It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The most merciful of my Ummah towards my Ummah is Abu Bakr; the sternest of them in the matter of Allah is Umar; the most truthful of them in modesty is Uthman; the foremost reciter of the Book of Allah is Ubayy bin Ka'b; the most expert of them in the knowledge of inheritance (fara'id) is Zayd bin Thabit; and the most knowledgeable of them about the lawful and the unlawful is Mu'adh bin Jabal. Know that every nation has a trustee (amin), and the trustee of this nation is Abu Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah." This chain is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim), but they did not record it with this wording; they agreed, with this chain of theirs, only on the mention of Abu Ubaydah (may Allah be pleased with him), and I have explained its reason in my book "al-Talkhis".

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he took hold of the stirrup of the mount of Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him), so Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O cousin of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Step aside," to which Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) replied: "This is how we treat (with respect) our elders and our scholars." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of Imam Muslim, but the two Shaykhs did not record it. (Imam al-Hakim says:) Regarding the virtues of Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him), my intention was to begin with the hadith about the compilation of the Qur'an, since it contains many of his merits; but since the two Shaykhs agreed on recording it, I have left it out.

It is narrated from Yahya bin Sa'id that when Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) passed away, Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Today a great scholar (habr) of this Ummah has departed, and it is hoped that Allah Almighty will make Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) his successor."

It is narrated from al-Sha'bi that knowledge is taken from six of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The knowledge of Sayyiduna Umar, Abdullah bin Mas'ud and Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with them) resembled one another, and they would benefit from one another; while the knowledge of Sayyiduna Ali, Ubayy bin Ka'b and Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with them) resembled one another, and they would draw from one another. The narrator says: I asked al-Sha'bi: Was Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) also counted among these (great scholars)? He said: He was one of the eminent jurists.

It is narrated from al-Salt bin Bahram that a man who attended the funeral of Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) told me that when he was buried, Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) stood at his grave and said: "This is how knowledge departs."

It is narrated from Amr bin Dinar that Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas and Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with them both) attended a funeral. When Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him) wanted to mount, Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) took hold of his stirrup. Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O my nephew! Step aside." He replied: "No, this is how scholars are treated."

It is narrated from Ali bin Zayd bin Jud'an that when Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) was buried, Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) threw dust upon him and then said: "This is how knowledge is buried."

It is narrated from Ammar bin Abi Ammar that when Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) passed away, we were sitting with Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) in the shade of a palace, and he said: "This is how knowledge departs; today a great deal of knowledge has indeed been buried."

It is narrated from Mus'ab bin Abdullah al-Zubayri that among the allies of Banu Nawfal bin Abd Manaf is Sayyiduna Ya'la bin Munyah (may Allah be pleased with him). Munyah is the name of his mother, who was the daughter of Ghazwan bin Jabir of Banu Mazin, while his father's name is Umayyah bin Abi Ubayd bin Hammam bin al-Harith bin Bakr.

It is narrated from Yahya bin Ma'in that Ya'la's father's name was Umayyah and his mother's name was Munyah.