[Al-Būshanjī:] Al-Muʿtaṣim returned to Baghdad from the Byzantine front in Ramadan of ’18. It was then that he tried Aḥmad and had him flogged before him. A trustworthy associate of mine reported to me what he was told by Ibrāhīm ibn Muṣ‘ab, who at that time was standing in for Isḥāq ibn Ibrāhīm as al-Mu‘taṣim’s chief of police: “I’ve never seen anyone brought face to face with kings and princes show as little fear as Aḥmad did that day. To him we were nothing but a cloud of flies.”
“I saw people who are negligent in paying their debts and who bequeath, ‘When I die, bury me in the tomb of Ahmad.’ Did they not hear the Messenger ﷺ refrained from praying (the funeral) upon those who died without settling their debts and those who unlawfully took from war booty, saying, ‘My prayer will … Continue reading The Tyrant’s Assistant is a Tyrant as well
“We have seen many scholars who had a bad ending because of their proximity and mixing with rulers. They were after comfort but did not achieve it properly, because the sadness of the heart never goes away with money or food... If we compare the difference between Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal’s refraining from rulers, and … Continue reading Ibn al-Jawzi on Forbidding from Accompanying the Rulers
It is from the Devil’s deception of scholars to make them intermingle with rulers and sultans. They look away from their faults and never admonish them in spite of their ability to do so. Some of them might even give fatwas allowing them to do things just for worldly gain. Three aspects of harm are … Continue reading Ibn al-Jawzi on the Devil’s Deception of Scholars who Get Close to Rulers
The Caliphate 