[Ibn al-Ashʿath:] Saya tidak rasa pernah mendengar Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal menyebut tentang perkara-perkara dunia. 44.1

[Ibn al-Ashʿath:] I don’t think I ever heard Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal mention the things of this world. 44.1

[ʿUmar ibn Sulaymān:] Saya telah mengerjakan solat malam Ramadan bersama Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, yang diimamkan oleh Ibn ʿUmayr. Apabila dia mengerjakan solat malam tambahannya, dia menggenggam kedua-dua tangannya ke dada. Dia dan orang-orang lain di masjid itu berdoa dengan sangat perlahan sehingga saya tidak dapat mendengar apa-apa yang mereka ucapkan. Masjid itu tidak mempunyai lampu gantung,229 tikar, atau kemenyan230 — hanya sebuah lampu yang diletakkan di atas anak tangga. 44.2

[ʿUmar ibn Sulaymān:] I performed the Ramadan nighttime prayers with Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, led by Ibn ʿUmayr. When he performed his additional night prayer, he clasped his hands to his chest. He and the others at the mosque prayed so softly that I couldn’t hear anything they said. The mosque had no hanging lamps,229 mats, or incense230—only a lamp placed on the step. 44.2

[Al-Samarqandī:] Saya pernah bertanya kepada Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān tentang Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal. 44.3

[Al-Samarqandī:] I once asked Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān about Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal. 44.3

“Adakah dia seorang teladan?” “Sesungguhnya dia memang begitu, demi Tuhan: dia hidup dalam kemiskinan selama tujuh puluh tahun!” [Ṣāliḥ:] Pernah aku berkata kepada ayahku, “Aku mendengar bahawa Aḥmad al-Dawraqī menerima seribu dinar.” 44.4

“Is he an exemplar?” “Indeed he was, by God: he suffered poverty for seventy years!” [Ṣāliḥ:] I once said to my father, “I heard that Aḥmad al-Dawraqī got a thousand dinars.” 44.4

Dia menjawab: «Rezeki yang diberikan oleh Tuhanmu adalah lebih baik dan lebih kekal.»231

He replied: «The provision of your Lord is better and more lasting.»231

Saya juga menyebut Ibn Abī Shaybah, ʿAbd al-Aʿlā l-Narsī, dan perawi-perawi hadis yang lain yang pernah dibawa ke Samarra.

I also mentioned Ibn Abī Shaybah, ʿAbd al-Aʿlā l-Narsī, and the other Hadith-men who had been taken to Samarra.

“Tidak lama selepas itu,” katanya, “semua mereka mula berebut-rebut untuk pergi ke sana, tetapi tiada seorang pun daripada mereka memperoleh banyak daripadanya.” Pada kesempatan lain, apabila seseorang digambarkan sebagai berjaya, ayah saya berkata, “Anakku, kejayaan ialah berjaya pada akhirnya tanpa berhutang budi kepada sesiapa pun.” [Ibn Abī l-Qudūr:] Apabila harga-harga tinggi, Aḥmad akan datang kepada saya dengan kain tenunan yang akan dia sembunyikan pada tubuhnya dan menyuruh saya menjualkannya untuknya. Kadang-kadang saya mendapat satu dirham setengah daripadanya dan kadang-kadang dua dirham. Pada suatu hari dia tidak datang menemui saya. Keesokan harinya, saya berkata, “Aḥmad, di manakah kamu semalam?” 44.5

“It didn’t take long,” he said, “before all of them started climbing over each other to go there, but none of them got much out of it.” On another occasion, when someone was described as successful, my father said, “Son, success means being successful in the end without owing anything to anybody.” [Ibn Abī l-Qudūr:] When prices were high, Aḥmad would come to me with woven cloth which he would hide on his person and have me sell for him. Sometimes I would get a dirham and a half for it and sometimes two dirhams. One day he didn’t come to see me. The next day, I said, “Aḥmad, where were you yesterday?” 44.5

"Umm Ṣāliḥ sedang sakit." Dia memberi saya sehelai kain tenunan, yang saya jual dengan harga empat dirham. Apabila saya membawanya kepadanya, dia tidak menyukainya.

“Umm Ṣāliḥ was sick.” He gave me some woven cloth, which I sold for four dirhams. When I brought it to him, he didn’t like it.

"Awak tidak menambah sebarang wang anda sendiri, kan?" tanyanya.

“You didn’t add any of your own money, did you?” he asked.

