1584 — Abū Muhammad Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Nājiya informed us; he said: Ahmad ibn Yahyā al-Sūfī narrated to us; he said: Husayn ibn Hasan al-Ashqar narrated to us; he said: Sālim narrated to us, from Alī ibn al-Hakam al-Abdī, from al-Amash, from Ibrāhīm, from Alqama ibn ⦗2093⦘ Qays and al-Aswad ibn Yazīd, who said:

We came to Abū Ayyūb al-Ansārī and said to him, “Allah, Glorious and Exalted, honored you through Muhammad—peace and blessings be upon him—when He inspired his mount and it knelt at your door, whereupon the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—became your guest. That was a distinction with which Allah, Glorious and Exalted, favored you. Then you went out to fight alongside Alī ibn Abī Tālib—may Allah be pleased with him.”

He replied, “A warm welcome to you both. I swear to you both by Allah that the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—was in this very house in which you are now sitting. No one else was in the house except the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—with Alī—may Allah be pleased with him—seated to his right, while I stood before him. There was then a knock at the door, so the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said, ‘O Anas, see who is at the door.’ He went out, looked, then returned and said, ‘It is Ammār ibn Yāsir.’”

Abū Ayyūb continued, “I heard the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—say, ‘O Anas, open the door for Ammār, the good and purified man.’ Anas opened the door, and Ammār entered and greeted the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him. He—peace be upon him—returned his greeting, welcomed him, and said, ‘O Ammār, after me there will be evils and discord within my community, until swords clash among them, until some kill others and some renounce others. When you see that, then adhere to this man on my right’—meaning Alī, may Allah be pleased with him—‘Even if they all take one valley and Alī takes another, follow Alī’s valley and leave everyone else. O Ammār, Alī will never turn you away from guidance. O Ammār, obedience to Alī is obedience to me, and obedience to me is part of obedience to Allah, Glorious and Exalted.’”