[Al-Būshanjī:] Pada suatu ketika semasa Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal sedang mendiktekan hadis kepada kami, seorang lelaki dari Marv bernama Abū Yaʿqūb bertanyakan kepadanya tentang sebuah hadis. Aḥmad menyuruh anaknya ʿAbd Allāh masuk ke dalam dan mengambil Kitab Mata-mata Berguna.155 ʿAbd Allāh membawa keluar kitab itu dan Aḥmad menyelaknya, tetapi dia tidak menjumpai riwayat yang dicarinya. Maka dia bangun, meninggalkan masjidnya dan masuk ke dalam rumah.156 Tidak lama kemudian, dia kembali dengan membawa seberkas kertas kuire, lalu duduk dan mula menyelaknya. Selepas beberapa ketika, lelaki yang bertanya itu berkata, "Sudahlah, Aḥmad! Ini terlalu menyusahkan." 26.1

[Al-Būshanjī:] Once when Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal was dictating for us, a man from Marv named Abū Yaʿqūb asked him about a Hadith. Aḥmad told his son ʿAbd Allāh to go inside and get the Book of Useful Points.155 ʿAbd Allāh brought it out and Aḥmad looked through it, but he couldn’t find the report he wanted. So he got up, left his mosque and went inside the house.156 A short time later, he came back carrying a stack of quires, sat down, and started looking through them. After a while, the man who had asked the question said, “Never mind, Aḥmad! This is too much trouble.” 26.1

"Tidak, bukan begitu," jawabnya. "Sayalah yang perlu tahu." Kami menyedari bahawa dia telah masuk ke dalam rumah dan memeriksa setiap kuire yang dia sangka mungkin mengandungi laporan itu, dan kemudian, kerana dia tidak mahu terus berada di dalam rumah mencari laporan itu, dia membawa keluar kertas-kertas tersebut supaya tidak kelihatan seolah-olah dia bersusah payah. Sukar untuk membayangkan contoh adab sopan yang lebih baik.

“No it isn’t,” he replied. “It’s me who needs to know.” We realized that he had gone into the house and looked at every quire where he thought the report might be, and then—because he didn’t want to stay inside looking for the report—he had brought the papers out so that it wouldn’t seem as if he were putting himself to a lot of trouble. It’s hard to imagine a better example of courtesy.

[Abū Ḥātim al-Rāzī:] Ketika saya pertama kali bertemu Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, pada tahun 213, saya melihat beliau keluar untuk solat fardu dengan membawa Kitab al-Īmān 157 dan Kitab al-Ashribah.158 Beliau selesai solat dan menunggu, tetapi tiada seorang pun yang bertanya kepadanya, lalu beliau membawa pulang kitab-kitab itu. Pada hari lain, saya melihat beliau mengeluarkan semula kitab-kitab itu. Saya mengandaikan bahawa sebab beliau membawa kitab-kitab tertentu itu ialah kerana Kitab al-Īmān menjadi asas agama, dan Kitab al-Ashribah pula berkenaan dengan menjauhkan manusia daripada perkara-perkara buruk, kerana mabuk ialah punca segala kejahatan.159 26.2

[Abū Ḥātim al-Rāzī:] When I first met Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, in 213, I saw him go out to the ritual prayer carrying the Book of Belief 157 and the Book of Drinks.158 He finished praying and waited, but no one asked him a question so he took the books back with him. Another day, I saw that he had taken them out again. I suspect that his reason for having those particular books with him was that the Book of Belief provides the basis of religion and the Book of Drinks is about turning people away from bad things—since drunkenness is the root of all evil.159 26.2

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad pernah dikunjungi oleh Abū l-ʿAlāʾ al-Khādim,160 seorang lelaki tua yang rendah hati, yang berjalan ke sana sini dengan lengan baju dan hujung seluarnya dilipat,161 kelihatan seperti seorang pembaca Al-Qur'an. Apabila dia tiba di pintu gerbang masjid, Aḥmad keluar untuk menyambutnya. 26.3

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad once had a visit from Abū l-ʿAlāʾ the Servant,160 who was a humble old man who went around with his sleeves and pant legs rolled up161 looking like a Qurʾan-reader. When he arrived at the gate of the mosque, Aḥmad came out to welcome him. 26.3

Kebetulan, terdapat juga seorang asing di dalam masjid itu: seorang lelaki yang berpakaian compang-camping dan membawa peralatan menulis. Ketika dia duduk, Aḥmad kebetulan menoleh ke sekeliling. Sebaik sahaja dia ternampak orang asing itu, dia berkata kepada Abū l-ʿAlāʾ, “Saya tidak mahu awak terperangkap di luar dalam panas,” lalu Abū l-ʿAlāʾ bangun dan keluar.

It so happened that there was also a stranger in the mosque: a man dressed in rags and carrying a writing kit. As he sat down, Aḥmad happened to look around. As soon as he noticed the stranger, he said to Abū l-ʿAlāʾ, “I wouldn’t want you to get caught outside in the heat,” and Abū l-ʿAlāʾ got up and left.

Kemudian Aḥmad mula memandang orang asing itu, menjangka dia akan bertanya sesuatu, tetapi lelaki itu tidak berkata apa-apa. Akhirnya Aḥmad bertanya, "Bolehkah saya membantu anda?" "Ajarkanlah kepada saya sebahagian daripada apa yang telah God ajarkan kepada kamu." Aḥmad bangun, masuk ke dalam, dan kembali dengan beberapa buah kitab. "Mari duduk di sini," katanya, lalu mula mendiktekan Hadith kepada lelaki itu, berhenti seketika untuk berkata, "Bacakan semula apa yang telah kamu tulis."

Then Aḥmad began looking over at the stranger expecting him to ask a question, but the man said nothing. Finally Aḥmad asked, “Can I help you?” “Teach me some of what God has taught you.” Aḥmad rose, went inside, and came back with some books. “Come over here,” he said, then began dictating Hadith to the man, stopping to say, “Read back what you’ve written down.”