One of the great saints of Damascus who took hadith from Sufyan ibn 'Uyayna. Ibn al-Jawzi relates in 'Sifat al-safwa' that al-Ju'i explained that he got the name al-Ju'i ('of the hunger') because Allah had strengthened him against physical hunger by means of spiritual hunger. He said:
Even if I were left one month without food I would not care. O' Allah, you have done this with me: Therefore complete it for me! (1)
SHAMS AL-DIN AL-DHAHABI writes about him in 'Siyar a'lam al-nubala':
[#506] al-'Abdi, known as Qasim al- Ju'i: The Imam, the exemplar, the saint, the Muhaddith... the Shaykh of the Sufis and the friend of Ahmad ibn al-Hawari. (al-imam al-qudwa al- wali al-muhaddith Abu 'Abd Al-Malik Al-Qasim ibn 'Uthman al-'Abdi al- Dimashqi, Shaykh as-sufiyya wa rafiq Ahmad ibn al-Hawari,'urifa bi al- Ju'i).
Ibn al-Jawzi also relates that Ibn Abu Hatim al-Razi said:
I entered Damascus to see the transcribers of hadith. I passed by Qasim al-Ju'i's circle and saw a large crowd sitting around him as he spoke. I approached and heard him say:
Do without others in your life in five matters:
- If you are present among people, don't be known;
- If you are absent, don't be missed;
- If you know something, your advice is unsought;
- If you say something, your words are rejected;
- If you do something, you receive no credit for it.
I advise you five other things as well:
- If you are wronged, do not reciprocate it;
- If you are praised, don't be glad;
- If you are blamed, don't be distraught;
- If you are called liar, don't be angry;
- If you are betrayed, don't betray in return.
Ibn Abu Hatim said: 'I made these words all the benefit I got from visiting Damascus.' (2)
(1) Ibn al-Jawzi, Sifat al-safwa 2(2):200 (#763).
(2) Ibid.
