Al-Dhahabi preserves a report from Abu Muhammad ibn al-Akhdar about Shaykh Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, may Allah have mercy on him. Ibn al-Akhdar says that he used to visit the Shaykh in the middle of winter when the cold was severe. He saw him wearing only a shirt and a cap while people around him fanned him, and sweat came from his body as though he were in intense summer heat. The same winter observation is also preserved in al-Dhahabi’s Tarikh al-Islam.
Al-Dhahabi preserves a vivid winter observation concerning Shaykh Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, may Allah have mercy on him. The witness is Abu Muhammad ibn al-Akhdar, a Baghdadi hadith scholar who lived in the Shaykh’s time. His wording begins with the sense that he used to visit Abd al-Qadir, and he places the scene specifically in the middle of winter, at a time of severe cold.
What Ibn al-Akhdar describes is striking because of the contrast in the scene. Although the weather was bitterly cold, Shaykh Abd al-Qadir was wearing only a single shirt and a cap. Around him were people fanning him, an action one would normally expect in hot weather rather than in the depth of winter.
The report then gives the detail that explains why the people were fanning him. Ibn al-Akhdar says that sweat was coming from the Shaykh’s body as it does in intense heat. Thus the whole picture stands together in a few simple details: severe winter cold, light clothing, visible perspiration, and people continuously moving air around him with a fan.
The account is presented as Ibn al-Akhdar’s own observation. Al-Dhahabi also preserves biographical information about this witness, identifying him as Abd al-Aziz ibn Mahmud ibn al-Mubarak ibn al-Akhdar of Baghdad. He belonged to the generation that overlapped with Shaykh Abd al-Qadir, so the story is remembered through a named contemporary who said that he entered upon the Shaykh and saw this condition.
The same central observation appears again in al-Dhahabi’s Tarikh al-Islam. Later works also repeated the winter scene, but its memorable core remains unchanged: Ibn al-Akhdar visiting Shaykh Abd al-Qadir in severe cold and finding him dressed lightly, sweating heavily, while those around him fanned him.
In this form the report is short, visual, and easy to follow. It does not depend on a long series of added scenes or conversations. Its entire force lies in the unusual contrast witnessed in the room: the depth of winter outside and, before Ibn al-Akhdar, a man perspiring as though he were sitting in the heat of summer.
What Ibn al-Akhdar describes is striking because of the contrast in the scene. Although the weather was bitterly cold, Shaykh Abd al-Qadir was wearing only a single shirt and a cap. Around him were people fanning him, an action one would normally expect in hot weather rather than in the depth of winter.
The report then gives the detail that explains why the people were fanning him. Ibn al-Akhdar says that sweat was coming from the Shaykh’s body as it does in intense heat. Thus the whole picture stands together in a few simple details: severe winter cold, light clothing, visible perspiration, and people continuously moving air around him with a fan.
The account is presented as Ibn al-Akhdar’s own observation. Al-Dhahabi also preserves biographical information about this witness, identifying him as Abd al-Aziz ibn Mahmud ibn al-Mubarak ibn al-Akhdar of Baghdad. He belonged to the generation that overlapped with Shaykh Abd al-Qadir, so the story is remembered through a named contemporary who said that he entered upon the Shaykh and saw this condition.
The same central observation appears again in al-Dhahabi’s Tarikh al-Islam. Later works also repeated the winter scene, but its memorable core remains unchanged: Ibn al-Akhdar visiting Shaykh Abd al-Qadir in severe cold and finding him dressed lightly, sweating heavily, while those around him fanned him.
In this form the report is short, visual, and easy to follow. It does not depend on a long series of added scenes or conversations. Its entire force lies in the unusual contrast witnessed in the room: the depth of winter outside and, before Ibn al-Akhdar, a man perspiring as though he were sitting in the heat of summer.
Conclusion
The report closes with one memorable image: in severe winter cold, Shaykh Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani was seen in a shirt and cap, sweating heavily while people around him fanned him.
Sources
Siyar al-A'lam al-Nubala 20:449: Ibn al-Najjar heard Abu Muhammad ibn al-Akhdar say, in habitual wording, that he used to visit Abd al-Qadir in the middle of winter and severe cold; Abd al-Qadir had one shirt and a cap, people fanned him, and sweat came from his body as in intense heat.
Tarikh al-Islam, vol. 39, independently preserves Abu Muhammad ibn al-Akhdar’s winter observation of Abd al-Qadir wearing one shirt and sweating as in severe heat.
Al-Dhahabi states in the same biography that many karamat attributed to Abd al-Qadir are not sound and some attributed claims are impossible.
Siyar al-A'lam al-Nubala, biography of Ibn al-Akhdar, vol. 22 p.32: Abu Muhammad Abd al-Aziz ibn Mahmud ibn al-Mubarak al-Janabidhi al-Baghdadi is described by al-Dhahabi as trustworthy, understanding, good, religious and chaste; Ibn Nuqta is quoted describing him as trustworthy, precise, dependable, widely heard and sound in his originals.