This is said about Amr ibn al-As, who had withdrawn from society at the end of the caliphate of Uthman ibn Affan, may God be pleased with him. When news reached him of Uthman's siege and subsequent execution, he said: "I am Abu Abdullah; if you scratch a sore, it bleeds." It is narrated that Amir al-Sha'bi used to say that the four most cunning men were: Mu'awiya, Amr ibn al-As, al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah, and Ziyad ibn Abihi.
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The closest English expressions and proverbs are:
“Don’t scratch old wounds.”
Meaning: Don't reopen old wounds.
“Don’t reopen old wounds.”
This is the closest and most common.
Meaning: Don't reopen old wounds.
“Let sleeping dogs lie.”
Meaning: Leave old, dormant matters alone and don't stir them up.
“Picking at a wound only makes it worse.”
Meaning: Tampering with a wound only makes it worse.
And the closest to the meaning of the Arabic proverb directly is:
“Don’t reopen old wounds.”
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يحكى هذا عن عمرو بن العاص، وقد كان اعتزل الناس في آخر خلافة عثمان بن عفان، رضي الله تعالى عنه، فلما بلغه حصره ثم قتله، قال: إنا أبو عبد الله إذا حككت قرحة أدميتها. روي عن عامر الشعبي أنه كان يقول الدهاة، أربعة: معاوية وعمرو بن العاص والمغيرة بن شعبة وزياد بن أبيه.
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