96. Abu al-Hasan al-Hanzali narrated to me, saying: ʿAbd al-Malik b. Hisham al-Dhimari said, “They once opened an old grave in Dhamar and found inside it a stone on which was written:

[kamil meter]
Endure the age that has assailed you—
such is the way the epochs pass:
Joy and sorrow come in turn;
neither grief lasts, nor does delight.

Abu Bakr added: A man of Quraysh recited:

[wafir meter]
We have milked time for all its portions, and
the sequels of hardship and of ease have swept over us.
We did not mourn a world that slipped away,
nor did we seek refuge in anything but supplication.
These very days wound us, then they heal—
they bring with them happiness and misery alike.