Ahmad ibn Zuhayr reported to us; Khalaf ibn al-Walid reported to us; Israel reported, on the authority of Abu Ishaq, who said:
“My father said to me, ‘Get up and look at the Commander of the Believers.’
“So there he was on the pulpit—an elderly man with a white head and beard, balding, stout-bellied and of medium height. He wore only a waist-wrap and a cloak, no tunic, and he did not raise his hands.
“A man asked, ‘O Abu Ishaq, should I recite the qunūt?’
“He replied, ‘No.’

Mahmud narrated to us; Yahya ibn Adam narrated to us; Abu Bakr narrated:
“I heard Abu Ishaq say, ‘ʿAbd al-Malik—meaning Ibn ʿUmayr—claims that I am three years older than he is.’

Shurayḥ told me; Sufyan narrated to us, from Abu Ishaq: “I heard Ṣilah ibn Zufar seventy years ago.” The compiler comments: This shows that he was seeking knowledge during the lifetimes of ʿAʾishah and Abu Hurayrah.

Ibn ʿUyaynah said: “I entered upon Abu Ishaq and found him in a Turkish pavilion with a small mosque at its entrance; he was sitting inside the mosque. I asked, ‘How are you?’ He said, ‘Like a man struck by paralysis—neither hand nor foot does me any good.’

“I asked, ‘Did you ever hear (hadith) from al-Harith?’
“His son Yusuf answered me, ‘He actually saw ʿAli—may Allah be pleased with him—so how could he not have heard from al-Harith?’
“I then asked, ‘O Abu Ishaq, did you really see ʿAli?’ He replied, ‘Yes.’

Sufyan said: “Al-Shaʿbi and Abu Ishaq once met. Al-Shaʿbi said to him, ‘You are better than I, O Abu Ishaq.’ He replied, ‘No, by Allah, you are better than I, and older than I.’

Sufyan also related that Abu Ishaq used to say, ‘They regarded ample worldly means as an aid to practicing the religion.’

With the same chain, Ahmad ibn ʿImran al-Akhnasi reported to us; Abu Bakr ibn ʿAyyash reported:
“I heard Abu Ishaq say, ‘My eyes have not enjoyed the least sleep for forty years.’

Ahmad ibn ʿImran narrated to us; Ibn Fudayl narrated to us; his father narrated:
“I visited Abu Ishaq after he had lost his sight. I said, ‘Do you recognize me?’
“He asked, ‘Fudayl?’
“I said, ‘Yes.’
“He said, ‘By Allah, I love you. Were it not for the modesty I feel toward you, I would kiss you.’ Then he drew me to his chest, and