[Another chain from him]

Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Yaʿlā (1) said: Suwayd ibn Saʿīd narrated to us; Rushdīn ibn Saʿd narrated to us, from Yazīd ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Usāmah, from ʿUthmān ibn Ṣuhayb, from his father, who said:

ʿAli said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to me, “Who was the most wretched man of the former peoples?” I replied, “The one who hamstrung the she-camel.” He said, “You are right. And who is the most wretched of the latter peoples?” I said, “I have no knowledge, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “It is the man who will strike you upon this”—and he pointed with his hand to the crown of his head—“so that this will be drenched with blood from this,” meaning that his beard would be soaked while his head remained. ʿAli would then say, “I wish your most wretched man had already come forth.” (2)

[Another chain]

Imām Aḥmad (3) said: Wakīʿ narrated to us; al-Aʿmash narrated to us, from Sālim ibn Abī al-Jaʿd, from ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sabuʿ, who said: I heard ʿAli say, “This”—his beard—“will most certainly be stained with blood from this”—his head. “What is the most wretched man waiting for concerning me?” They said, “O Commander of the Believers, tell us who he is and we will wipe out his clan.” He replied, “In that case, by Allah, you would kill someone other than my killer.” They said, “Then appoint a successor over us.” He said, “No; I shall leave you just as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ left you to the care of your Lord.” They said, “What will you say to your Lord when you meet Him?” He said, “I will say: O Allah, You left me among them for as long as You willed; then You took me back while You remained over them. If You will, You can set them aright, and if You will, You can let them go astray.”

Aḥmad (4) said: Aswad ibn ʿĀmir narrated to us; Abū Bakr narrated to us, from al-Aʿmash, from Salamah ibn Kuhayl, from ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sabuʿ, who said: ʿAli preached to us, saying, “By Him who split the seed and created life, this”—his beard—“will surely be drenched with blood from this”—his head. The people said, “Tell us who he is; by Allah, we shall annihilate him and annihilate his kin.” He said, “I implore you by Allah that no one other than my killer be slain.” They said, “If you know this, then designate a successor.” He said, “No; rather, I consign you to the One to whom the Messenger of Allah ﷺ consigned you.” This chain is unique to Aḥmad.

[Yet another chain from ʿAli]

Imām Aḥmad (6) said: Hāshim ibn al-Qāsim narrated to us; Muḥammad—meaning Ibn Rāshid—narrated to us, from ʿAbd Allāh ibn