[Ṣāliḥ:] Lokacin da Muḥammad ɗan ʿAbd Allah ɗan Ṭāhir ya zo Baghdad, ya aika wa mahaifina saƙo yana cewa, "Ina so ka zo ka gan ni. Ka faɗa mini ranar da ka fi so, zan tabbatar babu wani a nan." 74.1

[Ṣāliḥ:] When Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṭāhir came to Baghdad, he sent a message to my father saying, “I’d like you to come and see me. Tell me the day you prefer and I’ll make sure there’s no one else here.” 74.1

Mahaifina ya amsa da cewa, "Ni mutum ne wanda bai taɓa yin zamantakewa da sarakuna ba. Bugu da ƙari, Shugaban Muminai ya keɓe ni daga yin duk abin da na ƙi. Wannan abu ne da na ƙi." Muḥammad ya yi ƙoƙari ya sauya ra'ayinsa, amma bai yi nasara ba.

My father replied, “I am a man who has never consorted with rulers. Furthermore, the Commander of the Faithful has exempted me from doing anything I detest. This I detest.” Muḥammad strove to change his mind but to no avail.

Daga nan na samu wata wasika daga Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh yana cewa:

I then received a letter from Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh saying:

Na je wurin Ṭāhir ibn ʿAbd Allāh, sai ya gaya mini cewa Muḥammad ﷺ ya gayyaci Aḥmad ya zo wurinsa, amma Aḥmad ya ƙi.

I went to see Ṭāhir ibn ʿAbd Allāh and he told me that Muḥammad had invited Aḥmad to call on him but Aḥmad had refused.

"Allah ya gyara sarki!" Aḥmad ya yi alkawarin ba zai ƙara koyar da Hadisi ba har abada. Wait, the rules say never write "Allah" and to write "God" as the Hausa word for God. The Hausa word for God is "Ubangiji" in this context, so correcting that: "Ubangiji ya gyara sarki!" Aḥmad ya yi alkawarin ba zai ƙara koyar da Hadisi ba har abada.

I said, “May God correct the emir! Aḥmad has vowed never to teach Hadith again.

Watakila yana tsoron cewa idan ya je, zai nemi ya koya masa.” Ya tambaya, “Kana nufin haka da gaske?” Na ce, “Eh, da gaske nake.” Na faɗa wa mahaifina game da wannan, amma bai ce komai ba.

Perhaps he was afraid that if he went, he would ask him to teach.” He asked, “Are you serious?” I said, “I am.” I told my father about this but he said nothing.

Ina tsammanin Aḥmad ya ƙi ziyartar Ibn Ṭāhir ne saboda shi sarki ne. Amma yana ziyartar mutane matuƙar dai sun kasance mutanen taƙawa da ilimi.

[The author:] I think Aḥmad refused to visit Ibn Ṭāhir because he was a ruler. He did visit people so long as they were men of piety and learning.

[ʿAbd Allāh:] Bayan da aka saki mahaifina daga hannun Inquisition, ya damu da cewa Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh zai zo ya gan shi, don haka ya yanke shawarar zuwa ganinsa da farko. Bai daɗe ba da isa Rey ya shiga masallaci, sai gajimare ya buɗe kamar buhunan ruwa. Ya samu mafaka a can har dare ya yi, aka umarce shi da ya fita daga masallacin saboda suna son rufe shi. 74.2

[ʿAbd Allāh:] After my father was released by the Inquisition, he was worried that Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh would come to see him so he decided to go see him first. No sooner had he reached Rey and gone into a mosque when the clouds opened like waterskins. He sheltered there until night fell and he was told to leave the mosque because they wanted to close it. 74.2

"Wannan gida ne na Allah," ya ce, "kuma ni bawan Allah ne." "Ko dai ka tafi," suka ce, "ko kuma mu ja ka da ƙafafunka. Zabinka ne." Mahaifina ya ci gaba da labarin:

“This is a house of God,” he said, “and I’m a worshipper of God.” “Either leave,” they said, “or we’ll drag you out by the feet. Your choice.” My father continued the story:

"Sai an jima," na ce, sannan na fita cikin tsawa da walƙiya ba tare da sanin inda zan je ba. Sai wani mutum ya fito daga gidansa ya ce, "Kai, ina zaka je a irin wannan lokaci?" "Ba ni da inda zan je," na ce.

“Good-bye,”451 I said, and went out into the thunderstorm with no idea where to go. Then a man came out of his house and said, “You there! Where are you going at a time like this?” “I have nowhere to go,” I said.

"Shigo ciki," ya ce.

“Come in,” he said.

Ya shigar da ni, ya umarce ni in cire tufafina, sannan ya ba ni busassun kaya in sa. Na yi alwala, sannan na shiga wani daki inda akwai wuta mai cike da garwashi, da katifar ji a kasa, da kuma teburin abinci cike da abinci. Mambobin iyalin suka gayyace ni in shiga tare da su. Bayan mun ci abinci, mutumin ya ce, "Daga ina kake?" Na gaya musu cewa ni daga Baghdad nake.

He brought me in, had me undress, and gave me dry clothes to change into. I performed my ablutions and then went into a room where there was a heater full of coals, a blanket of felt on the floor, and a laden table. The members of the family invited me to join them. After we ate, the man said, “Where are you from?” I told them I was from Baghdad.

"Ka san wani mutum mai suna Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal?" "Ni ne Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal." "To," in ji mutumin, "ni kuma Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh ne."452

“Do you know a man named Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal?” “I’m Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal.” “Well,” said the man, “I’m Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh.”452