—in Turkish—and then they resolved to make him rise from his seat, plundered whatever was there, and led him off in humiliation to another residence. All the while the caliph kept saying to Mūsā ibn Bugha, “What is the matter with you—woe to you! I only summoned you so that I might gain strength through you against Ṣāliḥ ibn Wāṣif.” Mūsā replied (1), “Do not worry. Swear to me that you intend nothing for me other than what you have already declared.” The caliph swore to him, whereupon their hearts were put at ease; they renewed the pledge of allegiance to him verbally, bound him with oaths and covenants that he would not side with Ṣāliḥ against them, and agreed upon that.

They then sent for Ṣāliḥ ibn Wāṣif to appear before them for a debate about al-Muʿtazz and about those secretaries and others whom Ṣāliḥ had slain. He promised he would come, but instead gathered a group of commanders loyal to him and began preparing to muster troops. That very night he disappeared, and no one knew where he had gone. Proclamations were issued throughout the city seeking him and threatening anyone who sheltered him, and he remained in hiding until late Ṣafar, as we shall relate.

Sulaymān ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn Ṭāhir was restored to the deputy governorship of Baghdad.

The vizier ʿAbd Allah ibn Muḥammad ibn Yazdād was handed over to al-Ḥasan ibn Makhlad, the man Ṣāliḥ had intended to kill along with the other two. He remained in prison until he was returned to the vizierate.

When no word of Ṣāliḥ ibn Wāṣif reached Mūsā ibn Bugha and his associates, some of them said to one another, “Depose this man,” meaning the caliph. Others objected, saying, “Would you kill a man who fasts by day and stands in prayer by night, who neither drinks wine (2) nor commits indecencies? By Allah, he is not like the others, and the people will not support you against him.”

The caliph heard of this. He came out to the people with a sword slung over his shoulder, sat upon the throne, and summoned Mūsā ibn Bugha and his companions. He said, “News has reached me of the plot you have formed concerning me. By Allah, I have not come out to you except after having prepared myself for burial, and I have entrusted my children to my brother. Here is my sword—by Allah, I shall strike with it so long as its hilt remains in my hand; and, by Allah, if a single hair of mine should fall, most of you will perish because of it or be driven off. Where is your religion? Where is your sense of shame? Where is your piety? How long will this assault on the caliphs and this audacity against Allah—Exalted is He—continue? Is it all the same to you (3) whether it be someone who seeks your preservation, or someone who, when he hears of your plight, calls for flagons of wine and drinks them in joy at your misfortune?

“Go and inspect my house, the houses of my brothers, and those connected to me. Do you find in them any of the trappings or furnishings of the caliphate beyond what is found in the homes of ordinary people? And they say, ‘I know Ṣāliḥ’s situation.’ Is he anything other than one of you? Then go and learn his situation and satisfy yourselves concerning him, for I, for my part, do not know his situation.”