأَيْتُهُ يَقُولُ بِيَدِهِ قَرِيبٌ بَيْنَ يَدَيْ السَّاعَةِ تُقَاتِلُونَ قَوْمًا نِعَالُهُمْ الشَّعْرُ وَتُقَاتِلُونَ قَوْمًا صِغَارَ الْأَعْيُنِ حُمْرَ الْوُجُوهِ كَأَنَّهَا الْمَجَانُّ الْمُطْرَقَةُ وَاللَّهِ لَأَنْ يَغْدُوَ أَحَدُكُمْ فَيَحْتَطِبَ عَلَى ظَهْرِهِ فَيَبِيعَهُ وَيَسْتَغْنِيَ بِهِ وَيَتَصَدَّقَ مِنْهُ خَيْرٌ لَهُ مِنْ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ رَجُلًا فَيَسْأَلَهُ يُؤْتِيهِ أَوْ يَمْنَعُهُ وَذَلِكَ أَنَّ الْيَدَ الْعُلْيَا خَيْرٌ مِنْ الْيَدِ السُّفْلَى وَابْدَأْ بِمَنْ تَعُولُ وَخُلُوفُ فَمِ الصَّائِمِ أَطْيَبُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ مِنْ رِيحِ الْمِسْكِ.
English Translation
Yahya told us, from Isma'il, that is, Ibn Abi Khalid, who said: Qays ibn Abi Hazim told me: We came to Abu Hurayrah to greet him. We said: "Narrate to us." He said: "I accompanied the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) for three years; I was never in any years more sensible than I was in them, nor more eager to memorize what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said in them. I saw him gesturing with his hand, saying: 'Near, before the Hour: you will fight a people whose sandals are of hair, and you will fight a people with small eyes and red faces, as if their faces were hammered shields.' By Allah, that one of you go out early and gather firewood on his back, then sell it and become self-sufficient by it and give charity from it, is better for him than that he come to a man and ask him, who may give him or refuse him — for the upper hand is better than the lower hand, and begin with those who are your dependents. And the odor of the fasting person's mouth is more pleasant to Allah than the scent of musk."