when you were appointed to rule, your rule was a victory. Indeed, you filled the earth with justice. Whenever two Muslims had whatever dispute may arise between Muslims and your opinion was mentioned to them, they both approved of your judgment (1) and were content with it.”
He continued: Umar said, “Sit me up.”
Once he had been seated, Umar said, “Repeat what you said to me, Ibn Abbās.”
He replied, “Yes” (2), and repeated it.
Umar then asked, “Will you testify to this on my behalf before Allah on the Day of Resurrection, Ibn Abbās?”
He replied, “Yes, Commander of the Faithful. I will testify to this on your behalf before Allah, and here is Alī, who will testify for you as well.” Alī ibn Abī Tālib was seated there, and he said, “Yes, Commander of the Faithful” (3).
These are the people of knowledge who seek knowledge night and day and are not biased in anyone’s favor. Rather, they prefer the view of one Companion (4) on one occasion and that of another Companion (5) on another, according to what they discern from the evidence of the Sacred Law. Such scholars include Saīd ibn al-Musayyib and the jurists of Medina, such as Urwa ibn al-Zubayr, al-Qāsim ibn Muhammad, Alī ibn al-Husayn, Abū Bakr ibn Abd al-Rahmān, Ubayd Allah ibn Abd Allah ibn Utba, Sulaymān ibn Yasār, Khārija ibn Zayd, Sālim ibn Abd Allah ibn Umar, and others besides them.