Al-Lalaka'i preserves a classical report in which an unnamed man falsely claimed that Habib al-Ajami owed him three hundred dirhams. Habib did not argue publicly with him; he asked him to return, performed ablution and prayer, and made a conditional supplication that the truth be made clear. The report says the claimant was then brought back afflicted on one side, confessed that the debt was invented to embarrass Habib into paying him, promised not to repeat the act, and after Habib prayed for his well-being stood up restored.
An unnamed man came to Habib Abu Muhammad and said that Habib owed him three hundred dirhams. Habib asked a simple question: how had this debt become due? The man offered no explanation and merely repeated that three hundred dirhams were owed to him. Habib did not turn the exchange into a quarrel. He told the man to return the following day.
The report then describes Habib preparing for prayer. He performed ablution and prayed, then made a carefully conditional supplication. If the claimant was telling the truth, Habib asked that his right be delivered to him; if he was lying, Habib asked that the falsehood be exposed through an affliction. The wording is important: Habib did not claim knowledge of the unseen and did not simply pronounce the man guilty. The prayer placed the matter before Allah on the condition of truth or falsehood.
The next day, according to the report, the man was brought back carrying the effects of paralysis on one side of his body. When Habib asked what had happened, the man confessed. Habib had never owed him anything. He said he had made the claim because he expected Habib to feel embarrassed in front of people and hand over the money simply to avoid public discomfort.
At this point the story changes tone. Habib did not celebrate the man's condition or prolong his humiliation. He asked only whether the man would return to such conduct. The man answered that he would not. Habib then turned again to prayer, this time asking Allah to clothe him in well-being if his repentance was sincere.
Al-Lalaka'i's report ends with an image of restoration: the man stood on the ground and ran as though nothing had affected him. The moral shape of the account is therefore larger than punishment. It begins with an attempt to exploit a righteous person's modesty, passes through exposure and confession, and ends with repentance, mercy and a prayer for recovery. Preserved as an attributed classical karamah, it is best told with exactly that balance.
Conclusion
The most memorable feature of the report is Habib al-Ajami's final response: once the claimant confessed and promised not to repeat the deception, Habib turned from the dispute to a prayer for his well-being. The classical story therefore remembers not only an answered supplication, but also repentance followed by mercy.