Ṣāliḥ ibn Aḥmad said:

Ibn Ṭāhir—the deputy of Baghdad—sent his chamberlain, Muẓaffar, accompanied by two attendants who carried kerchiefs containing clothes and perfume. They said, “The amir conveys his greetings to you and says: ‘I have done for him what, had the Commander of the Faithful been present, he himself would have done.’”

I replied, “Return the amir’s greetings and tell him: ‘The Commander of the Faithful spared Abū ʿAbd Allāh in his lifetime from things he disliked; I do not wish to burden him after his death with anything he would have disapproved of.’”

The envoy came back and said, “Then let these serve as his shroud.” I repeated to him the same response.

A maidservant had already spun for him a fine ʿushārī cloth valued at twenty-eight dirhams, from which he intended to cut two shirts. We cut two sheets from it, added another sheet we took from Fūrān(1), and thus wrapped him in three pieces.

We bought ḥanūṭ for him, completed the washing, and shrouded him. About one hundred men from Banū Hāshim were present while we were preparing him, and they kept kissing his forehead until we raised him onto the bier.

ʿAbd Allāh said: Abū Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṭāhir led the funeral prayer over him, taking the lead away from us, although we and the Hāshimites had already prayed over him inside the house.

Ṣāliḥ said: Ibn Ṭāhir had sent word to me, asking, “Who will lead the prayer over Abū ʿAbd Allāh?” I answered, “I will.”

When we reached the open ground, there was Ibn Ṭāhir standing. He walked a few paces toward us, offered us condolences, and the bier was set down. After I had waited a moment, I stepped forward and began arranging the rows(2). Then Ibn Ṭāhir came up to me; he clasped one of my arms, while Muḥammad ibn Naṣr took the other, and they said, “The amir.”

I resisted them, but they moved me aside and he led the prayer(3), and he did not know—