Amr an-Nāqid narrated to us, Sufyān bin Uyaynah narrated to us, on authority of Hishām bin Hujayr, on authority of Tāwus, he said: ‘A book was brought to Ibn Abbās which contained the verdicts of Alī, may Allah be pleased with him, and he effaced but a small amount,’ and Sufyān bin Uyaynah indicated with his arm .

Hasan bin Alī al-Hulwānī narrated to us, Yahyā bin Ādam narrated to us, Ibn Idrīs narrated to us, on authority of al-A’mash, on authority of Abī Ishāq who said: ‘When they narrated these things after Alī, may Allah be pleased with him, a man from the companions of Alī said: ‘May Allah curse them. Did they corrupt every knowledge!?’

Alī bin Khashram narrated to us, Abū Bakr, meaning Ibn Ayyāsh, informed us, he said ‘I heard al-Mughīrah saying: ‘There are no Ḥadīth on authority of Alī, may Allah be pleased with him, that are confirmed except from the companions of Abd Allah bin Mas’ūd.’

Hasan bin ur-Rabī’ narrated to us, Hammād bin Zayd narrated to us, on authority of Ayyūb and Hishām , on authority of Muhammad ; and Fuḍayl narrated to us on authority of Hishām ; he said Mukhlad bin Husayn narrated to us, on authority of Hishām , on authority of Muhammad bin Sīrīn , that he said: ‘Indeed this knowledge is faith, so carefully consider from whom you take your faith’.

Abū Ja’far Muhammad bin us-Sabbāh narrated to us, Ismā’īl bin Zakariyyā’ narrated to us, on authority of Āsim il-Ahwal, on authority of Ibn Sīrīn that he said: ‘They would not ask about the chains of narration, and when the Fitnah occurred, they said: ‘Name for us your men’. So Ahl us-Sunnah would be regarded, and their Ḥadīth were then taken, and Ahl ul-Bi’dah would be regarded, and their Ḥadīth were not taken’.

Ishāq bin Ibrāhīm al-Hanthalī narrated to us, Īsā, and he is Ibn Yūnus, informed us, al-Awzā’ī narrated to us, on authority of Sulyamān bin Mūsā, he said: ‘I came across Tāwus and said: ‘So-and-so narrated to me such-and-such’. Then he said: ‘If your companion is trustworthy, then take from him.’

Abd Allah bin Abd ir-Rahman ad-Dārimī narrated to us, Marwān, meaning Ibn Muhammad ad-Dimashqī informed us, Sa’īd bin Abd il-Azīz narrated to us, on authority of Sulaymān bin Mūsā, he said, I said to Tāwus: ‘So-and-so narrated to me like this-and-that’. He said: ‘If your companion is trustworthy, then take from him.’

Nasr bin Alī al-Jahdhamī narrated to us, al-Asma’ī narrated to us, on authority of Ibn Abī-Zinād, on authority of his father, he said: ‘I met one hundred in al-Madīnah, each of whom were reliable. Narrations were not taken from one about who it was said, ‘he is not from its people’.’

Abū Bakr ibn in-Naḍr bin Abīn-Naḍr narrated to me, he said Abūn-Naḍr Hāshim bin ul-Qāsim narrated to me, Abū Aqīl, companion of Buhayyah, narrated to us, he said: ‘I was sitting near al-Qāsim bin Ubayd Allah and Yahyā bin Sa’īd , when Yahyā said to al-Qāsim: ‘Oh Abā Muhammad! Indeed it is gravely harmful for the likes of you to be asked about something from the affair of this Dīn, and then knowledge of it is not found with you, and no relief ’ -or- ‘…knowledge and no articulation’. So al-Qāsim said : ‘Where did that come from?’ [Yahyā] said: ‘It is because you are the son of two Imāms of guidance- a descendent of Abu Bakr and Umar.’ [al-Qāsim] said to him: ‘More harmful than that- according to whoever reflects about Allah- is to speak without knowledge or to take [Ḥadīth] from someone who is not trustworthy’. [Abū Aqīl] said: ‘So [Yahyā bin Sa’īd] was quiet and did not respond to him’.

Bishr bin ul-Hakam al-Abdī narrated to me, he said, I heard Sufyān bin Uyaynah saying, they informed me on authority of Abī Aqīl, companion of Buhayyah, that a descendent of Abd Allah bin Umar was asked about something that he did not have knowledge about, so Yahyā bin Sa’īd said to him: ‘By Allah, indeed it is a grave matter that the likes of you, a descendent of two Imāms of guidance – meaning Umar and Ibn Umar – is asked about a matter and you have no knowledge of it’. So [al-Qāsim] said: ‘By Allah, more grave than that according to Allah, and to whoever reflects about Allah, is to speak without knowledge or to report on authority of one who is not trustworthy’. said that Abū Aqīl Yahyā bin al-Mutawakkil witnessed them both when they said that.

