Al-Marrūdhī: Aḥmad mencintai orang-orang miskin. Saya tidak pernah melihat orang miskin diperlakukan sebaik ketika mereka duduk di majelisnya. 51.1

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad loved the poor. I never saw poor men treated as well as they were when sitting in his company. 51.1

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad pernah menyebut seseorang yang miskin dan sakit, lalu berkata kepadaku, “Pergilah dan tanyakan kepadanya apa yang ia inginkan agar kami lakukan untuknya.” 51.2

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad once mentioned someone who was poor and ill, and told me, “Go and ask him what he wants us to do for him.” 51.2

Lalu dia memberiku sejenis wewangian dan berkata, "Oleskan ini kepadanya." [Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal pernah berkata, "Tidak ada yang mendatangkan kebaikan sebanyak kemiskinan—tidak ada! Ketika di sini tidak ada uang, aku bergembira." 51.3

Then he handed me some scent and said, “Put this on him.” [Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal once said, “Nothing does as much good as poverty—nothing! When there’s no money here I rejoice.” 51.3

Pernah saya menyebutkan seseorang yang sabar menanggung kemiskinan meskipun hidup dalam pakaian compang-camping.

I once mentioned someone who bore poverty steadfastly despite living in rags.

Setelah itu dia akan bertanya kepadaku tentang dia, dengan mengatakan, "Pergilah dan lihat bagaimana keadaannya! Alhamdulillah: tidak ada yang sebanding dengan menanggung kemiskinan, sama sekali tidak ada. Apakah kamu paham maksudnya?" Suatu kali dia berkata, "Sebagian orang diberi hal-hal duniawi untuk menguji mereka. Jauh lebih baik ketika dunia membiarkanmu sendiri!" Pernah aku menyebutkan bagaimana al-Fuḍayl dan Fatḥ al-Mawṣilī hidup dalam kemelaratan namun bertahan tanpa mengeluh. "Semoga Tuhan merahmati mereka," katanya, sementara matanya berkaca-kaca. "Mereka biasa berkata bahwa ketika orang-orang saleh disebut-sebut, rahmat Tuhan turun." Suatu hari dia berkata, "Ketika tidak ada uang di sini, aku senang." Belum selesai ia mengucapkannya, putra kecilnya datang meminta sesuatu. "Ayahmu tidak punya satu keping uang pun," jawabnya, "atau apa pun yang lain."

After that he would ask me about him, saying, “Go and see how he’s doing! God be praised: there’s nothing like bearing poverty—nothing like it at all. Do you understand what it means?” Once he said, “Some people have the things of this world given to them in order to test them. It’s much better when the world leaves you alone!” I once mentioned how al-Fuḍayl and Fatḥ al-Mawṣilī had lived in destitution but bore up without complaint. “God have mercy on them,” he said, as his eyes filled with tears. “They used to say that when the righteous are recalled, God’s grace descends.” One day he said, “When there’s no money here, I’m glad.” No sooner had he said it than his little son came to ask him for something. “Your father doesn’t have a single coin,” he replied, “or anything else.”