—yet she had not been given the Qur’an at all; at that they were struck dumb.”

My father—may Allah have mercy on him—told me:
Abū Jaʿfar, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan ibn Badina1, narrated to us; he said: Ṣāliḥ ibn Aḥmad related that his father said:

“One of them remarked to me, ‘I notice you frequently cite hadith and claim them as your proof.’

I replied, ‘What do you make of the words of Allah, Mighty and Majestic:

“Allah instructs you concerning your children: for the male, a share equal to that of two females” (4:11)?’

He said, ‘Allah restricted that to the believers.’

I responded, ‘And what is your verdict if the heir is a murderer, or a slave, or a Jew, or a Christian?’—and he fell silent.”

Abū ʿUmar—ʿUthmān ibn ʿUmar—also informed me, saying:
Abū Bakr—Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Khallāl—narrated to us; he said: Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar told us; he said:

“I heard Harthama ibn Khālid—a relative of Isḥāq ibn Dāwud—while both Isḥāq and I were present, say: Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal said:

‘Ibn Abī Duʾād said to me—as they were debating with me—and I had already told them: “Produce, from the Book of Allah or the Sunnah of His Messenger, evidence for what you claim.” Then Ibn Abī Duʾād said, “Show me, Ibn Ḥanbal, from your knowledge that this carpet we are sitting on is created.”

I answered, “Certainly. Allah the Exalted says:

“And from their wool, their fur and their hair We furnish you household goods and an enjoyment for a time” (16:80).”

It was as though I had made him swallow a stone.’ ”

Abū Isḥāq—Ibrāhīm ibn Isḥāq al-Shīrjī al-Khaṣīb—narrated to us; he said:
Abū Bakr—Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥajjāj al-Marwazī—told us, saying: “He said to me …"