It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The time is near when people will set out on journeys from distant places in search of knowledge, and at that time they will not find any scholar greater than the scholar of Madinah." The narrator says that this is exactly what happened, and people came to the service of Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him).