Hadith al-Dabb li al-Turaythithi
- Author died
- 497 AH
- Editions
- Hadith al-Dabb li al-Turaythithi
Hadith al-Dabb (Arabic: حديث الضب, The Hadith of the Spiny-Tailed Lizard) is a short narrative tract transmitted by the traditionist Abu Bakr al-Turaythithi (d. 497 AH / 1104 CE) recounting an account of a desert lizard testifying to the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ .
Transmission and Chain
According to the surviving manuscript, the text was recited to Abu Bakr al-Turaythithi and confirmed by him in the final ten days of Rabiʿ al-Awwal 491 AH at the Ribat Mosque on the eastern side of Baghdad . Al-Turaythithi received it in Mecca through a reading to Karima al-Marwaziyya, who reported it from Abu Ali Zahir ibn Ahmad al-Faqih in Sarakhs . The transmission chain continues through Muʿadh ibn Yusuf al-Jurjani, Ahmad ibn Ghalib, Uthman ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn Numayr, Mujahid ibn Jabr, and concludes with the companion Abdullah ibn Abbas . A recorded scribal colophon dates the transcription of the manuscript to the final ten days of Jumada al-Akhira 555 AH .
Narrative
The work details an encounter between the Prophet ﷺ and a Bedouin from the tribe of Banu Sulaym who carried a spiny-tailed lizard (dabb) in his sleeve and refused to believe unless the animal testified to his prophethood . When thrown to the ground, the creature responded to the Prophet's call in fluent Arabic, acknowledged his lineage and divine mission, and recited verses of poetry in his praise, prompting the Bedouin to accept Islam .
The account further relates that the companions provided for the impoverished Bedouin: Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf donated a pregnant she-camel, Ali ibn Abi Talib bestowed his turban, and Salman al-Farsi sought provisions on his behalf . Salman approached Fatimah, who gave him her armor to pawn to a Jewish man named Shamʿun for dates and barley; witnessing her asceticism, Shamʿun converted to Islam . After Fatimah prayed for sustenance, a heavenly platter of food descended for the household . The Bedouin subsequently returned to Banu Sulaym, resulting in four thousand men embracing Islam .
Scholarly Evaluation
Hadith critics have categorized this narrative attributed to Ibn Abbas regarding the speaking lizard as a fabricated (mawduʿ) tradition .
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