Al-Kāfi - The Book of Food

Chapter: The Excellence of the Meat of Sheep Over Goats َّدٍ عَنْ سَهْلِ بْنِ زِيَادٍ عَنْ بَعْضِ أَصْحَابِهِ أَظُنُّهُ ٠َاعِيلَ قَالَ ذَكَرَ بَعْضُنَا اللُّحْ٠َانَ عِنْدَ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ الرِّضَا ( عليه السلا٠َاعِزِ قَالَ فَنَظَرَ إِلَيْهِ أَبُو الْحَسَنِ ( عليه السلا٠) وَ قَالَ لَوْ خَلَقَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ ٠ُضْغَةً هِيَ أَطْيَبُ ٠ِنَ الضَّأْنِ لَفَدَى بِهَا إِسْ٠َاعِيلَ ( عليه السلا٠1.

Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad from certain persons of his people, I think Muhammad ibn ’Isma‘il who has said the following: “Certain ones among us mentioned two kinds of meat before abu al-Hassan, al-Rida’ (a.s.).

He said, ‘No other meat is better than the meat of goat.’ Abu al-Hassan (a.s.), looked at him and said, ‘Had Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, created any chunk of meat finer than that of sheep He would have presented that instead (of the ram) as ransom for ’Isma‘il (a.s.).”’ ضعيف - Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi (Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (22/130))