This alongside all the other articles on the stories of the prophets has been taken from Ṣaḥīḥ Qiṣaṣ al Anbiyāʾ (Authentic Stories of the Prophets) by Salim ibn ʿId al Hilali who revised Ibn Kathir’s (Qiṣas al Anbiyāʾ) Stories of the Prophets by removing weak, fabricated, repeated reports and unreliable Isra’ili reports, he only kept the Quran verses, sound hadiths and reports from the Salaf.

Summary

Discovery of his body and book in Tustar

When the Muslims conquered Tustar, Abu al Aliyah رضي الله عنه says they found in the treasury of al Hurmuzan a bed with a dead man on it and, at his head, a written book. The book was taken to Umar ibn al Khattab رضي الله عنه, who called Kaab رضي الله عنه to copy it into Arabic.

Abu al Aliyah was the first Arab to read it and said it contained their histories, their affairs, the tones of their speech, and what would occur in the future.

The people used to bring out his bier whenever rain was withheld and rain would then fall. Fearing fitnah, the Companions dug thirteen graves in the day, buried him in one at night, and levelled all of them so that the people could not find him.

His condition, description and possible status

Abu al Aliyah رضي الله عنه said they believed the man was Danyal عليه السلام, that three hundred years had passed since his death, and that nothing had changed of him except a few hairs at the back of his neck. He mentioned that the flesh of the prophets is not decayed by the earth and beasts do not eat it, and the chain to him is authentic.

Other reports say his nose was a span long, and from Anas ibn Malik رضي الله عنه an arm’s length, suggesting he may have been from the very early prophets. Because no prophet came between Isa عليه السلام and the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, some said the three hundred years figure would make him a righteous man rather than a prophet, while others suggested the true interval might be closer to eight hundred years and that he could indeed be Danyal, or another earlier prophet, and Allah knows best.

Saved from the lions and the ring of Danyal عليه السلام

Ibn Abi al Dunya reports with a Hasan chain that Abu Burdah رضي الله عنه wore a ring taken by Abu Musa رضي الله عنه from that same dead man, whom the townspeople claimed was Danyal. Its stone showed two lions with a man between them, and the lions were licking him.

The ulama of the town explained that their king had been warned a boy would be born who would destroy his kingdom, so he ordered that no male child born that night be spared and Danyal was thrown into a lions’ thicket.

The lion and its lioness only licked him and did not harm him, and his mother found him like that, so Allah saved him. Danyal عليه السلام then engraved on his ring his own image between the two lions licking him, so that he would never forget Allah’s blessing upon him in that trial.

Full Article

Mention of something from the story of Danyal عليه السلام

Abu al Aliyah (d. 90 AH) said, “When we conquered Tustar, we found in the treasury of the house of al Hurmuzan a bed, and on it there was a dead man, and at his head there was a written copy of a book. We took the written copy and carried it to Umar ibn al Khattab رضي الله عنه.

He called for Kaab (d. 32 AH) because of it, so he copied it into Arabic. I was the first man from the Arabs who read it. I read it just as I read this Qur’an.”

I said to Abu al Aliyah (d. 90 AH), “What was in it.”

He said, “Your histories, your affairs, the tones of your speech, and what will be in the future.”

I said, “So what did you do with the man.”

He said, “During the day we dug thirteen separate graves. When night came, we buried him and then levelled all the graves, so that we would confuse it for the people and they would not dig him up.”

I said, “What were they hoping to gain from him.”

He said, “Whenever the sky was held back from them and it did not rain, they would bring out his bier, and then it would rain upon them.”

I said, “Who did you think the man was.”

He said, “A man who was called Danyal عليه السلام.”

I said, “How long before you found him had he died.”

He said, “Three hundred years.”

I said, “Had anything changed of him.”

He said, “No, except a few hairs at the back of his neck. The flesh of the prophets is not decayed by the earth and the beasts of prey do not eat it.”

And this chain of transmission to Abu al Aliyah (d. 90 AH) is authentic.

However, if the date of his death is correctly preserved as three hundred years, then he is not a prophet, rather he is a righteous man, because between Isa ibn Maryam عليه السلام and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ there is no prophet, by the wording of the hadith which is in al Bukhari, and the interval that was between them was four hundred years, and it is said six hundred, and it is said six hundred and twenty years.

It may be that the date of his death was eight hundred years, and that is close to the time of Danyal, if his being Danyal agrees with what is in reality, for it may be that he was another man, either from the earlier prophets or from the righteous, but people’s thoughts came close to saying that he was Danyal, because Danyal had been taken by the king of Persia and he stayed with him as a prisoner.

It has been related with an authentic chain of transmission to Abu al Aliyah (d. 90 AH) that the length of his nose was a span, and from Anas ibn Malik رضي الله عنه, with a good chain of transmission, that the length of his nose was an arm’s length. On this basis it is possible that he was a man from the very early prophets before these periods. Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

Ibn Abi al Dunya (d. 281 AH) related from Abd al Rahman ibn Abi al Zinaad (d. 174 AH), from his father Abu al Zinaad (d. 130 AH), that he said, “I saw on the hand of Abu Burdah ibn Abi Musa al Ashari رضي الله عنه a ring whose stone was engraved with two lions, and between them there was a man, and they were licking that man.”

Abu Burdah رضي الله عنه said, “This is the ring of that dead man whom the people of this town claimed was Danyal. Abu Musa رضي الله عنه took it on the day he buried him.” Abu Burdah رضي الله عنه said, “Abu Musa رضي الله عنه asked the ulama of that village about the engraving of that ring.

They said, “The king in whose realm Danyal was, the astrologers and those who had knowledge came to him and said to him, “On such and such a night there will be born a boy who will bring your kingdom low and ruin it.”

The king said, “By Allah, not a single boy will remain alive that night without my killing him.” They seized Danyal and threw him into a thicket of lions.

The lion and its lioness were licking him and they did not harm him. His mother came and found them licking him, so Allah saved him by that until he grew to what he grew to.”

Abu Burdah رضي الله عنه said, “Abu Musa رضي الله عنه said, “The ulama of that village said that Danyal engraved his own image and the image of the two lions licking him on the stone of his ring, so that he would not forget the blessing of Allah upon him in that.” (Hasan chain of transmission)