A man came to Amir al-Mu’minin Ali (a.s.) when he was in the company of his companions. The man offered greetings and said, “By Allah, I love you and acknowledge your Wilaya (Leadership with Divine Authority).” Amir al-Mu’minin Ali (a.s.) said to him, “What you say is not true.” He said, “Yes, by Allah, I love you and acknowledge your Wilaya. He repeated it three times.” Amir al-Mu’minin Ali (a.s.) said, “What you say is not true. You are not what you say you are. Allah created the spirits two thousand years before creating the bodies. He then presented to us those who love us. By Allah, I did not see your spirit among those presented to us. Where were you.” The man remained silent and did not talk back.” In an other hadith it is said that abu ‘Abdallah (a.s.) said, “He was in thefire.”