545 — Al-Firyābī also informed us, saying: Muhammad ibn Dāwūd narrated to us, saying: Ahmad ibn Sālih narrated to us, saying: Abd Allah ibn Wahb narrated to us, saying: Al-Layth ibn Saʿd narrated to us, from Ubayd Allah ibn Umar, who said: We used to sit with Yahyā ibn Saʿīd, and he would recount narrations to us, one after another like pearls. Whenever Rabīʿa arrived, Yahyā would break off the narration out of reverence for him. One day, while he was narrating to us, he recited this verse: “There is not a thing but that its treasuries are with Us, and We send it down only according to a known measure.” [al-Hijr: 21] ⦗951⦘

Jamīl ibn Nubāta al-Irāqī, who was sitting with us, said to him, “Abū Muhammad, tell me: Is magic among those treasuries?” Yahyā replied, “Glory be to Allah! This is not one of the questions Muslims ask.” Abd Allah ibn Abī Habība then said, “Abū Muhammad is not one to engage in disputation, but take the matter up with me and address yourself to me. As for me, I say that magic can cause harm only by Allah’s permission. Do you say the same?” He fell silent, and it was as though a mountain had been lifted from us.