[Machine] I was the leader of my father when his sight failed. Whenever I went out to Friday prayers, he would hear the call to prayer and seek forgiveness for Ummamah As'ad ibn Zurarah. So I would stay for a while to hear that from him. I said to myself, there is nothing stopping me from asking him about this. So I went out with him as I usually do. When he heard the call to prayer for Friday, he sought forgiveness for him. So I said, "Oh my father, have you noticed that you seek forgiveness for As'ad ibn Zurarah every time you hear the call to prayer for Friday?" He said, "Oh my son, As'ad was the first one of us to gather in Medina before the arrival of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in the battle of Hurrah of Bani Bayadah in Naki' Al-Khadimah. I said, how many were you that day? He said, forty men."
كُنْتُ قَائِدَ أَبِي حِينَ كَفَّ بَصَرُهُ فَإِذَا خَرَجْتُ إِلَى الْجُمُعَةِ فَسَمِعَ الْأَذَانَ بِهَا اسْتَغْفَرَ لِأَبِي أُمَامَةَ أَسْعَدَ بْنِ زُرَارَةَ فَمَكَثْتُ حِينًا أَسْمَعُ ذَلِكَ مِنْهُ فَقُلْتُ إِنْ عَجْزٌ إِلَّا أَنْ أَسْأَلَهُ عَنْ هَذَا فَخَرَجْتُ بِهِ كَمَا كُنْتُ أَخْرُجُ بِهِ فَلَمَّا سَمِعَ الْأَذَانَ بِالْجُمُعَةِ اسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُ فَقُلْتُ «يَا أَبَتَاهُ أَرَأَيْتَ اسْتِغْفَارَكَ لِأَسْعَدَ بْنِ زُرَارَةَ كُلَّمَا سَمِعْتَ الْأَذَانَ بِالْجُمُعَةِ؟» فَقَالَ أَيْ بُنَيْ كَانَ أَسْعَدُ أَوَّلَ مَنْ جَمَّعَ بِنَا فِي الْمَدِينَةِ قَبْلَ مَقْدِمِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ فِي هَزْمٍ مِنْ حُرَّةِ بَنِي بَيَاضَةَ فِي نَقِيعِ الْخَضَمَاتِ قُلْتُ وَكَمْ أَنْتُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ؟ قَالَ أَرْبَعُونَ رَجُلًا