On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said: "You will eagerly seek positions of authority, and it will be a source of regret and remorse on the Day of Resurrection. What an excellent wet nurse it is, and what an evil weaning mother it is."(1)

End of the Book of Allegiance(2)

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(1) Its chain of transmission is authentic. Ibn al-Mubarak is 'Abdullah, Ibn Abi Dhi'b is Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Rahman, and Sa'id al-Maqburi is the son of Abi Sa'id Kaysan. It appears in "Al-Sunan al-Kubra" under numbers (5896), (7788), and (8694).

Ibn Hibban also narrated it (4482) via the chain of 'Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak, with this chain of transmission.

Ahmad narrated it (9791) and (10162), and al-Bukhari (7148) via multiple paths from Ibn Abi Dhi'b, with it.

Al-Bukhari also narrated it as a suspended commentary immediately following hadith (7148), and the author in "Al-Kubra" (5897) via the path of 'Abd al-Hamid ibn Ja'far, from Sa'id al-Maqburi, from 'Umar ibn al-Hakam ibn Thawban, from Abu Hurayrah as a stopped narration (mawquf).

Al-Hafiz said in "Al-Fath" 13/135: Ibn Abi Dhi'b is more precise than 'Abd al-Hamid and more knowledgeable about the hadith of al-Maqburi than him, so his narration is the one relied upon. Al-Bukhari followed it with the path of 'Abd al-Hamid as an indication of the possibility of validating both statements. Perhaps Sa'id had it from 'Umar ibn al-Hakam from Abu Hurayrah as a stopped narration, according to what 'Abd al-Hamid narrated, and he also had it from Abu Hurayrah without an intermediary as a raised narration (marfu'), since each of the two narrators from Sa'id had an addition. The narration of stopping does not contradict the narration of raising, because a narrator may be active and thus attribute it to the Prophet, or may not be active and thus stop it.

It will be repeated with its chain of transmission and text under number (5385).

Al-Sindi said: His statement "and it will be" — meaning after death — "a source of regret." "What an excellent wet nurse" — meaning the state that leads to authority, which is life. "And what an evil weaning mother" — the state that cuts one off from authority, which is death. That is: what an excellent life they have, and what an evil death they have. And Allah knows best.

(2) This phrase is not in (M).