Qais bin Abad said that we were with Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). Whenever he attended a gathering place, or climbed a hill, or descended into a valley, he would affirm Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). I said to a man from Banu Yashkur, "Come with us to the Commander of the Faithful, so that we may ask him about his statement, 'Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) have spoken the truth.'" So we went to him and said, "O Commander of the Faithful! We have seen that whenever you attend a gathering place or climb a hill, you say: 'Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) have spoken the truth.' Has the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) made any covenant with you regarding this?" He turned away, but when we insisted, he said: "By Allah! The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not make any covenant with me, except for what he took from the people. But the people attacked Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) and martyred him, and besides me, regarding this (caliphate), there was no one in a worse state or with worse deeds than me. I thought that indeed I was more entitled to it than them, so I assumed it. Allah knows best whether we were right or mistaken."