Muhammad ibn Ali informed me, saying: Muhanna narrated to us that Abu Abd Allah mentioned from Yahya ibn Sa'id, from Shu'bah, from Abu Ishaq, from Aws ibn Damja', from Salman, who said: "He shall not lead you [in governance]." He [the narrator] said: "He means there should not be an Imam [ruler] from among them," referring to the mawali (non-Arab freedmen). I asked: "What does he mean by 'He shall not lead you'? Does he mean that a mawla should not lead any person in prayer?" He replied: "No, he intends the Caliphate, because the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: 'The Imams are from Quraysh,' so there shall not be a Caliph from other than Quraysh."
