Harun stepped inside and, in the darkness, began groping with his hand in search of al-Fudayl’s so he might greet him. The moment his hand touched it, al-Fudayl exclaimed, “Woe to this soft hand if it does not escape punishment on the Day of Resurrection!” He then said, “O Commander of the Faithful, prepare yourself to answer God Most High, for He will cause you to stand alone with every single Muslim, each one demanding the justice due to him.” Harun al-Rashid wept bitterly and clasped al-Fudayl to his chest. Al-ʿAbbas cried out, “Gently—you will kill him!” Harun retorted, “You have made yourself Haman and turned me into Pharaoh.”
The caliph thereupon set a thousand dinars before al-Fudayl and said, “This is lawful wealth—from my mother’s bridal-gift and her inheritance.” Al-Fudayl replied, “I order you to lift your hands from it and to go back to your Creator, having thrown it in front of me.” He refused to accept the money and left.
Anecdote: ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz once asked Muḥammad ibn Kaʿb al-Quraẓī, “Describe justice for me.” He answered, “Treat every Muslim older than you as a son treats his father, anyone younger than you as a father treats his child, and your peers as brothers. Punish every offender in proportion to his crime, and beware of striking a Muslim with even a single lash out of personal rancor, for that will cast you into Hell.”
Anecdote: An ascetic once appeared before a caliph, who said, “Admonish me.” The ascetic replied, “O Commander of the Faithful, I travelled to China. The king there had become deaf. I heard him weeping one day and saying, ‘By God, I do not weep for the loss of my hearing; I weep lest a wronged person stand at my gate begging for relief while I cannot hear his plea. Yet I praise God that my sight is still sound.’ He then ordered a herald to announce, ‘Whoever has a grievance should wear a red garment.’ Mounted on an elephant, whenever he saw someone in red he would summon him, listen to his complaint, and grant him justice against his adversary. Consider, O Commander of the Faithful, the compassion of that unbeliever toward God’s servants—while you are a believer of the Prophet’s household. Reflect, then, on how compassionate you intend to be toward your own subjects.”
Another anecdote: Abū Qilāba attended the gathering of ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz. The caliph said, “Admonish me.” He replied, “From the time of Adam until this very hour, no caliph remains but you.” The caliph said, “More.” He said, “You are the first caliph who will die.” The caliph said, “More.” He said, “If God is with you, whom need you fear? And if He is not with you, to whom can you turn for refuge?” The caliph said, “That will suffice.”