—to their followers. Whatever they deliver exactly as they heard it is true, yet they add to it.

In another version, Muʿammar said, “I asked al-Zuhri, ‘Did shooting stars use to be hurled in the pre-Islamic era?’ He replied, ‘Yes, but they intensified after the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—was sent.’

Al-Aswad al-ʿAnsi, who claimed prophethood, had devils who informed him of certain unseen matters. When the Muslims fought him, they feared that the devils would report to him what they were saying about him—until his wife, once she realized his unbelief, aided them against him, and they killed him.

Likewise, Musaylima the Liar had devils who supplied him with knowledge of the unseen and assisted him in various affairs.