for me, and he did so throughout in a way that affirmed the doctrine. I then asked him about Allah’s words, “Thus We have inserted it into the hearts of the criminals” (al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:200). He answered, “It is polytheism that Allah has caused to lodge in their hearts.” (1)

Hammād ibn Zayd, on the authority of Khālid al-Ḥadhdhāʾ, said: A man asked al-Ḥasan about the verse, “They will not cease to differ, except those upon whom your Lord has mercy” (Hūd 11:118–119). He replied, “The people who receive His mercy do not differ, and for this very purpose He created them: He created these for His Garden and those for His Fire.

I then said, ‘Abū Saʿīd, was Adam created for Heaven or for the earth?’
He said, ‘He was created for the earth.’
I asked, ‘What if he had held fast and not eaten from the tree?’
He said, ‘He could not have avoided eating from it, because he was created for the earth.’

I further asked him about the verse, “You cannot overpower anyone, except the one who is destined for the Blaze” (al-Ṣāffāt 37:162–163). He said, ‘Yes; the devils mislead only the one whom Allah wills to consign to Hellfire.’ (2)

Abū Hilāl Muḥammad ibn Sulaym said: I entered upon al-Ḥasan on a Friday, and he had not attended the congregational prayer. I asked, ‘Abū Saʿīd, have you not prayed the Friday prayer?’ He said, ‘I intended to, but Allah’s decree prevented me.’ (3)

Manṣūr ibn Zādhān reported: We asked al-Ḥasan about the Qur’an, and he explained all of it in a manner that affirmed the doctrine.

Ḍamra ibn Rabīʿa, from Rajāʾ, from Ibn ʿAwn, from al-Ḥasan, said, ‘Whoever denies the divine decree has committed disbelief.’ (4)

Hammād ibn Zayd, from Ibn ʿAwn, said: When al-Ḥasan assumed the office of judge, he spoke to me