1. A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad, from ibn Khalid from Muhammad ibn Ali from Muhammad ibn al-Fudayl from abu Hamzah al-Thumaliy who has said the following: “Once I was in the Masjid of the Messenger of Allah, O Allah, grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause, when a man came and offered Salam (the phrase of offering greeting of peace) and asked, ‘Who are you, O servant of Allah?’ I replied, ‘I am a man from al-Kufah.’ I then asked, ‘What do you need?’ He asked, ‘Do you know abu Ja‘far, Muhammad ibn Ali, ‘Alayhi al-Salam ?’ I replied, ‘Yes, I know him (the Imam). What do you need from him?’ He said, ‘I have prepared forty questions to ask from him for answers and then what is right and true I will accept, and what is false, leave them alone.’ Abu Hamzah has said, ‘I then asked him if he was able to distinguish between truth and falsehood.’ He replied, ‘Yes, I can do so.’ I then asked him, ‘Why do you need him when you are able to distinguish between truth and falsehood?’ He said, ‘People of al- Kufah, you are such that one cannot talk to you. If you see abu Ja‘far then inform me.’ Our conversation was not yet complete that abu Ja’far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, came with people of Khurasan around him as well as other people asking him questions about the rules of al-Hajj. He (the Imam) went to his place and sat down and the man (Qatadah) sat near him (the Imam). Abu Hamzah has said, ‘I then sat where I could hear (people) speaking. Around him (the Imam) there was a world (large group) of people. When he (the Imam) completed what the people needed and they left, he (the Imam) turned to the man and asked, ‘Who are you?’ He replied, ‘I am Qatadah ibn al-Da‘amah al-Basriy.’ Abu Ja‘far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, asked, ‘Are you faqih of people of al-Basrah?’ He replied, ‘Yes, I am their faqih.’ Abu Ja’far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, then said, ‘Fie upon you, O Qatadah. You must notice that Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, has created creatures in His creation and has made them a barrier over His creation, and they are the pillars on His earth, protectors of His commandments, the noble ones in His knowledge whom He had chosen before His creation, while as shadows on the right of His throne.’ He (the narrator) has said that Qatadah remained silent for a long time, then said, ‘I pray to Allah to keep you well, I have sat before scholars of fiqh and before ibn ‘Abbas but my heart did not become nervous before anyone of them as it has become nervous before you.’ Abu Ja‘far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, said, ‘Fie upon you, do you realize where are sitting? You are before the houses for which Allah has declared to be raised and therein Allah is spoken of. (It happens there) in the mornings and evenings, by men who are not distracted by trade or other forms of business from speaking about Allah, performing Salat (prayer) and paying Zakat. You are in such house and we are the people therein.’ Qatadah said, ‘You have spoken the truth by Allah, I pray to Allah to keep my soul in service for your cause, by Allah they are not houses of stones and clay.’ Qatadah then asked, ‘Tell me about cheese.’ Abu Ja‘far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, smiled then said, ‘Have all of your questions ended up to this?’ He replied, ‘They have become mixed and confusing.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful.’ He said, ‘What happens if perhaps rennet from a dead animal is placed in it?’ He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful because rennet does not have any veins and blood or bones. It only comes out of a dead animal from the middle of dung and blood.’ He (the Imam) then said, ‘Rennet is like an egg that comes out of a dead chicken. Is that egg edible?’ Qatadah said, ‘No, it is not edible and I do not command anyone to eat it.’ Abu Ja‘far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, asked, ‘Why do you not eat it?’ He replied, ‘Because it is dead.’ He (the Imam) then asked, ‘If that egg is hatched and it becomes a chicken will you eat the chicken?’ Qatadah replied, ‘Yes, I will do so.’ He (the Imam) then asked, ‘What is it that makes you to eat the chicken but not the egg from which it has come out?’ He (the Imam) then said, ‘The same rule applies to rennet which is like the egg. You can buy cheese from the market of Muslims from the hands of those who perform Salat (prayer) and do not ask about it, unless someone comes and informs you about it.’”