٣- عِدَّةٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللهِ عَنْ عَبْدِ الصَّمَدِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ قَالَ دَخَلَتِ امْرَأَةٌ عَلَى أَبِي عَبْدِ اللهِ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) فَقَالَتْ أَصْلَحَكَ اللهُ إِنِّي امْرَأَةٌ مُتَبَتِّلَةٌ فَقَالَ وَمَا التَّبَتُّلُ عِنْدَكِ قَالَتْ لا أَتَزَوَّجُ قَالَ وَلِمَ قَالَتْ أَلْتَمِسُ بِذَلِكَ الْفَضْلَ فَقَالَ انْصَرِفِي فَلَوْ كَانَ ذَلِكِ فَضْلا لَكَانَتْ فَاطِمَةُ (عَلَيْهِا السَّلام) أَحَقَّ بِهِ مِنْكِ إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ أَحَدٌ يَسْبِقُهَا إِلَى الْفَضْلِ. 
3. A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn abu ‘Abd Allah from ‘Abd al-Samad ibn Bashir who has said the following: “Once, a woman came to abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, and said, ‘I pray to Allah to keep you well, I am a celibate woman.’ He (the Imam) asked, ‘What does that mean to you?’ She replied, ‘I do not marry.’ He (the Imam) asked, ‘Why do you not marry?’ She replied, ‘I seek thereby excellence.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘You must change your mind. Had that been anything of excellence, Fatimah, ‘Alayha al-Salam, would have been more deserving of it than you because no one could succeed against her to excel.’” 