Lesson on "Al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib," the Book of Encouraging the Life of the Salaf, Explanation of the Hadith of Anas: Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said

The Shaykh: As for what follows:
Indeed, the best of speech is the speech of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the worst of matters are their innovations, and every innovation is a religious innovation, and every religious innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire. And after that:
We return, after our previous pause, to our book "Al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib" by al-Hafiz al-Mundhiri, and we are on the condition that we have mentioned for a long time and reminded you of repeatedly; which is that we do not hear from you from the hadiths of this book except what is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) according to the method of the scholars of hadith regarding the establishment of the chain and the reliability of the narrators and men.
And our last lesson reached the twenty-ninth hadith of the Book of Encouraging the Life of the Salaf, the twenty-ninth according to my copy, which is the Muniriyyah edition, and the author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: And it was narrated from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
The point of this hadith that is appropriate for this chapter in which we are is only its second part; namely his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): ; meaning: except for something of dry bread and barley, as you have learned from the previous hadiths. And this hadith, whether by its second part or its first, is an allusion, indeed a clear proof of the severity of what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was tested with in the path of his call to the truth, the call of tawhid (the oneness of Allah), for which he struggled against the polytheists for more than twenty years, and he encountered in that path the hardships, difficulties, and hunger. And this is what he describes himself with (peace and blessings be upon him) by saying that he was afflicted with an affliction that no one was afflicted like his, and he was made to fear (also) with a fear that no one else was made to fear like him (peace and blessings be upon him). And he also encountered hunger that is hardly conceivable; indeed, thirty days passed for him (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him), by night and day, and he did not find any food except what Bilal, his servant and caller to prayer, carried under his armpit. And this is an allusion that this thing which he carries as food is a small amount; because what can a person carry under his armpit for this long period except pieces of bread or dates from the dates of that land.
So we must take from this hadith and from similar hadiths that have come before and others that will come, a model for us from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so we are patient in the path of the call, we do not seek out hardship, fatigue, and difficulty; because that is not a matter desired in the Shari'ah. But it is upon us that if we are struck in the path of our call with some of that fatigue and hardship, we be patient with hunger, thirst, and affliction. And the matter is as He (the Exalted) said: . The model from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is not limited to following his prayer, his fasting, and his other acts of worship only; rather, the model from him (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him) includes all aspects of life, the model from him in his worship together, but also in his character, and also in his patience and his bearing of hardships in the path of his call; all of this is what we must take our Prophet (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him) as a good model for us.
This hadith is valid, and al-Hafiz the author says: It was narrated by al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Hibban in his "Sahih," and al-Tirmidhi said: It is a good, valid hadith. The author said: And the meaning of this hadith is that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) fled from Makkah with Bilal, the only food Bilal had was what he carried under his armpit.