“Tidak,” jawab saya. “Ia ditenun dengan halus.” [Ṣāliḥ:] Ayah saya berkata, “Ketika harga tinggi, ibumu biasa menenun kain halus. Dia akan menjual empat setengah mithqāl232 dengan harga kira-kira dua dirham, dan dengan itulah kita makan.” 44.6

“No,” I replied. “It was finely woven.” [Ṣāliḥ:] My father said, “When prices were high, your mother would weave fine cloth. She’d sell four and a half mithqāls232 for about two dirhams, and that’s how we’d eat.” 44.6

Ayah saya pernah masuk ke rumah saya selepas kami memasang siling baharu. Dia memanggil saya dan mendiktekan laporan berikut: "Kami mendengar Sulaymān ibn Ḥarb melaporkan bahawa dia mendengar Ḥammād ibn Salamah melaporkan, dengan menukil daripada Yūnus, daripada al-Ḥasan, bahawa al-Aḥnaf ibn Qays pulang dari suatu perjalanan dan mendapati bahawa mereka telah memasang bumbung baharu pada rumahnya serta mengecat sebahagian papan dengan warna merah dan hijau.233 Mereka menyuruhnya melihat, lalu dia berkata, 'Maaf, saya tidak perasan. Bagaimanapun, saya tidak boleh masuk selagi kamu tidak menukarnya.'" "Apabila saya membeli seorang hamba perempuan, isteri saya mengadu kepadanya tentang hal itu. Dia berkata, 'Saya sentiasa berusaha menjauhkan mereka daripada perkara-perkara dunia ini. Tetapi saya tidak pernah mendengar perkara yang sama tentang kamu.'" "Isteri saya berkata, 'Adakah sesiapa selain kamu yang membenci memiliki harta?'" "'Kalau begitu, uruskanlah dia sendiri,' jawabnya."234

My father once came into my house after we had put in a new ceiling. He called me over and dictated the following report: “We heard Sulaymān ibn Ḥarb report that he heard Ḥammād ibn Salamah report, citing Yūnus, citing al-Ḥasan, that al-Aḥnaf ibn Qays returned from a journey to find that they had put a new roof on his house and painted some of the planks red and green.233 They told him to look at it, and he said, ‘I’m sorry I didn’t notice. Anyway, I can’t come in until you change it.’ “When I bought a slave woman, my wife complained to him about it. He said, ‘I’ve always tried to keep them away from the things of this world. But I haven’t heard the same about you.’ “My wife said, ‘Is there anyone besides you who hates having money?’ “‘Deal with her yourself, then,’ he replied.234

"Kami sering membeli barang dan menyembunyikannya supaya dia tidak mengetahuinya dan menegur kami." [Al-Marrūdhī:] Ketika kami berada di Samarra, Aḥmad bin ʿĪsā l-Miṣrī dan sejumlah ahli hadis yang lain datang menemui Aḥmad. 44.7

“We often bought things and hid them so he wouldn’t find out about them and rebuke us.” [Al-Marrūdhī:] When we were in Samarra, Aḥmad ibn ʿĪsā l-Miṣrī and a number of other Hadith-men came to see Aḥmad. 44.7

“Mengapa kamu kelihatan begitu murung?” tanya al-Miṣrī. “Islam ialah agama yang benar, tanpa kekerasan atau paksaan, dan di dalamnya ada ruang untuk semua orang.” Aḥmad, yang sedang berbaring, hanya merenung mereka. Selepas mereka pergi, dia berkata, “Kamu nampak mereka tadi? Saya tidak mahu seorang pun daripada mereka datang ke sini lagi.”235

“Why do you look so upset?” asked al-Miṣrī. “Islam is the one true faith, without harshness or constraint, and there’s room in it for everyone.” Aḥmad, who was lying down, simply stared at them. After they had left, he said, “Did you see them? I don’t want any of them in here again.”235

[Al-Naysābūrī:] Aḥmad pernah berkata kepada saya, “Suatu pagi, datanglah awal dan kita akan membandingkan salinan kita bagi kitab Az-Zuhd.” 44.8

[Al-Naysābūrī:] Aḥmad once said to me, “Some morning, come by early and we’ll compare our copies of Renunciation.” 44.8

Jadi saya pergi menemuinya pada suatu pagi awal. Saya meminta ibu anaknya135 membawakan saya tikar dan bantal, lalu saya meletakkannya di ruang depan. Kemudian Aḥmad keluar dengan kitab dan tempat dakwatnya. Apabila dia melihat tikar dan bantal itu, dia berkata, "Apa ini?" "Untuk kamu duduk di atasnya," jawab saya.

So I went to see him early one morning. I asked his son’s mother236 to bring me a mat and a pillow, and I put them out in the anteroom. Then Aḥmad came out with the book and his inkpot. When he saw the mat and the pillow, he said, “What’s this?” “For you to sit on,” I said.

“Bawa pergi,” katanya. “Kita tidak dapat mempelajari zuhud tanpa melepaskan diri.” Lalu aku membawa barang-barang itu pergi, dan Aḥmad duduk di atas tanah.

“Take it away,” he said. “We can’t study renunciation without renouncing.” So I took the things away and Aḥmad sat down on the ground.

