English Translation

Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Hafiz informed me, Muhammad ibn Ishaq al-Thaqafi narrated to us, Ubaydullah ibn Sa'id narrated to us, Yahya ibn Sa'id narrated to us, from Abu Ja'far al-Khatmi, my uncle Abd al-Rahman narrated to me, from my grandfather Utba ibn al-Fakih who said: I said to Hadrat Zayd ibn Thabit (may Allah be well pleased with him): 'What is with you, O Zayd, that you narrate so few hadiths from the Beloved Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)?' He said: 'We were his neighbors and when the revelation came down, he would send for us and we would write it. When we spoke of worldly matters, he would join us, and when we spoke of the Hereafter, he would join us. He would share our food. I transmit all of this from the Beloved Messenger of Allah.'