Somebody said to Usama, "Will you go to so-and-so (i.e. ʿUthman) and talk to him (i.e. advise him regarding ruling the country)?" He said, "You see that I don't talk to him. Really I talk to (advise) him secretly without opening a gate (of affliction), for neither do I want to be the first to open it (i.e. rebellion), nor will I say to a man who is my ruler that he is the best of all the people after I have heard something from Allah s Apostle ." They said, What have you heard him saying? He said, "I have heard him saying, "A man will be brought on the Day of Resurrection and thrown in the (Hell) Fire, so that his intestines will come out, and he will go around like a donkey goes around a millstone. The people of (Hell) Fire will gather around him and say: O so-and-so! What is wrong with you? Didn't you use to order us to do good deeds and forbid us to do bad deeds? He will reply: Yes, I used to order you to do good deeds, but I did not do them myself, and I used to forbid you to do bad deeds, yet I used to do them myself."
قِيلَ لأُسَامَةَ لَوْ أَتَيْتَ فُلاَنًا فَكَلَّمْتَهُ قَالَ إِنَّكُمْ لَتَرَوْنَ أَنِّي لاَ أُكَلِّمُهُ إِلاَّ أُسْمِعُكُمْ إِنِّي أُكُلِّمُهُ فِي السِّرِّ دُونَ أَنْ أَفْتَحَ بَابًا لاَ أَكُونُ أَوَّلَ مَنْ فَتَحَهُ وَلاَ أَقُولُ لِرَجُلٍ أَنْ كَانَ عَلَىَّ أَمِيرًا إِنَّهُ خَيْرُ النَّاسِ بَعْدَ شَىْءٍ سَمِعْتُهُ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالُوا وَمَا سَمِعْتَهُ يَقُولُ قَالَ سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ يُجَاءُ بِالرَّجُلِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فَيُلْقَى فِي النَّارِ فَتَنْدَلِقُ أَقْتَابُهُ فِي النَّارِ فَيَدُورُ كَمَا يَدُورُ الْحِمَارُ بِرَحَاهُ فَيَجْتَمِعُ أَهْلُ النَّارِ عَلَيْهِ فَيَقُولُونَ أَىْ فُلاَنُ مَا شَأْنُكَ أَلَيْسَ كُنْتَ تَأْمُرُنَا بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَى عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ قَالَ كُنْتُ آمُرُكُمْ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَلاَ آتِيهِ وَأَنْهَاكُمْ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَآتِيهِ رَوَاهُ غُنْدَرٌ عَنْ شُعْبَةَ عَنِ الأَعْمَشِ