113 – Ahmad ibn Ibrahim narrated to us: Hajjaj ibn Muhammad related, from Abu Bakr al-Hudhali, who said:

While we were sitting with al-Hasan, Ibn al-Ahtam walked past on his way to the maqṣūrah (the screened-off section of the mosque). He was wrapped in several khazz robes (silk brocade) of different colors, layered one on top of another so tightly that not even the slit of a single qabāʾ broke their continuity. He strode along in an affected swagger. Al-Hasan fixed his gaze on him and exclaimed,

“Fie, fie! Nose held high, shoulders thrown back, cheek turned in disdain, casting proud glances at the folds of his cloak… Of what use are those haughty looks when the blessings you enjoy are neither thanked for nor acknowledged, when you have shown no regard for Allah’s command in them and have given Him none of His due? By Allah, when one of them merely walks in his ordinary gait he writhes like a madman; in every sinew of his body there is a blessing from Allah, yet Satan makes of him a plaything.”

Ibn al-Ahtam overheard him and turned back to apologize. Al-Hasan said, “Do not apologize to me—repent to your Lord. Have you not heard Allah’s words: ‘Do not walk upon the earth exultantly; you will never tear the earth apart, nor will you reach the mountains in stature’ (Q 17:37)?”