[Abū Ḥafṣ al-Qāḍī:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal was once visited by a man from the Indian Ocean who said, “I come from the Indian Ocean. I was on my way to China when we were shipwrecked. Two men came riding toward me on a wave. One of them asked, ‘If you wish, God will save you, on condition that you greet Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal for us.’ 15.1

“‘Who’s Aḥmad?’ I asked. ‘And who on earth are you?’ “‘I’m Elijah, and this is the angel who watches over the islands in the sea. You’ll find Aḥmad in Iraq.’ “‘I agreed, and the sea spat me out onto the shore by Ubullah. So here I am with a greeting to you from the two of them.’”104