Saeed bin Jumhan said, I came to Abdullah bin Abu Awfa when he had lost his sight, and I greeted him.He asked me, "Who are you?"I replied, "I am Saeed bin Jumhan."He asked, "What became of your father?"I said, "The Azariqah killed him."He said, "May Allah curse the Azariqah, may Allah curse the Azariqah. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ told us that they are the dogs of the Fire."I asked, "Is it the Azariqah alone, or all of the Khawarij?"He answered, "Rather, all of the Khawarij."I said, "But the ruler oppresses the people and mistreats them."He took hold of my hand and squeezed it firmly, then said, "Woe to you, Ibn Jumhan. Stick to the great body of Muslims, stick to the great body of Muslims. If the ruler will listen to you, then go to him in his house and inform him of what you know. If he accepts it from you, well and good, otherwise leave him be, for you are no more knowledgeable than he is."
قال أتيت عبد الله بن أبي أوفى وهو محجوب البصر، فسلمت عليه، قال لي: من أنت؟ فقلت: أنا سعيد بن جمهان، قال: فما فعل والدك؟ قال: قلت: قتلته الأزارقة، قال: لعن الله الأزارقة، لعن الله الأزارقة، حدثنا رسول الله ﷺ: إنهم كلاب النار قال: قلت: الأزارقة وحدهم أم الخوارج كلها؟ قال: بلى، الخوارج كلها، قال: قلت: فإن السلطان يظلم الناس، ويفعل بهم، قال: فتناول يدي، فغمزها بيده غمزة شديدة، ثم قال: ويحك يا ابن جمهان، عليك بالسواد الأعظم، عليك بالسواد الأعظم، إن كان السلطان يسمع منك، فأته في بيته، فأخبره بما تعلم، فإن قبل منك، وإلا فدعه، فإنك لست بأعلم منه.
Ahmad narrated it (19415) from Abu Nadr, who said, "Hashraj bin Nubata Absi told us, Saeed bin Jumhan told me," and he related it.Hakim narrated it (3/571) through the route of Abdullah bin Mubarak, from Hashraj, with the same wording, up to his statement, "They are the dogs of Hellfire."Its isnad is hasan because of Hashraj bin Nubata and Saeed bin Jumhan, for both of them make the hadith hasan. Haythami said in Majma (5/230), "The narrators of Ahmad are trustworthy."Ibn Majah (173) and Ahmad (19130) both narrated it through the route of Ishaq bin Yusuf Azraq, from Amash, from Abdullah bin Abu Awfa, who said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, 'The Khawarij are the dogs of Hellfire.'"Amash did not hear from Abdullah bin Abu Awfa, as more than one critic has stated, among them Yahya bin Saeed Qattan, Ibn Main, Ahmad, and Abu Hatim Razi.His statement, "If the ruler will listen to you, then go to him in his house," contains guidance for whoever wants to advise the ruler. Still, the ruler is not obliged to accept the advice of every advisor, since he knows more about matters of governance, the administration of the country, and the care of the nation, as Abdullah bin Abu Awfa said, "for you are not more knowledgeable than he is."