I said to Abdul-Rahman bin Khunbush al-Tamimi, who was an old man, "Did you meet the Messenger of Allah ﷺ?"He said, "Yes."I asked, "What did the Messenger of Allah ﷺ do on the night the devils plotted against him?"He replied, "The devils descended upon the Messenger of Allah ﷺ that night from the valleys and mountain passes. Among them was a devil holding a torch of fire with which he intended to burn the face of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. So Jibreel came down to him and said, 'Muhammad, say something.'The Prophet asked, 'What shall I say?'Jibreel replied, 'Say, I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, formed, and brought forth, from the evil of what descends from the sky and what ascends into it, from the evil of the trials of the night and the day, and from the evil of every visitor at night, except a visitor who comes with good, Most Merciful One.'Their fire was extinguished, and Allah
defeated them."
قلت لعبد الرحمن بن خنبش التميمي-وكان كبيرا- أدركت رسول الله ﷺ؟ قال: نعم. قال: قلت: كيف صنع رسول الله ﷺ ليلة كادته الشياطين؟ فقال: إن الشياطين تحدرت تلك الليلة على رسول الله ﷺ من الأودية والشعاب، وفيهم شيطان، بيده شعلة نار يريد أن يحرق بها وجه رسول الله ﷺ، فهبط إليه جبريل عليه السلام، فقال: يا محمد قل. قال: ما أقول؟ قال: قل: أعوذ بكلمات الله التامة من شر ما خلق، وذرا، وبرا، ومن شر ما ينزل من السماء، ومن شر ما يعرج فيها، ومن شر فتن الليل والنهار، ومن شر كل طارق إلا طارقا يطرق بخير يا رحمن، قال: فطفئت نارهم، وهزمهم الله تبارك وتعالى.
Ahmad narrated it (15460) from Sayar bin Hatim Abu Salama Anazi, who said, "Jafar, meaning Ibn Sulayman, narrated to us," who said, "Abu Tayah narrated to us," and he related it.This isnad is hasan on account of Sayar bin Hatim, regarding whom there is disagreement, though Ibn Main and Ibn Hibban deemed him reliable, and also on account of his teacher Jafar bin Sulayman, regarding whom there is likewise disagreement, though Ibn Main and Ibn Madini also deemed him reliable, and he is among the narrators relied upon by Muslim.However, Ahmad also narrated it (15461) from Affan, "Jafar bin Sulayman narrated to us," "Abu Tayah narrated to us," who said, "A man asked Abdul-Rahman bin Khunbush how the Messenger of Allah ﷺ acted when the devils schemed against him..." and so on through the hadith.It may be that Abu Tayah was himself present when the question was asked, for at one point he phrased it by saying "I said," while at another he attributed the question to the man. Some scholars have criticized this second isnad on the grounds that it is mursal or disconnected.