قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إنَّ العلماءَ ورثةُ الأنبياءِ وإنَّ الأنبياءَ لم يُورِّثوا دينارًا إنما وَرَّثوا علمًا
The Prophet ﷺ said: The scholars are the heirs of the Prophets, and the Prophets do not leave behind dinar, but they only leave behind knowledge.
When first learning about Hadith sciences, it can feel a bit dry, as if it is just rules and categories without real examples. To give the subject some life, this page highlights the virtues of the scholars who gave their lives to preserving the Sunnah, something anyone can see by simply looking at their biographies.
Their Incredible Memory
عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ إِمَامِ أَحْمَدَ قَالَ عَنْ أَبِي زُرْعَةَ الرَّازِيِّ: "كَانَ أَحْمَدُ بْنُ حَنْبَلٍ قَدْ حَفِظَ أَلْفَ أَلْفِ حَدِيثٍ." قِيلَ: "كَيْفَ عَلِمْتَ ذَاكَ؟" قَالَ: "ذَكَرْتُ لَهُ أَبْوَابًا، وَتَحْتَ كُلِّ بَابٍ الْأَحَادِيثَ الَّتِي تَتَعَلَّقُ بِهِ، فَلَمَّا جَمَعْتُهَا، بَلَغَتْ مِلْيُونَ حَدِيثٍ."
Abdullah ibn Imam Ahmad narrated from Abu Zur'ah ar-Razi: "Ahmad ibn Hanbal had memorized one million hadith." It was said: "How do you know that?" He replied: "I mentioned to him chapter headings, and under each heading he knew the hadith connected to it. When it was all gathered, it reached a million hadith."
قَالَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ التُّسْتَرِيُّ: سَمِعْتُ أَبَا زُرْعَةَ يَقُولُ: "مَا سَمِعَتْ أُذُنَايَ عِلْمًا قَطُّ إِلَّا وَعَاهُ قَلْبِي، وَكُنْتُ أَمُرُّ فِي سُوقِ بَغْدَادَ فَأَسْمَعُ أَصْوَاتَ الْمُغَنِّيَاتِ مِنْ غُرَفِ الْبِيُوتِ، فَأَسُدُّ أُذُنَيَّ مَخَافَةَ أَنْ يَقَعَ ذَلِكَ فِي قَلْبِي."
Abu Ja'far al-Tustari said: "I heard Abu Zur'ah say: 'My ears have never heard any type of knowledge except that my heart retained it. I used to walk in the market in Baghdad and would hear from the rooms the voices of female singers, so I would put my fingers into my ears, fearing that my heart would retain it.'"
قَالَ أَبُو زُرْعَةَ: "حَفِظْتُ سِتَّ مِائَةِ أَلْفِ حَدِيثٍ كَمَا يَحْفَظُ النَّاسُ: قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ."
Abu Zur'ah said: "I memorized six hundred thousand hadith just like people memorize: 'Say, He is Allah, the One.'"
Their Truthfulness and Precision
ذُكِرَ الإِمَامُ أَحْمَدُ فِي حَضْرَةِ أَبِي بَكْرٍ الْوَرَّاقِ فَقَالَ: "الإِمَامُ أَحْمَدُ إِمَامُنَا، وَيُقَدَّمُ عِندَنَا فِي كُلِّ شَيْءٍ." فَقِيلَ لَهُ: "بِمَ تَقُولُ ذَلِكَ؟" قَالَ: "سُئِلَ عَنْ سِتِّينَ أَلْفَ مَسْأَلَةٍ، وَكُنْتُ أَسْمَعُ، فَمَا أَجَابَ عَنْ وَاحِدَةٍ مِنْهَا إِلَّا قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا فُلَانٌ، أَوْ أَخْبَرَنَا فُلَانٌ."
When Imam Ahmad was mentioned in the presence of Abu Bakr al-Warraq, he said: "Imam Ahmad is our leader, and he is given precedence with us in everything." It was said: "Upon what basis do you say this?" He replied: "He was asked about 60,000 matters, and I was listening; he did not answer a single one of them except by saying: 'So-and-so narrated to us' or 'So-and-so informed us.'"
Their Sacrifice for the Religion
قَالَ إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ رَاهُوْيَهْ: "لَوْلا أَحْمَدُ لَذَهَبَ الإِسْلامُ."
Ishaq ibn Rahawayh said: "Had Ahmad not sacrificed himself, Islam would have passed away."
قَالَ ابْنُ أَبِي حَاتِمٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ: "سَمِعْتُ أَبِي يَقُولُ: أَوَّلُ سَنَةٍ خَرَجْتُ فِيهَا فِي طَلَبِ الْحَدِيثِ، غِبْتُ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ. وَعَدَدْتُ خُطَايَ مَاشِيًا فَزَادَتْ عَلَى أَلْفِ فَرْسَخٍ، ثُمَّ تَرَكْتُ الْعَدَدَ."
Abu Hatim ar-Razi’s son said: "I heard my father say: The first year I traveled in pursuit of hadith, I was gone for seven years. I counted the distance I walked on foot to be more than one thousand Farsakh (four thousand miles), and I ceased counting after that."
قَالَ: "سِرْتُ مِنَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ إِلَى مِصْرَ مَاشِيًا، ثُمَّ إِلَى الرَّمْلَةِ، ثُمَّ إِلَى دِمَشْقَ، ثُمَّ إِلَى أَنْطَاكِيَةَ، ثُمَّ إِلَى طَرْسُوسَ، ثُمَّ رَجَعْتُ إِلَى حِمْصَ، ثُمَّ ذَهَبْتُ إِلَى الرَّقَّةِ، ثُمَّ رَكِبْتُ إِلَى الْعِرَاقِ، وَكُلُّ ذَلِكَ وَأَنَا ابْنُ عِشْرِينَ سَنَةً."
He said: "I journeyed from Bahrain to Egypt by foot, then to Ramlah, then to Damascus, then to Antioch, then to Tarsus, and then I returned to Hims. From there I went to al-Riqqah, and then I rode to Iraq — and I was only twenty years old at the time."
قَالَ: "أَقَمْتُ فِي الْبَصْرَةِ سَنَةَ إِحْدَى وَأَرْبَعِينَ وَمِائَتَيْنِ، وَبِعْتُ ثِيَابِي، وَذَهَبْتُ أَيَّامًا لَا آكُلُ فِيهَا، حَتَّى أَعْلَمْتُ صَاحِبِي فَأَعْطَانِي دِينَارًا، فَأَخَذْتُ نِصْفَهُ."
He said: "I stayed in Basrah for the entire year of 241H. I sold my clothes until nothing remained. I went hungry for two days, so I informed my companion, and he gave me half a dinar."
قَالَ: "وَنَزَلْنَا مَرَّةً مِنَ الْبَحْرِ، وَقَدْ نَفِدَ زَادُنَا، فَمَشَيْنَا ثَلَاثَةَ أَيَّامٍ لَا نَأْكُلُ شَيْئًا."
He said: "On one occasion we landed from the sea, and our provisions had finished. We walked for three days without eating anything."