I saw Ata ibn Yazid al-Laythi standing in prayer, wearing a black turban whose tail hung down his back and with a beard dyed yellow. I went to pass in front of him, but he pushed me back and said: “Abu Sa id al-Khudri related to me that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ once rose to lead the dawn prayer while he (Abu Sa id) was behind him. He began to recite but his recitation became confused. When he finished the prayer he said: ‘If only you had seen me with Iblis! I reached out with my hand and kept throttling him until I felt the coolness of his saliva between these two fingers of mine—the thumb and the finger next to it. Had it not been for the supplication of my brother Sulayman, he would have been left tied to one of the pillars of the mosque for the children of Madinah to play with. So whoever among you can keep anyone from coming between him and the qiblah, let him do so.’ This isnad is hasan: its transmitters are those used by Muslim except for Masarrah ibn Ma bad, whom al-Taqrib calls “reliable but prone to mistakes.” Ibn Majah (1/304), and likewise Abu Dawud and al-Bayhaqi, also transmitted the hadith through Ibn Ajlan from Zayd ibn Aslam from Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Sa id from his father with the wording: “When any of you prays, let him pray toward a sutrah, draw near to it, and not allow anyone to pass in front of him. If someone tries to pass, let him repel him, for he is a shaytan.” Ibn Ajlan, however, has been subject to criticism. The report is further supported by a narration from Ibn Umar: “When any of you is praying, he should not allow anyone to pass in front of him; if the person insists, then let him fight him, for with him is the qarin (demonic companion).”