The Prophet ﷺ drew a square, then drew a line in the middle of the square, then drew several lines beside the line that was in the middle of the square, and drew a line extending outside the square. He asked, "Do you know what this is?"They replied, "Allah and His Messenger know best."He said, "This is the human being. The middle line is him, and these lines beside him are afflictions that bite at him from every direction. If one misses him, another strikes him. The square is the appointed term that surrounds him, and the line extending outside is his hope."
حدثنا يحيى عن سفيان حدثني أبي عن أبي يعلى عن ربيع بن خثيم
عن النبي ﷺ أنه خط خطا مربعا وخط خطا وسط الخط المربع وخطوطا إلى جنب الخط الذي وسط الخط المربع وخط خارج من الخط المربع قال هل تدرون ما هذا قالوا الله ورسوله أعلم قال هذا الإنسان الخط الأوسط وهذه الخطوط التي إلى جنبه الأعراض تنهشه من كل مكان إن أخطأه هذا أصابه هذا والخط المربع الأجل المحيط به والخط الخارج الأمل
Its isnad is sahih. Sufyan's father is Saeed bin Masruq Thawri, whose reliability was already established at 909. Abu Yaala is Mundhir bin Yaala Thawri, whose reliability was already established at 606. Rabee bin Khuthaym bin Aidh Thawri was among the senior Successors, trustworthy and among the wellsprings of truthfulness. Ibn Main said, "No one need be asked about someone like him." Bukhari gave his biography in Al-Kabir 246/1/2.Khuthaym is with a damma on the dotted kha and a fatha on the thaa with three dots. In Al-Khulasa it is vocalized with a fatha on the kha, with the yaa placed before the thaa, but this is an error to be guarded against.Bukhari narrated this hadith at 201:11–203, from Sadaqa bin Fadl, from Yahya Qattan. Ibn Majah narrated it at 2:289, from Abu Bishr bin Khalaf and Abu Bakr bin Khallad, both of them from Yahya. In Al-Dhakhair 4718 it was also attributed to Tirmidhi, but I did not find it where indicated.Al-Araadh, with the plain ayn, is the plural of irdh, with two fathas, meaning that from which benefit is drawn in this world, whether for good or for ill.