520 – ʿAbd Allah related to us—my father related to me—ibn Atash related to us—al-Mundhir, on the authority of Wahb, said:

“A sāʾiḥ (wandering ascetic) was once accompanied by an angel who had been ordered to do whatever the sāʾiḥ did.

They entered a valley and came upon a rotting carcass. The sāʾiḥ covered his nose with his garment because of the stench, and the angel did exactly the same. The sāʾiḥ asked him, ‘Why did you do that?’ The angel replied, ‘I was commanded to imitate whatever you do.’

The sāʾiḥ then said, ‘Did you smell what I smelled?’ The angel answered, ‘No. Nothing offends us except the odor of an unbeliever.’”