[ʿAbd Allāh:] Pada akhir solat-solat fardunya, ayah saya kerap berdoa, “Ya Allah, Engkau telah memelihara aku daripada sujud kepada sesiapa selain Engkau. Peliharalah aku juga daripada memohon sesuatu kepada sesiapa selain Engkau.” 60.1

[ʿAbd Allāh:] At the end of his ritual prayers, my father often used to say, “God, you have safeguarded me from prostrating myself before any but You. Safeguard me likewise from seeking anything from any but You.” 60.1

Akhirnya saya berkata, "Saya kerap mendengar anda mengatakan itu. Adakah anda mengikuti suatu precedent?" "Ya," jawabnya. "Wakīʿ ibn al-Jarrāh biasa mengatakannya dengan kerap, maka saya bertanya kepadanya tentangnya, sebagaimana anda bertanya kepada saya sekarang. Dia berkata bahawa dia mendengar Sufyān al-Thawrī mengatakannya, dan bahawa Sufyān, apabila dia bertanya kepadanya tentangnya, berkata bahawa dia mendengarnya daripada Manṣūr ibn al-Muʿtamir." [Al-Razzāz:] Pada suatu ketika ketika kami solat bersama Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, saya mendengar dia berkata, "Ya God, sesiapa yang telah mengikuti hawa nafsu atau ijtihad sendiri, dengan percaya bahawa dia benar padahal dia salah, kembalikanlah dia kepada kebenaran supaya tiada seorang pun daripada umat ini yang tersesat." 60.2

Finally I said, “I hear you saying that a lot. Are you following a precedent?” “Yes,” he answered. “Wakīʿ ibn al-Jarrāh used to say it often, so I asked him about it, just as you asked me now. He said that he heard Sufyān al-Thawrī say it and that Sufyān, when he asked him about it, said that he heard it from Manṣūr ibn al- Muʿtamir.” [Al-Razzāz:] Once when we were praying with Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, I heard him say, “God, if anyone has followed a caprice or an independent judgment, believing that he is right when he is mistaken, return him to the truth so that no member of this community goes astray. 60.2

"Ya Allah, janganlah Engkau membebani kami dengan rezeki yang Engkau jamin untuk kami, dan janganlah Engkau menjadikan kami bergantung kepada orang lain untuk rezeki yang datang daripada-Mu." Note: the rules require "God" to be written as the Malay word for God, not "Allah", so the correct rendering is: "Ya Tuhan, janganlah Engkau membebani kami dengan rezeki yang Engkau jamin untuk kami, dan janganlah Engkau menjadikan kami bergantung kepada orang lain untuk rezeki yang datang daripada-Mu."

“God, let us not trouble ourselves over the sustenance that You have undertaken to provide, nor make us dependent on others for that sustenance that comes from You.

"Semoga Engkau menganugerahkan kepada kami pencapaian terbaik daripada apa yang telah Engkau janjikan, tanpa kami terhalang oleh yang terburuk."

“Let us achieve the best of those things that You have promised without being deterred by the worst.

"Semoga Engkau tidak mendapati kami melakukan apa yang telah Engkau larang, dan tidak mendapati kami mengabaikan apa yang telah Engkau perintahkan."

“May You never see us doing what You have forbidden, nor find us shirking from what You have commanded.

"Muliakanlah kami dan jangan hinakan kami: muliakanlah kami dengan ketaatan kepada-Mu, dan jangan hinakan kami dengan kederhakaan terhadap-Mu." Pada suatu ketika seorang lelaki datang kepadanya dan bertanya sesuatu yang tidak dapat saya fahami.

“Ennoble us and do not abase us: ennoble us through obedience to You, and do not abase us through disobedience of You.” One time a man came to him and asked him something I couldn’t make out.

Aḥmad menjawab, "Bertahanlah selama mungkin; kemenangan itu ada pada kekuatan." Kemudian beliau menambahkan, "Nabi ﷺ bersabda, 'Kemenangan itu ada pada kekuatan, dan selepas kesusahan datang kelegaan. {Sesungguhnya bersama setiap kesukaran ada kemudahan; sesungguhnya bersama setiap kesukaran ada kemudahan.}'"310

Aḥmad answered, “Hold out as long as you can; in strength is victory.” Then he added, “The Prophet, God bless and keep him, said, ‘In strength is victory, and after suffering comes relief. «Surely with every hardship there is ease; surely with every hardship there is ease.»’”310

[Al-Ṣaffār:] Kami berada di rumah Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, dan saya memintanya untuk mendoakan kami. Dia berkata, "Ya Tuhan, Engkau mengetahui bahawa kami tahu bahawa Engkau mahukan bagi kami kebanyakan daripada apa yang kami cari untuk diri kami sendiri; jadikanlah kami mencari untuk diri kami hanya apa yang Engkau mahukan bagi kami." 60.3

[Al-Ṣaffār:] We were at Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal’s, and I asked him to pray for us. He said, “God, You know that we know that You desire for us most of what we seek for ourselves; make us rather seek for ourselves only what You desire for us.” 60.3