[Al-Sarī ibn Muḥammad:] Suatu hari cucu Aḥmad datang untuk membantunya berwuduk.237 Melihat datuknya meletakkan kain basah di atas kepalanya, dia bertanya sama ada datuknya demam. 44.9

[Al-Sarī ibn Muḥammad:] One day Aḥmad’s grandson came over to help him with his ablutions.237 Seeing that his grandfather had taken a wet rag and put it on his head, he asked him if he had a fever. 44.9

"Apa yang boleh menyebabkan saya demam?" jawabnya.238

“What would I get a fever from?” he replied.238

[Ibn Jabalah:] Saya berada di depan pintu rumah Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, yang terbuka sedikit, dan saya mendengar ibu anaknya239 berkata kepadanya, "Aku menderita bersamamu di sini, sedangkan di rumah Ṣāliḥ mereka punya makanan yang berlimpah," dan seterusnya. 44.10

[Ibn Jabalah:] I was at Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal’s front door, which was ajar, and I heard his son’s mother239 telling him, “Here I am suffering with you, but over at Ṣālīḥ’s house they’ve got plenty to eat,” and so on and so forth. 44.10

"Jangan bercakap buruk," katanya kepadanya berulang kali.

“Speak no ill,” he kept telling her.

Ketika dia keluar, anak kecilnya keluar bersamanya dan mula menangis.

When he came out, his little boy came out with him and began crying.

"Apa yang kamu mahu?" tanyanya kepadanya.

“What do you want?” he asked him.

"Kismis!" jerit budak itu.

“Raisins!” cried the boy.

"Pergilah beritahu penjual runcit itu," kata Aḥmad, "supaya dia memberi kamu sebiji habbah."240

“Go tell the grocer,” said Aḥmad, “to give you a ḥabbah’s worth.”240

[Hāniʾ:] Apabila beliau pulang dari Samarra, Aḥmad menyuruh saya pergi ke rumah mandi dan meminta pengendalinya mengosongkan tempat itu untuknya. Maka saya pergi dan bertanya, dan lelaki itu bersetuju. Saya kembali dan memberitahu Aḥmad, yang berkata, “Sudah lima puluh tahun saya tidak masuk rumah mandi.241 Saya juga tidak perlu pergi sekarang. Beritahu dia supaya buka semula.” Maka saya pun berbuat demikian. 44.11

[Hāniʾ:] When he returned from Samarra, Aḥmad told me to go to the bathhouse and ask the man who ran it to clear the place for him. So I went and asked, and the man agreed. I went back and told Aḥmad, who said, “It’s been fifty years since I’ve entered a bathhouse.241 I might as well not go now, either. Tell him to open it up again.” So I did. 44.11

[Ṣāliḥ:] Ayah saya biasa mencukur bulu badannya sendiri di rumah. Pada suatu hari musim sejuk dia berkata, "Selepas matahari terbenam saya mahu pergi ke tempat mandi, maka pergilah beritahu pemiliknya." 44.12

[Ṣāliḥ:] My father used to depilate himself at home. One winter day he said, “After sunset I want to go to the bathhouse, so go tell the owner.” 44.12

Tetapi selepas matahari terbenam, dia berkata, "Beritahu dia bahawa aku telah berubah fikiran," lalu dia mencukur bulu badannya di rumah.

But after sunset, he said, “Let him know I’ve changed my mind,” and depilated himself at home.

[ʿAbd Allāh:] Pada suatu hari ketika saya sedang duduk bersama ayah saya, beliau memandang kaki saya yang licin dan tidak mempunyai retak pada telapaknya. 44.13

[ʿAbd Allāh:] One day when I was sitting with my father he looked at my feet, which were smooth and had no cracks on the soles. 44.13

“Tengok kaki tu!” katanya. “Kenapa kau tak berjalan tanpa kasut dan kuatkan sikit kaki tu?” [Al-Marrūdhī:] Saya mendengar Aḥmad berkata kepada Shujāʿ ibn Makhlad al-ʿAṭṭār, “Apa bezanya apa yang saya makan atau apa yang saya pakai? Semuanya akan berakhir juga tak lama lagi.” 44.14

“Look at those feet!” he said. “Why don’t you walk barefoot and toughen them up?”[ Al-Marrūdhī:] I heard Aḥmad say to Shujāʿ ibn Makhlad al-ʿAṭṭār, “What difference does it make what I eat or what I wear? It will all be over soon enough.” 44.14

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Saya mendengar Aḥmad berkata, "Hari-hari yang paling menggembirakan bagi saya ialah apabila saya bangun pada pagi hari dan tiada apa-apa di dalam rumah." 44.15

[Al-Marrūdhī:] I heard Aḥmad say, “My happiest days are when I wake up with nothing in the house.” 44.15