so I went to him and reached Basra under a pledge of safety (1), but he soon fell ill and died.

Abu Nuʿaym said: al-Ṭabarānī narrated to us; ʿAbd Allah ibn Aḥmad narrated to us; ʿAmr ibn ʿAlī narrated to me; I heard Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd say:

Sufyān dictated his letter to al-Mahdī for me to write. He said, “Write: ‘From Sufyān ibn Saʿīd to Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allah.’”

I said, “If you write that, he will not read it.”

He replied, “Write it however you wish.”

So I wrote it, and then he said, “Write: ‘I praise before you Allah—there is no god but He—and He alone is worthy of all praise, and He has power over everything.’”

I asked, “Who used to write this opening line?”

He said, “Mansūr narrated to me from Ibrāhīm that he used to write it.”

And Ibrāhīm al-Farrāʾ related that Sufyān wrote to al-Mahdī with ʿIṣām Jabr (2):

“You have banished me, dispersed me, and frightened me; Allah will decide between you and me. I hope Allah will grant me something better before this letter returns.”

The letter returned, but he had already died.

Ishāq al-Asadī informed us; Ibn Khalīl informed us; Abū al-Makārim al-Taymī informed us; Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥaddād informed us; Abū Nuʿaym informed us; Ibn Ḥayyān narrated to us; al-Ḥasan ibn Hārūn narrated to us; al-Ḥasan ibn Shādhān al-Naysābūrī narrated to us; Muḥammad ibn Masʿūd narrated to me, from Sufyān, who said:

“I was ushered in to al-Mahdī at Minā, and I greeted him with the salutation due to the ruler.

He said, ‘Man! We looked for you but you eluded us. Praise be to Allah who has brought you. Present your need.’

I replied, ‘You have filled the earth with injustice and oppression. Fear Allah, and let this be a lesson for you (3).’

He lowered his head, then said, ‘What if I cannot remove it?’ I said, ‘Then leave it…’