Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (8/174)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

19 – Riyāḥ ibn ʿAmr al-Qaysī, Abū al-Muhāṣir
A devoted worshipper, Basran, ascetic, God-fearing, and highly esteemed.

He heard (hadith) from Mālik ibn Dīnār, Ḥassān ibn Abī Sinān, and others.

Although he narrated only a few reports, he was marked by profound awe of God and constant self-vigilance.

Those who transmitted from him include Sayyār ibn Ḥātim, ʿAlī ibn al-Ḥasan ibn Abī Maryam, and others.

Abū Bakr ibn Abī al-Dunyā said: ʿAlī ibn Abī Maryam narrated to us, saying:
“Riyāḥ al-Qaysī said, ‘I have a little over forty sins, and for each sin I have sought forgiveness one hundred thousand times.’ ”

Abū Maʿmar al-Muqʿad related: Rābiʿa once saw Riyāḥ holding one of his young relatives, embracing and kissing him. She asked, “Do you love him?” He replied, “Yes.” She said, “I never imagined there was any empty space in your heart to love anyone other than Him—blessed be His Name.” Riyāḥ fainted; when he regained consciousness he said, “It is a mercy from Him—Exalted is He—that He has placed in His servants’ hearts for children. (1)”

Sayyār reported: Riyāḥ ibn ʿAmr narrated to us, “I heard Mālik ibn Dīnār say: ‘A servant does not reach the rank of the ṣiddīqīn (the truly sincere) until he leaves his wife as though she were a widow and seeks shelter among the refuse heaps of dogs.’ (2)"

(*) Hilyat al-Awliya, vol. 6, pp. 192-197; Mizan al-Iʿtidal, vol. 2, pp. 61-62; al-Tabaqat al-Kubra by al-Shaʿrani, p. 40; al-Kawakib al-Durriya by al-Manawi, p. 105. Further reports concerning him together with Rabiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya can be found in the sources listed at the beginning of her biography. (1) Hilyat al-Awliya, vol. 6, p. 194. (2) The rank of the siddiquin (the most truthful saints) is not attained through this foreign form of asceticism that contradicts what is authentically reported from the Prophet, as in his sayings: “The best of you are those who are best to their families, and I am the best of you to my family”; “The believers most perfect in faith are those with the finest character, and the best of you are the best to their wives”; “Treat women well, for they are like captives in your care”; “Part of your duty toward them is to be generous in their clothing and food”; and “Everything in which Allah is not remembered is mere frivolity.”

١٩ - رِيَاحُ بنُ عَمْرٍو القَيْسِيُّ أَبُو المُهَاصِرِ * العَابِدُ، أَبُو المُهَاصِرِ، بَصْرِيٌّ، زَاهِدٌ، مُتَأَلِّهٌ، كَبِيْرُ القَدْرِ. سَمِعَ: مَالِكَ بنَ دِيْنَارٍ، وَحَسَّانَ بنَ أَبِي سِنَانٍ، وَطَائِفَةً. وَهُوَ قَلِيْلُ الحَدِيْثِ، كَثِيْرُ الخَشْيَةِ وَالمُرَاقَبَةِ. رَوَى عَنْهُ: سَيَّارُ بنُ حَاتِمٍ، وَعَلِيُّ بنُ الحَسَنِ بنِ أَبِي مَرْيَمَ، وَغَيْرُهُمَا. قَالَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ بنُ أَبِي الدُّنْيَا: حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بنُ أَبِي مَرْيَمَ، قَالَ: قَالَ رِيَاحٌ القَيْسِيُّ: لِي نَيِّفٌ وَأَرْبَعُوْنَ ذَنْباً، قَدِ اسْتَغْفَرْتُ لِكُلِّ ذَنْبٍ مائَةَ أَلْفِ مَرَّةٍ. قَالَ أَبُو مَعْمَرٍ المُقْعَدُ: نَظَرتْ رَابِعَةُ إِلَى رِيَاحٍ يَضُمُّ صَبِيّاً مِنْ أَهْلِهِ وَيُقَبِّلُهُ. فَقَالَتْ: أَتُحِبُّه؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ. قَالَتْ: مَا كُنْتُ أَحسِبُ أَنَّ فِي قَلْبِكَ مَوْضِعاً فَارِغاً لِمَحَبَّةِ غَيْرِهِ، تَبَارَكَ اسْمُهُ. فغُشِيَ عَلَيْهِ، ثُمَّ أَفَاقَ، وَقَالَ: رَحْمَةٌ مِنْهُ -تَعَالَى- أَلْقَاهَا فِي قُلُوْبِ العِبَادِ لِلأَطْفَالِ (١) . سَيَّارٌ: حَدَّثَنَا رِيَاحُ بنُ عَمْرٍو، سَمِعْتُ مَالِكَ بنَ دِيْنَارٍ يَقُوْلُ: لاَ يَبلُغُ العَبْدُ مَنْزِلَةَ الصِّدِّيْقِيْنَ حَتَّى يَتْرُكَ زَوْجَتَهُ كَأَنَّهَا أَرْمَلَةٌ، وَيَأْوِي إِلَى مَزَابِلِ الكِلاَبِ (٢) .

(*) حلية الأولياء: ٦ / ١٩٢ - ١٩٧، ميزان الاعتدال: ٢ / ٦١، ٦٢، الطبقات الكبرى للشعراني: ٤٠، الكواكب الدرية للمناوي: ١٠٥ وأخباره أيضا مع رابعة العدوية، فيمكن الرجوع إليها في مراجعها التي ستأتي في صدر ترجمتها. (١) " حلية الأولياء " ٦ / ١٩٤. (٢) منزلة الصديقين لا تنال بهذا النسك الاعجمي المخالف لما صح عنه ﷺ من مثل قوله " خيركم خيركم لاهله وأنا خيركم لاهلي " وقوله " أكمل المؤمنين إيمانا أحسنهم أخلاقا، وخيارهم خيارهم لنسائهم " وقوله: " واستوصوا بالنساء خيرا فإنهن عوان عندكم " وقوله " ومن حقهن عليكم أن تحسنوا إليهن في كسوتهن وطعامهن " وقوله " كل شيء ليس فيه ذكر الله، فهو لغو =