The great muhaddith, Allamah Sakhawi writes about his teacher, one of the greatest hadith scholars this Ummah has ever produced, Hafiz Ibn Hajr Asqalani رحمهما الله:
“When he [Ibn Hajr] -May Allah have mercy on him- would sit with a group after Esha etc. for a discussion, he would have his subhah (tasbeeh beads) in his sleeves, where no one could see it. He would then keep on turning it while reciting tasbeeh, rather, most of his session would be spent in the zikr (of Allah). Sometimes it would fall from his sleeves and he would be distressed by it, as he wished to hide it (out of sincerity).”
Allamah Sakhawi mentioned this direct observation in the biography of his teacher, Hafiz Ibn Hajr under the heading “Making Use of Time“.
الجواهر والدرر في ترجمة شيخ الاسلام ابن حجر 1:171 دار ابن حزم
