Benefits & Rulings:

➊ Prophetic traditions (ahadith) are a binding source of Islamic law. For this reason, the noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) would listen to and memorize hadiths with full effort and dedication. Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) was still in his childhood during the lifetime of the Prophet (peace be upon him), so he could only hear a limited number of hadiths directly from him. However, later he heard many narrations from senior Companions and memorized them, to the extent that he came to be regarded among those Companions who reported a large number of hadiths.

➋ The true and ultimate authority lies in the sayings of the Prophet (peace be upon him). The verdicts of other scholars do not hold the same status. Therefore, in every issue, it is essential to seek evidence from the Qur’an and authentic hadith.

➌ The statements of the Companions and the Successors (Tabi‘een) can only be used in cases where no Prophetic hadith is found. This is why the Tabi‘een used to write down the sayings of the Companions. However, Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) did not consider it appropriate to write other people's statements alongside Prophetic hadiths. He advised people to focus on memorizing the hadiths, not just the opinions and verdicts of others.

➍ The reference to walking on hard and soft ground means that one is not distinguishing between acceptable and unacceptable narrations. The Arabic phrase as-sa‘ba wa adh-dhulool can also be interpreted as: "You have begun to ride unruly and obedient animals alike," meaning one should avoid narrating from unreliable sources. The purpose of this expression is to emphasize that hadiths should only be taken from trustworthy and reliable narrators, so that nothing is mistakenly attributed to the Prophet (peace be upon him) that he did not actually say.