Abū Jaʿfar al-Hinduwānī

Later al-Aʿmash acknowledged Abū Ḥanīfa’s merit. Evidence is what the imam Shams al-Aʾimma Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn Aḥmad al-Ḥalwānī related to us: I heard the jurist Abū al-Qāsim ʿAbd al-Malik ibn ʿAlī recount from the jurist Abū Jaʿfar al-Hinduwānī: Al-Aʿmash did not incline toward Abū Ḥanīfa or treat him kindly, and there was something difficult in his temperament. He swore an oath divorcing his wife if she told him that the flour was exhausted, wrote it, sent a message, mentioned it to anyone to tell him, or gestured about it. His wife was bewildered and sought a way out. She was told to consult Abū Ḥanīfa and related the story. He said: “It is easy: tonight tie the flour sack to the drawstring of his waistcloth, or wherever you can on his clothing. When he rises in the morning or during the night, he will discover that the sack is empty and the flour exhausted, and arrange for his provisions.” She did so. Al-Aʿmash rose in darkness or after daybreak and took his waistcloth. He felt the sack, touched it and pulled it toward himself as he pulled his waistcloth. He realized the flour was exhausted and said: “By God, this is one of Abū Ḥanīfa’s devices! How can we prosper while he lives, exposing us to our wives and showing them our incapacity and limited understanding?”