Imām ahmad Ibn ḥanbal’s Asceticism

It is related in Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal’s  biography that he was a ḥadīth
student of Sufyān ibn ʿUyayna . The teacher used to be very vigilant to
the extent that once he noticed that Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal  was not
present during a lesson of ḥadīth. So Sufyān  sent a student to fetch him,
but Imām Aḥmad  stated that he could not attend. When asked whether
this was due to any ailment or sickness, he openly and clearly replied,
“I only have a single pair of clothes which I have submitted for washing.
When my clothes are washed and returned I will be able to attend.” The
student who was sent to Imām Aḥmad  offered a few dinars to him so
that he could buy another pair of clothes, but he refused to accept his offer.
He then proposed to buy it on his behalf, but he refused again. The student
then stated, “If you will not accept the money as a gift then borrow it from
me.” Again Imām Aḥmad  refused the offer. Look at how much disdain
Imām Aḥmad had for this world!
Today we have everything in our possession, but like the Prophet
 stated and صدق رسول الله – the Prophet  spoke the truth –
the hunger for this world increases to such an extent that the more one
attains, the craving for gaining more increases. He stated, “Whoever has a
valley of gold will desire another, and when he receives that, he will desire
yet another.”
This is why on occasions like this I remember my honourable mother.
Whenever there was a discussion in her presence regarding this world,
wealth and material riches, she would refer to them as unclean and impure.
These people had similar dislike (for this world).
In the same way, once in my presence someone offered Shaykh  a
gift (money), and Shaykh  declined to take it once. That person insisted
a second time and then a third, but Shaykh  refused (to accept it). As the
person kept on persisting, Shaykh  took the note of money from him in
anger, shredded it into tiny pieces and threw it away. Shaykh’s  hatred and extreme dislike for this world, wealth and money is in front of my
eyes, especially on that occasion when he tore the note of money into as
many tiny pieces as possible and then threw it away. May Allāh Almighty
remove the love of this impure world from our hearts and replace it with
the love of the Leader of Both Worlds, the Noble Prophet .