I learned from him the arithmetic of the obligatory inheritance shares, but I feared being afflicted by his whisperings, for I do not know from whom he had acquired that knowledge.
He asked, “Do you know Ibn Ṣabūr?”
He replied, “Yes—but he was no jurist, and there was no good in him.”
He said, “Do you know Saʿṣaʿah ibn Ṣoḥān?”
He answered, “He was a gifted orator, but he was not a jurist.”
He asked, “Do you know Rushayd al-Hajari?”
Al-Shaʿbi said, “Yes. While I was standing among the Hajaris, a man said to me, ‘Shall I take you to a man of ours who loves the Commander of the Faithful?’
“I said, ‘Yes.’
“He brought me to Rushayd, who said, ‘I set out for the Hajj, and when I had completed my rites I thought, “I should renew my pledge to the Commander of the Faithful.”
“‘So I passed through Madinah and came to ʿAli’s door. I said to someone there, “Ask permission for me to enter upon the master of the Muslims.”
“‘He replied, “He is asleep,” thinking I meant al-Ḥasan.
“‘I said, “I do not mean al-Ḥasan; I mean the Commander of the Faithful, the leader of the God-fearing, the guide of the radiant, white-limbed ones.”
“‘He said, “Has he not died?”
“‘I wept and said, “By Allah, even now he breathes with the breath of the living and shifts beneath that heavy shroud.”
“‘He replied, “Since you know the secret of the Family of Muḥammad, go in and greet him.”
“‘I entered upon the Commander of the Faithful, greeted him, and he informed me of matters that would come to pass.’
“Al-Shaʿbi continued, ‘So I said to Rushayd, “If you are lying, may Allah curse you.” Then I left.’
“The story reached Ziyād, who cut off his tongue and crucified him. (1)
“Shabābah said: More than one person related this to me from Mujālid, from al-Shaʿbi.
“Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Khālid narrated from ʿĀmir, from ʿAlqamah, who said: ‘Some people went to extremes in their love for ʿAli just as the Christians went to extremes in their love for the Messiah.’
“And Khālid ibn Salamah transmitted from al-Shaʿbi that he said: ‘Love of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar, and recognizing their virtue, is part of the sunnah.’