I accompanied Ibn ‘Umar (radhi-yAllaahu ‘anhumaa) for 34 months, and [during this time] whenever he was asked a question, he would respond with: I do not know. He then turned to me and said: Do you know what these [people] wanted, they wanted to use our backs as a bridge for themselves to Hell.
Category: Knowledge
Act according to what you have learnt
Learn, learn, and when you have learnt, then act [according to what you have learnt].
Until when will a man continue to seek knowledge
Until when will a man [continue to] write hadeeth? He said: Until he dies, and the remaining ink will [then] be poured into his grave.
A loaf of bread with pickles
We used to pass by [Imaam] al-Baghawee, and ad-Daaraqutnee [who at the time was only] a small boy, would walk behind us – in his hand was a loaf of bread with pickles on it.
Indeed I have memorised it all
I am not concerned if the book of Sufyaan was stolen from me, for indeed I have memorised it all.
Dictated 20,000 hadeeth to us from memory
‘Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Mahdee dictated 20,000 hadeeth to us from memory.
Narrating hadeeth and not adopting it
Do you take this hadeeth O Abaa ‘Abdillaah? So he said: When I narrate an authentic hadeeth on the authority of the Messenger of Allaah and do not adopt it, then I testify to you [all] that I have lost my mind.
I have not memorised anything and then forgotten it
I have not heard anything except that I have memorised it, and I have not memorised anything and then forgotten it.
Seek benefit from them
I heard a talk from ‘Alee ibn al-Madeenee which amazed me; He read to us the hadeeth of al-ghaar, then said: Certainly, these ahaadeeth have been relayed to us so we can seek benefit from them, [and] not be amazed by them.
The importance of the chain of narration
Do not look at the [text of the] hadeeth, rather look at the isnaad; If it is authentic [then look at the text of the hadeeth], otherwise do not. So do not be lured by [the text of] a hadeeth if it’s isnaad is not authentic.