#الأربعون_في_ذكر_الأربعين
18. Adam Grants 40 Years of His Own Life to Dawud
Narrated by Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
((لمَّا خلقَ اللهُ آدمَ مسحَ ظَهرَه فسقطَ من ظَهرِه كلُّ نسمةٍ هوَ خالقُها من ذرِّيَّتِه إلى يومِ القيامةِ وجعلَ بينَ عيني كلِّ إنسانٍ منهم وبيصًا من نورٍ، ثمَّ عرضَهم علَى آدمَ، فقالَ: أي ربِّ من هؤلاء؟ قالَ هؤلاءِ ذرِّيَّتُك. فرأى رجلًا منهم فأعجبَه وبيصُ ما بينَ عينيهِ، فقالَ: أي ربِّ من هذا؟ فقالَ هذا رجلٌ من آخرِ الأممِ من ذرِّيَّتِك يقالُ لَه داودُ. فقالَ ربِّ كم جعلتَ عمرَه؟ قالَ ستِّينَ سنةً، قالَ أي ربِّ زدهُ من عمري أربعينَ سنةً. فلمَّا قضيَ عمرُ آدمَ جاءَه ملَك الموتِ فقالَ أولم يبقَ من عمري أربعونَ سنةً؟ قالَ أولم تعطِها ابنَك داودَ؟ قالَ فجحدَ آدمُ فجحدت ذرِّيَّتُه، ونسِّيَ آدمُ فنسِّيت ذرِّيَّتُه، وخطئَ آدمُ فخطئت ذرِّيَّتُه)).
"When Allah created Adam, He wiped over his back, and every soul that He would create from his descendants until the Day of Judgment came out from his back. He placed a shining light between the eyes of each of them, then showed them to Adam. Adam said, “My Lord, who are these?” Allah said, “These are your descendants.” Adam saw one man among them and was impressed by the light between his eyes. He said, “My Lord, who is this?” Allah said, “This is a man from the last of the nations among your descendants. His name is Dawud.” Adam asked, “My Lord, how long will he live?” Allah said, “Sixty years.” Adam said, “My Lord, increase his life by forty years from my own life.” Then, when Adam’s life was about to end, the Angel of Death came to him. Adam said, “Are there not still forty years left of my life?” The angel said, “Did you not give them to your son Dawud?” Adam denied it, so his descendants also began to deny. Adam forgot, so his descendants also forget. Adam made a mistake, so his descendants also make mistakes."
[Reported by At-Tirmidhi (3076), and authenticated by Sheikh Albani]
Brief Commentary:
1. Allah Almighty created Adam (peace be upon him) with His own hand, honoured him, and commanded the angels to prostrate to him. He then created Hawwa from his rib, and from them both He brought forth all of humanity and their descendants.
2. "When Allah created Adam," meaning when He completed his creation and breathed the soul into him. "He wiped his back," meaning the back of Adam, "and from his back fell every soul that He would create from his descendants until the Day of Resurrection." It is said these were the forms and examples of his children in the unseen world. Each soul was brought forth in the form of tiny particles but in human shape. This was a real, physical event, not metaphorical.
3. "And between the eyes of each person among them," meaning on his forehead, "He placed a glimmer," meaning a shine or a spark, "of light," as a sign of the natural disposition (Al-fitrah) that every person is born with.
4. Adam was shown the souls of his descendants. He was particularly amazed by the bright light between the eyes of one soul. He was told this was Dawud, a prophet from a later nation. This does not necessarily me a Dawud is better than the rest of the prophets, because one who is less virtuous may still possess a distinction—or even multiple distinctions—not found in one who is more virtuous.
5. Allah had already written that Adam would live 1,000 years, so when he learned that Dawud would live only 60 years, he asked Allah to add 40 years of his own life to Dawud’s.
6. Later, when the Angel of Death came to take his soul, Adam denied giving those years away because he had forgotten the event that happened in the world of souls.
7. The text explains that because Adam forgot, his descendants also forget. Because Adam made a mistake, his descendants also make mistakes. This shows a connection between the father and his children.
