1960 – ʿAbd Allah narrated to us; Ahmad ibn Ibrahim related to me; Hashim ibn al-Qasim, Abū al-Naḍr, narrated to us; Shaybān narrated to us, from ʿĀṣim, from Abū Wāʾil, who said:

I set out together with Qays ibn ʿUsayl, Ḥayyah ibn ʿUsayl, and ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Salamah—he is the brother of Shaqīq—heading for al-Rabīʿ ibn Khuthaym. When we reached the gathering place we asked, “Where is the house of al-Rabīʿ ibn Khuthaym?” They made us exert ourselves a little, taken aback by our appearance, and then said, “You are about to meet a man who, if he speaks to you, will not lie to you; if you entrust him with something, he will not betray you; and if he makes you a promise, he will not break it. His house is right there before you.”

We entered upon him while he was in his prayer area and said, “We have come so that you may remember Allah and we may remember Him with you.” He raised his hands and prayed, “O Allah, these people have come that I may remember You and that they may remember You with me; they have not come so that I might commit adultery and they commit adultery with me, nor so that I might drink (wine) and they drink with me.”

He then began to speak to us, saying, “There is no good in speech except in nine matters: 1) tasbīḥ (declaring Allah’s transcendence), 2) taḥmīd (praising Him), 3) tahlīl (affirming His oneness), 4) takbīr (extolling His greatness), 5) recitation of the Quran, 6) enjoining what is right, 7) forbidding what is wrong, 8) your asking Allah for good, and 9) your seeking refuge with Him from evil.”