Narrated Jabir bin `Abdullah:While Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) was talking about the period of pause in revelation. he said in his narration. "Once while I was walking, all of a sudden I heard a voice from the sky. I looked up and saw to my surprise, the same Angel as had visited me in the cave of Hira.' He was sitting on a chair between the sky and the earth. I got afraid of him and came back home and said, Wrap me! Wrap me!" So they covered him and then Allah revealed: 'O you, wrapped up! Arise and warn and your Lord magnify, and your garments purify and dessert the idols.' (74.1-5) Abu Salama said, "(Rijz) are the idols which the people of the Pre-lslamic period used to worship." After this the revelation started coming frequently and regularly.
قَالَ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ شِهَابٍ فَأَخْبَرَنِي أَبُو سَلَمَةَ، أَنَّ جَابِرَ بْنَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الأَنْصَارِيِّ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَهْوَ يُحَدِّثُ عَنْ فَتْرَةِ الْوَحْىِ قَالَ فِي حَدِيثِهِ " بَيْنَا أَنَا أَمْشِي سَمِعْتُ صَوْتًا مِنَ السَّمَاءِ فَرَفَعْتُ بَصَرِي، فَإِذَا الْمَلَكُ الَّذِي جَاءَنِي بِحِرَاءٍ جَالِسٌ عَلَى كُرْسِيٍّ بَيْنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالأَرْضِ فَفَرِقْتُ مِنْهُ فَرَجَعْتُ فَقُلْتُ زَمِّلُونِي زَمِّلُونِي ". فَدَثَّرُوهُ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى {يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُدَّثِّرُ * قُمْ فَأَنْذِرْ * وَرَبَّكَ فَكَبِّرْ * وَثِيَابَكَ فَطَهِّرْ * وَالرِّجْزَ فَاهْجُرْ}. قَالَ أَبُو سَلَمَةَ وَهْىَ الأَوْثَانُ الَّتِي كَانَ أَهْلُ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ يَعْبُدُونَ. قَالَ ثُمَّ تَتَابَعَ الْوَحْىُ.
Bukhari
Prophetic Commentary on the Qur'an (Tafseer of the Prophet (pbuh)) • Hadith 476