Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A person entered the mosque on a Friday through the gate facing Dar al-Qadā’ while the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) was standing delivering the sermon. The man stood in front of the Messenger and said: "O Messenger of Allah, the livestock are dying and the roads are cut off. So supplicate to Allah for rain." The Messenger (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) raised his hands and said: "O Allah, bless us with rain. O Allah, bless us with rain. O Allah, bless us with rain!" By Allah! There were no clouds in the sky and there was no house or building between us and Mount Sal‘. Then, all of a sudden, a big cloud like a shield appeared from behind it (the mountain) and when it arrived to the middle of the sky, it spread out and rained. By Allah! We could not see the sun for a week. Next Friday, a person entered through the same gate while the Messenger (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the sermon. The man stood in front of him and said: "O Messenger of Allah, the livestock are dying and the roads are cut off. So supplicate to Allah to withhold the rain." The Messenger (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) raised his hands and said: "O Allah, round about us and not on us. O Allah, on the plateaus, on the mountains, on the hills, in the valleys, and on the places where trees grow." The rain stopped, and we came out walking in the sunshine. Sharīk said: “I asked Anas whether it was the same person who had asked for rain the previous Friday, and he replied: ‘I do not know.’”
شرح الحديث :
While the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the Friday sermon, a man entered the mosque, stood in front of him, and called him to point out the hardship they were going through as the cattle were dying for lack of grass, the roads were blocked, and the camels they used for travel and to transport things had become lean due to the drought. He asked the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to supplicate to Allah, the Almighty, to end their distress. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) raised his hands and supplicated: “O Allah, send down rain.” He said it three times, as he usually did in a supplication and on important issues. Although there were no clouds in the sky, a small cloud suddenly appeared from behind the mountain, due to the Prophet's supplication. When it was positioned in the middle of the sky, it grew, spread, and rained for seven consecutive days. Interestingly, the next Friday as the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the sermon, a man came to complain about the ceaseless rain, as it was keeping the cattle in their stalls, unable to go grazing, until they were starving, and it was preventing people from seeking their livelihood. He asked the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to invoke Allah, the Almighty, to stop the rain. So he, once again, raised his hands and supplicated to Allah to make the rain fall around the city, not on it, so the people could go about their daily lives, unharmed, and their livestock could go to their pasture. And he implored Allah, the Almighty, to let the rain fall on the areas where it would be beneficial, such as the mountains, valleys, hills, and pastures. The rain came to a halt, and they left the mosque walking in sunshine.