Abdullah bin Salamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Three of us came to Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him): one man was from my people and the other, I think, was from the tribe of Banu Asad. He (may Allah be pleased with him) sent the two of them off in a direction and said: You two are sturdy men, so remain firm in your religion. Then he (may Allah be pleased with him) went out and relieved himself, then came out, took a handful of water, wiped with it, and began reciting the Qur'an. The narrator says: He found us surprised, so he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would relieve himself, then recite the Qur'an and eat meat with us, and nothing kept him (peace and blessings be upon him) from the Qur'an except janabah (major ritual impurity); the narrator sometimes used another word meaning: held him back.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الطهارة / 414