He heard hadith from Abu Talib ibn Ghaylan and al-Jawhari. Among those who narrated from him were Abu al-Muʿammar al-Ansari and Abu al-ʿAlaʾ ibn ʿAqil. The hadith specialists nevertheless kept their distance from him, for al-Samʿani said: “I asked Abu al-Muʿammar al-Ansari about Abu Ghalib ibn Bishr, and he replied, ‘He kept drinking until he died’—meaning wine.” He was born in Rabiʿ al-Awwal, 434 AH, and died in Jumada al-Ula, 520 AH.
314 – Ibn ʿAydhun, Abu al-Hasan ʿAli ibn ʿAbd al-Jabbar ibn Salama *
The pre-eminent linguist of his age, Abu al-Hasan ʿAli ibn ʿAbd al-Jabbar ibn Salama ibn ʿAydhun al-Hudhali, the Tunisian, a centenarian. He was born in 428 AH. He met Ibn al-Birr (1) but broke off relations with him because of his shameless conduct (2), and he also encountered the poet Ibn Rashiq.
(*) Muʿjam al-Safar, vol. 2, pp. 286-287; Muʿjam al-Udabaʾ, vol. 14, pp. 8-10; Inbaʾ al-Ruwat, vol. 2, pp. 292-293; Tarikh al-Islam, 4:237/2; al-ʿIbar, vol. 4, p. 44; Talkhis Ibn Maktum, p. 145; ʿUyun al-Tawarikh, vol. 13, p. 452; Tabaqat Ibn Qadi Shahba, vol. 2, p. 158; Bughyat al-Wuʿat, vol. 2, p. 173; Shadharat al-Dhahab, vol. 4, p. 59.
(1) The initial consonant is pronounced with a kasra, as in the original manuscript. The author of al-Mushtabih (1/55) also records it with the kasra, saying: “With the kasra: Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ali ibn al-Barr, the linguist, teacher of Ibn al-Qattaʿ.” It is mistakenly vocalised with a fathah in Muʿjam al-Udabaʾ (14/9).
(2) Muʿjam al-Udabaʾ (14/9) relates: “I met him in the town of Mazr on the island of Sicily. I had intended to study under him, owing to his celebrated merit and profound command of the language. News, however, reached Ibn Mankud, the local ruler, that he drank wine. Although he had previously honoured him, this report angered him; he grew to dislike him and sent him the message: ‘The city is large, and drink is even more abundant here.’ Thus necessity forced him to leave the town, and I never managed to read anything with him.”