Hadrat Habbah al-‘Urani, may Allah have mercy on him, narrates that Hadrat ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: O people of Kufa! You are the foundation of the Arabs, and you are my city through which I confront (the enemy) if anything comes to me from here and there. Indeed, I have sent ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud, may Allah be pleased with him, to you, and I have chosen him for you. And in his matter, I have given you preference over myself.