 know of a man from cordoba a man of the book and a great servant whose name is ahmad ibn fath. i used to know him as a man of great modesty a seeker of knowledge and a student of literature who would outdo his companions in his modesty and surpass them in his piety. he would not look except in a circle of virtue and would not be seen except in a gathering of the pleasing. he had praiseworthy doctrines and a beautiful way and he was selfsufficient and went with it. then fate distanced my house from his house and the first news that came to me after i arrived at shatiba was that he had cast off his veil in love with a young man from the sons of the temptresses called ibrahim ibn ahmad. i know him and his qualities do not deserve the love of someone whose house is full of goodness servants vast wealth and abundant wealth. it is confirmed to me that he lowered his head exposed his face threw off his reins rolled up his sleeves and held back his desire. so he became a topic of conversation going back and forth between the transmitters of news and his mention was made jewish in the countries and his transmission spread throughout the earth in amazement and nothing came of that except the uncovering of the cover the spreading of the secret the hideousness of the talk the ugliness of the story and the wandering of his beloved from him altogether and the prohibition against seeing him at all and he was rich in that and had a wide alternative and a spacious isolation from it even if he had folded up his hidden secret and hidden his intentions.
وإني لأعرف من أهل قرطبة من أبناء الكتاب وجلة الخدمة من اسمه أحمد بن فتح، كنت أعهده كثير التصاون، من بغاة العلم وطلاب الأدب، يبذ أصحابه في الانقباض، ويفوقهم في الرعة ، لا ينظر إلا في حلقة فضل، ولا يرى إلا في محفل مرضي، محمود المذاهب، جميل الطريقة، بائنا بنفسه، ذاهبا بها، ثم أبعدت الأقدار داري من داره، فأول خبر طرأ علي بعد نزولي شاطبة أنه خلع عذاره في حب فتى من أبناء الفتانين يسمى ابراهيم بن أحمد، اعرفه، لا تستأهل صفاته محبة من بيته خير وخدم وأموال عريضة ووفر تالد. وصح عندي أنه كسف رأسه وأبدى وجهه ورمى رسنه وحسر محياه وشمر عن ذراعيه وصمد الشهوة. فصار حديثا للسمار، متراجعا بين نقلة الأخبار، وتهودي ذكره في الأقطار، وجرت نقلته في الأرض راحلة بالتعجب، ولم يحصل من ذلك إلا على كشف الغطاء، وإذاعة السر، وشنعة الحديث، وقبح الأحدوثة، وشرود محبوبه عنه جملة، والتحظير عليه من رؤيته البتة، وكان غنيا عن ذلك وبمندوحة واسعة ومعزل رحب عنه، ولو طوى مكنون سره، وأخفى بنيات 