Ubayd Allah bin Sa’īd narrated to us, he said, I heard an-Naḍr saying: ‘Ibn Awn was asked about the Ḥadīth of Shahr and he was standing at the threshold of the door, so said: ‘Indeed they criticized Shahr, indeed they criticized Shahr’. Muslim, may Allah have mercy on him, said ‘He means- the tongues of men were busy criticizing him’.’

Hajjāj bin ush-Shā’ir narrated to me, Shabābah narrated to us, he said, Shu’bah said: ‘I had met Shahr then abandoned transmitting from him’.

Muhammad bin Abd Allah bin Quhzādh, from the people of Marw, narrated to me, he said Alī bin Husayn bin Wāqid informed me, he said Abd Allah bin al-Mubārak said, I said to Sufyān ath-Thawrī: ‘Indeed Abbād bin Kathīr, about whose condition you are aware, when he related he introduced a grave matter- do you believe that it should be said to the people ‘Do not take from him?’ Sufyān said: ‘Indeed!’ Abd Allah said: ‘So when I was in an assembly and Abbād was mentioned there, I praised him regarding his Dīn and said: ‘Do not take from him.’ Muhammad said, Abd Allah bin Uthmān narrated to us, he said, my father said, Abd Allah bin al-Mubārak said: ‘I ended up in an assembly of Shu’bah, and he said: ‘This is Abbād bin Kathīr so be warned against him.’

Al-Faḍl bin Sahl narrated to me, he said, I asked Mu’allā ar-Rāzī about Muhammad bin Sa’īd whom Abbād transmitted from, so he informed me about what Īsā bin Yūnus said: ‘I was at his door and Sufyān was with , then when he came out I asked [Sufyān] about him. So he informed me that he was a liar.’

Al-Faḍl bin Sahl narrated to me, he said Yazīd bin Hārūn narrated to us, he said Khalīfah bin Mūsā informed me, he said: ‘I entered upon Ghālib bin Ubayd Allah so he began dictating to me ‘Mak’hūl narrated to me this’ and ‘Mak’hūl narrated to me that’. So he prepared to answer the call of nature and stood up, then I looked in his notebook and in it was ‘Abān narrated to me, on authority of Anas’ and ‘Abān on authority of so-and-so’. So I abandoned and stood up ’. I heard al-Hasan bin Alī al-Hulwānī saying: ‘I saw in one of the books of Affān a Ḥadīth of Hishām Abīl-Miqdām meaning a Ḥadīth of Umar bin Abd il-Azīz. ‘Hishām said: ‘A man said to be Yahyā bin so-and-so narrated to me, on authority of Muhammad bin Ka’b…’ [Al-Hulwānī] said, I said to Affān: ‘They would say Hishām heard it from Muhammad bin Ka’b’. So [Affān] said: ‘Indeed Hishām was stricken with regards to this Ḥadīth for he would say ‘Yahyā narrated to me on authority of Muhammad’, then he claimed afterwards that he heard it from Muhammad ’.’

Muhammad bin Abd Allah bin Quhzādh narrated to me, he said I heard Abd Allah bin Uthmān bin Jabalah saying, I said to Abd Allah bin al-Mubārak: ‘Who is this man from whom you transmit the Ḥadīth of Abd Allah bin Amr, ‘The day of Fitr is the day of prizes…’?’ said: ‘Sulaymān bin al-Hajjāj. Look at what I placed in your hands about him’. Ibn Quhzādh said I heard Wahb bin Zam’ah mentioning about Sufyān bin Abd il-Mālik, he said, Abd Allah –meaning Ibn al-Mubārak- said: ‘I saw Rawh bin Ghutayf, the companion of blood the amount of a Dirham , and I took a seat in one of his audiences. Then I began to become ashamed for my companions to see me sitting with him while his Ḥadīth are disapproved of.’

Ibn Quhzādh narrated to me, he said, I heard Wahb saying, on authority of Sufyān , on authority of Ibn al-Mubārak, he said: ‘Baqiyyah is truthful of tongue however he transmits [Ḥadīth] from those who approach and from those who turn their backs on ’.

Qutaybah bin Sa’īd narrated to us, Jarīr narrated to us, on authority of Mughīrah, on authority of ash-Sha’bī, he said: ‘al-Hārith al-A’war ul-Hamdānī narrated to me, and he is a liar’.

Abū Āmir Abd Allah bin Barrād al-Ash’arī narrated to us, Abū Usāmah narrated to us, on authority of Mufaḍḍal, on authority of Mughīrah, he said I heard ash-Sha’bī saying: ‘al-Hārith al-A’war narrated to me,’ and he [ash-Sha’bī] was testifying that he was one of the liars’.

Qutaybah bin Sa’īd narrated to us, Jarīr narrated to us, on authority of Mughīrah, on authority of Ibrāhīm , he said, Alqamah said: ‘I memorized the Qur’ān in two years’. Al-Hārith said: ‘The Qur’ān is easy; the revelation [i.e. the secret revelation to Alī in the belief of the Shī’ah] is more difficult ’.