Al-Asma’i narrated: One day I visited a man whom I used to frequent often because of his generosity and kindness. When I arrived at his house, I found a doorman at his door who prevented me from entering. He said to me, “By Allah, O Asma’i, the only reason I’m stopping you at his door is because of his difficult circumstances and limited means. He is in a state of hardship.”

I said to him, “I want to write him a note. Will you deliver it to him?” He replied, “At your service.” He brought me paper, a pen, and ink, so I took them and wrote him a poem:

I folded the note and gave it to the doorman, saying, “Deliver this note to him.” He did so and went with the note for a short while, then returned to me with the same note. He had written a poetic response beneath my poem:

With the note was a purse containing five hundred dinars. I was amazed at his generosity despite his limited means. I said to myself, “By Allah, I must inform Harun al-Rashid about this man.” So I went to the Caliph’s palace, sought permission, entered, and greeted him with the caliphal salutation.

When he saw me, he said, “Where have you come from, O Asma’i?” I replied, “From a man who is one of the most generous of people after the Commander of the Faithful.” He asked, “Who is he?” I handed him the purse and related the story to him. When he saw the purse, he said, “This is from my treasury. I must meet this man.”

I said, “By Allah, O Commander of the Faithful, I would be ashamed to be the cause of his distress by sending you to him.” He replied, “Don’t worry about that.” Then he turned to one of his close associates and said, “Go with Al-Asma’i. When you see a house, enter and tell its owner to answer the Commander of the Faithful. Be gentle in your invitation to him without disturbing him.”

Al-Asma’i continued: We went and called the man. He came and entered upon the Commander of the Faithful, greeting him with the caliphal salutation. Harun al-Rashid said to him, “Aren’t you the one who came to us yesterday complaining about your difficult circumstances? You said you were in severe need, so we had mercy on you and gave you this purse to improve your condition. Then Al-Asma’i came to you with a poem, and you gave it to him?”

The man replied, “Yes, O Commander of the Faithful. By Allah, I did not lie about what I complained to you about regarding my difficult circumstances and severe need! But I was ashamed before Allah to send away my visitor empty-handed as the Commander of the Faithful had sent me.”

Harun al-Rashid said, “May Allah bless the womb that bore you! The Arabs have not given birth to anyone more generous than you.” Then he honored him greatly, bestowed gifts upon him, and made him one of his close companions.