Narrated to me Haitham bin Amr al-Muzni from his uncle from Yala Nassabah that he said:
“In the year the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) traveled to Damascus for business, Khalid bin Usaid bin Abil Ees and Taleeq bin Sufyan bin Umayyah were als o present in the caravan. Upon their return they reported strange things about the Prophet; like his manners, his mounts and the way the animals and birds submitted to his command. They said: When we reached the bazaar of Busra we saw a group of monks with yellow (pale) faces as if saffron had been rubbed upon them and their limbs were trembling. They came to us and said that their leader who lived in the great church nearby has called us. We said: What have we got to do with you? They said: What is the problem if you come to our temple? We have great respect for you. They knew that one of us was Muhammad. Thus we entered a very large and lofty church, where we saw their great wise man sitting among his disciples with a book in his hand. After looking in the book and scrutinizing us, he said to his people, “You have accomplished nothing; the object of our inquiry is not here.”
He then asked who we were, to which we replied that we were Quraish. Of what family of that tribe? He further demanded. We answered that we were of the Bani Abde Shams. He then demanded if there was no other person belonging to our party besides those present. We told him there was a youth of the Bani Hashim belonging to our company, who was called the orphan grandson of Abdul Muttalib. On hearing this he shrieked, nearly swooned away, sprang up and cried, Alas! Alas! The Christian religion is ruined! He then leaned on his crosier and fell into profound thought for a long time, with eight of his patriarchs and disciples standing around him. At last he said: Can you show me that youth? We answered in the affirmative. He then accompanied us to the bazaar, where we found the Prophet, with light beaming from the radiant moon of his face, and a great crowd of people around him, who had been attracted by his extraordinary beauty, and were buying his goods at the highest prices, while they sold their own to him at the cheapest rate. With the view of proving the knowledge of the wise man, we pointed out another individual as the object of his inquiry, but presently he recognized the Prophet himself, and shouted: By the truth of Christ, I have found him. And overpowered with emotion came and kissed his blessed head, saying: You are holy. He then asked Muhammad many things concerning himself, all of which he satisfactorily answered. The wise man affirmed that if he were to live in the time of Muhammad’s ministry, he would fight for him in the cause of truth, declaring: ‘Whoever obeyed him would gain everlasting life, and whoever rejected him would die eternal death. All the great benefits are with him.’ Then he kissed the Prophet’s head and went back to his place.”