Kami memetik ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Abī l-Qāsim al-Karūkhī, yang memetik ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Anṣārī, yang memetik Abū Yaʿqūb al-Ḥāfiẓ, yang memetik Abū Bakr ibn Abī l-Faḍl al-Muʿaddal,² yang mempelajarinya daripada Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ṣarrām; dan³ kami memetik ʿAbd al-Malik, yang memetik ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad, yang memetik Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl al-Mihrawī,⁴ yang mempelajarinya daripada Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Yaʿqūb, notari-saksi Būshanj, yang mempelajarinya daripada Muḥammad ibn al-Ṭayyib ibn al-ʿAbbās, yang [bersama al-Ṣarrām] memetik Ibrāhīm ibn Isḥāq al-Ghasīlī sebagai berkata: 1.1

We cite ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Abī l-Qāsim al-Karūkhī, who cites ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Anṣārī, who cites Abū Yaʿqūb al-Ḥāfiẓ, who cites Abū Bakr ibn Abī l- Faḍl al-Muʿaddal,2 who learned it from Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ṣarrām; and3 we cite ʿAbd al-Malik, who cites ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad, who cites Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl al-Mihrawī,4 who learned it from Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Yaʿqūb, the notary-witness of Būshanj, who learned it from Muḥammad ibn al- Ṭayyib ibn al-ʿAbbās, who [along with al-Ṣarrām] cites Ibrāhīm ibn Isḥāq al-Ghasīlī as saying: 1.1

[Al-Ghasīlī:] Saya mendengar Ṣāliḥ, anak Aḥmad, berkata bahawa ayahnya—iaitu Aḥmad—dilahirkan pada bulan Rabīʿ I tahun 164 [November–Disember 780], setelah dibawa dalam kandungan ibunya keluar dari Marv.

[Al-Ghasīlī:] I heard Aḥmad’s son Ṣāliḥ say that he—meaning his father—was born in Rabīʿ I 164 [November–December 780], having left Marv5 carried in his mother’s womb.

[Aḥmad:] Saya dilahirkan pada Rabīʿ I 164. 1.2

[Aḥmad:] I was born in Rabīʿ I 164. 1.2

[Aḥmad:] Saya dilahirkan pada tahun 164. 1.3

[Aḥmad:] I was born in the year 164. 1.3

[Al-ʿIjlī:] Aḥmad bin Muḥammad bin Ḥanbal, yang digelar Abū ʿAbd Allāh (bapa kepada ʿAbd Allāh), ialah seorang yang berketurunan tulen dari kabilah Sadūs.6 Keluarganya pada mulanya menetap di Basrah dan kemudian di Khurasan,7 tetapi Aḥmad dilahirkan dan dibesarkan di Baghdad. Beliau seorang yang amanah dan boleh dipercayai sebagai perawi riwayat Hadis, dan mahir dalam menggunakannya sebagai sumber hukum. Beliau mencari riwayat-riwayat tentang kaum Muslimin terdahulu dan hidup mengikut teladan mereka. Beliau seorang yang baik dan mulia. 1.4

[Al-ʿIjlī:] Aḥmad son of Muḥammad son of Ḥanbal, called Abū ʿAbd Allāh (the father of ʿAbd Allāh), was a full-blooded member of the clan of Sadūs.6 The family had settled first in Basra and later in Khurasan,7 but Aḥmad was born and raised in Baghdad. He was trustworthy and reliable as a transmitter of Hadith reports, and was skilled in using them as a source of law. He sought out reports about the early Muslims and lived according to their example. He was a good and honorable man. 1.4

[Aḥmad:] Ibu saya sedang mengandungkan saya ketika beliau datang dari Khurasan.8 Saya dilahirkan pada tahun 164. 1.5

[Aḥmad:] My mother was pregnant with me when she came from Khurasan.8 I was born in 164. 1.5

Keluarga Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal berasal dari Basrah, tetapi kawasan tempat tinggal mereka ialah Marv. 1.6

[Abū Zurʿah:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal’s family came from Basra but their district of settlement was Marv. 1.6

[Ṣāliḥ:] Saya mendengar ayah saya berkata bahawa beliau dilahirkan pada tahun 164, pada awal tahun itu, dalam bulan Rabīʿ I. Beliau dibawa dari Marv ketika masih dalam kandungan ibunya. Ayahnya meninggal dunia ketika beliau berumur tiga puluh tahun, dan tugas menjaganya jatuh ke atas ibunya.

[Ṣāliḥ:] I heard my father say that he was born in 164, toward the beginning of the year, in Rabīʿ I. He was brought from Marv in his mother’s womb. His father died when he was thirty and the task of caring for him fell upon his mother.

[Pengarang:] Dengan maksud Ṣāliḥ ini, bapa Aḥmad meninggal dunia pada usia tiga puluh tahun, ketika Aḥmad masih kanak-kanak. Perkara ini jelas daripada riwayat berikut:

[The author:] By this Ṣāliḥ means that Aḥmad’s father died at the age of thirty, when Aḥmad was a child. So much is clear from the following report:

[Aḥmad:] Saya dibawa dari Khurasan ketika masih dalam kandungan, dan saya dilahirkan di sini, di Baghdad. Saya tidak pernah mengenali ayah saya mahupun datuk saya.

[Aḥmad:] I was brought from Khurasan as an unborn child, and I was born here in Baghdad. I never knew my father or my grandfather.

[Ibn Ḥātim:] Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ḥanbal berasal dari Marv. Dia meninggalkan Marv ketika masih dalam kandungan ibunya. Datuknya, Ḥanbal ibn Hilāl, pernah menjadi gabenor Sarakhs9 dan merupakan keturunan daripada orang-orang yang berjuang bersama Abbasiyyah semasa revolusi.10 1.7

[Ibn Ḥātim:] Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Ḥanbal was from Marv. He left Marv as a child in his mother’s womb. His grandfather, Ḥanbal ibn Hilāl, was governor of Sarakhs9 and a descendant of the men who fought for the Abbasids during the revolution.10 1.7

[Aḥmad:] Al-Ḥasan bin Yaḥyā, yang berasal dari Marv, meriwayatkan kepada saya bahawa beliau mendengar Aws bin ʿAbd Allāh bin Buraydah meriwayatkan bahawa saudaranya Sahl bin ʿAbd Allāh bin Buraydah meriwayatkan, dengan menyandarkan kepada bapanya, yang meriwayatkannya dengan menyandarkan kepada datuknya, Buraydah:

[Aḥmad:] Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā, who was from Marv, reported to me that he heard Aws ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Buraydah report that his brother Sahl ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Buraydah reported, citing his father, who reported it citing the grandfather, Buraydah:

“Saya mendengar Rasul, semoga Tuhan memberkati dan memeliharanya ﷺ, bersabda: ‘Selepas aku mati, akan diberangkatkan banyak ekspedisi. Sertailah ekspedisi yang dikirim ke Khurasan dan menetaplah di kota Marv. Kota itu dibina oleh Dhū l-Qarnayn, yang memohon kepada Tuhan agar memberkatinya, dan tiada bahaya menimpa penduduknya.’”11 1.8

“I heard the Emissary, God bless and keep him, say, ‘After I die many expeditions will be sent forth. Join the one sent to Khurasan and settle in the city of Marv. It was built by Dhū l-Qarnayn, who asked God to bless it, and no harm befalls its inhabitants.’”11 1.8