Dia terdiam. Kemudian seseorang berkata, “Berilah kami lagi.” “Ya Tuhan,” katanya, “kami memohon kepada-Mu, dengan kuasa yang Engkau sebutkan ketika Engkau berfirman kepada langit dan bumi, «Datanglah kamu dengan patuh atau terpaksa», lalu keduanya berkata, ‘Kami datang dengan patuh,’311 agar Engkau membimbing kami kepada apa yang Engkau redai. Kami memohon perlindungan-Mu dari segala keperluan selain keperluan kepada-Mu, dan dari segala tunduk selain tunduk kepada-Mu. Janganlah Engkau berikan kepada kami terlalu banyak sehingga kami menjadi sombong, dan janganlah terlalu sedikit sehingga kami menjadi lalai. Dengan rahmat-Mu, kurniakanlah kepada kami rezeki yang mencukupi kami, dan kurnia yang menjadikan kami tidak bergantung kepada sesiapa pun selain Engkau.” [Al-Khawātīmī:] Setelah Aḥmad Ibn Ḥanbal disebat dan kemudian dikeluarkan dari istana khalifah, saya pergi menziarahinya. Saya dapati beliau sedang berbaring tertiarap di rumah sambil berdoa. Saya terdengar beliau berkata, “Wahai Yang membalas kami atas apa yang Engkau lakukan,312 lakukanlah kepadaku apa sahaja yang menjadikan aku layak mendapat balasan-Mu.” 60.4

He fell silent. Then someone said, “Give us more.” “God,” he said, “we ask You, by that power You spoke of when You said to the heavens and the earth, «Come willingly or unwillingly, and they both said, ‘We come willingly,’»311 to guide us to what pleases You. We seek Your protection against all need except the need for You, and all subjection except to You. Give us not so much that we wax arrogant, nor so little that we become heedless. Grant us, in Your mercy, a sustenance that will suffice us, and a bounty that leaves us dependent on none but You.” [Al-Khawātīmī:] After Aḥmad Ibn Ḥanbal had been flogged and then sent out of the caliph’s palace, I went to visit him. I found him lying face down in the house, praying. I overheard him say, “O You who reward us for what You do,312 do to me whatever makes me deserving of Your reward.” 60.4

Saya mendengar bahawa al-Marrūdhī berkata: sekumpulan orang berkumpul di rumah Aḥmad dan memintanya berdoa. "Ya Tuhan," katanya, "janganlah Engkau menuntut daripada kami rasa syukur yang setara dengan nikmat-nikmat-Mu." Saya mendengar Muḥammad ibn Yaʿqūb al-Ṣaffār berkata: "Pada penghujung setiap solat, Aḥmad akan berkata, 'Ya Tuhan, aku memohon kepada-Mu agar Engkau melayani kami dengan rahmat-Mu sebagaimana tuntutan rahmat-Mu, dan mengampuni kami sebagaimana Engkau telah menetapkan untuk mengampuni. Aku memohon kepada-Mu agar Engkau membolehkan kami menuai ganjaran amal baik kami dan memelihara kami daripada kejahatan. Aku memohon kepada-Mu agar Engkau membolehkan kami memasuki Syurga dengan kemenangan dan terselamat daripada Neraka. Jika kami berdosa, ampunkanlah kami; jika kami dirisaukan, hilangkanlah kerisauan kami. Janganlah kami kekurangan apa-apa, tetapi berilah rezeki kepada kami.'" [Al-Warrāq:] Ketika kami berada di Tarsus, kami bertemu seseorang yang hendak meninggalkan kota itu, lalu kami meminta Aḥmad memberinya satu doa. Dia menyuruhnya membaca, "Wahai pemberi petunjuk kepada yang sesat! Tunjukkanlah aku jalan yang dilalui orang-orang yang benar, dan jadikanlah aku hamba yang soleh." 60.5

I heard that al-Marrūdhī said that a group had gathered at Aḥmad’s and asked him to pray. “God,” he said, “do not demand from us a gratitude equal to Your blessings.” I heard Muḥammad ibn Yaʿqūb al-Ṣaffār say, “At the the end of every prayer, Aḥmad would say, ‘God, I ask You to treat us as mercifully as Your mercy demands, and to forgive as as You have resolved to do. I ask You to let us reap the reward of our good deeds and to safeguard us from iniquity. I ask You to let us enter the Garden in triumph and to escape the Fire. If we sin, pardon us; if we worry, dispel our care. Let us want for nothing, but provide.’” [Al-Warrāq:] When we were in Tarsus we met someone who was leaving the city and asked Aḥmad to supply him with a prayer. He told him to say, “O guide to the errant! Lead me to the path where the truthful walk, and make of me a righteous servant.” 60.5

Lelaki itu pun pergi. Di tengah jalan, dia tertimpa kesulitan dan terpisah daripada rakan-rakannya. Dia mengucapkan doa yang telah diajarkan Aḥmad kepadanya, dan tidak lama kemudian dia berjaya menyusul rombongan itu. Kemudian dia datang kepada Aḥmad dan menceritakan apa yang telah berlaku.

The man left. On the road, he ran into some trouble and was separated from his companions. He uttered the prayer Aḥmad had taught him and shortly afterward caught up with the party. Later he came to Aḥmad and told him what had happened.

"Rahsiakanlah," kata Aḥmad.

“Keep it a secret,” said Aḥmad.

[Saʿd ibn Masʿadah:] Saya mendengar Ṭalḥah ibn ʿUbayd Allāh al-Baghdādī, yang tinggal di Mesir, meriwayatkan bahawa dia dan Aḥmad pernah belayar bersama dengan kapal. Aḥmad tidak bercakap kecuali untuk berkata, “Ya Allah, matikanlah aku sebagai seorang Muslim dan pengikut sunnah.” 60.6

[Saʿd ibn Masʿadah:] I heard Ṭalḥah ibn ʿUbayd Allāh al-Baghdādī, who lived in Egypt, report that he and Aḥmad happened to travel by ship together. Aḥmad did not speak except to say, “God, let me die a Muslim and a follower of the sunnah.” 60.6