It is narrated from Tawus that he said: A man came to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with them both) and asked him: From what was creation created? He replied: From water, light, darkness, wind and earth. The man asked: Then from what were these things created? He said: I do not know. Then that man went to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them both) and asked him the same question, and he too gave the same answer. Then the man came to Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) and asked: From what was creation created? He said: From water, light, darkness, wind and earth. The man asked: Then from what were these things created? So Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) recited this verse: "And He has subjected to you whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth, all of it from Him." [Surah al-Jathiyah: 13] At this the man said: No one could have informed us of this (point of knowledge) except a man from the household of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). This hadith is sahih (authentic) in its chain of narration, and the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.