Sulaymلn b. A<mad (al-^abarلnي) narrated to us that A<mad b. Ibrلhيm b. Kaysلn narrated to us that Ismل`يl b. `Amr al-Bajalي narrated to us that Mis`ar b. Kidلm narrated to us from ^al<a b. Mu#arrif from `Umayrah b. Sa`d who said:
I saw `Ali on the pulpit adjuring the companions of the Messenger of Allلh, blessings and salutations of Allلh on him, among them Abu Sa`يd, Abْ Hurayrah and Anas b. Mلlik, while they were around the pulpit. `Alي was on the pulpit and around it were twelve men and they were among them.
`Alي said: "I adjure you by Allلh, did you hear the Messenger of Allلh say: ‘Of whomsoever I am master (mawlل), `Alي is his master?’" All of them stood up and said: "Yes indeed." One man was sitting. He said: "What prevents you from rising?" He said: "O Amيr al-Mu’minيn, I have become old and have forgotten."
He said: "O Allah, if he is lying, strike him with a good (<asan) trial.[1].
He said: He did not die before we saw a white spot between his eyes that the turban could not conceal.
It is a ‘gharيb’ <adيth of ^al<a, the lengthy version of which is only reported by Mis`ar; Ibn `ءishah has reported the like of it from Ismل`يl. Al-Ajla< and Hلni' b. Ayyْb have reported it from ^al<a in brief.
[1] Al-Amيnي said: The word ‘<asan’ is an addition made by the narrators or the transcribers because the blindness or leprosy that afflicted the man who, as supported by the other narration (on the subject), was Anas, was a punishment on him due to his untruthful claim that he had forgotten due to old age. It was not a good trial. How could it be so when it was intended to be a humiliation and he was accustomed to doing that?
