opened that pouch he would have been harmed—indeed, even killed. Yet a scholar’s ijtihad (independent reasoning) may sometimes move him to publicize a given ḥadith in order to revive the Sunnah; for that he shall receive the reward of his intention, even if his ijtihad proves mistaken.

ʿAwf al-Aʿrābī related from Saʿīd ibn Abī al-Ḥasan, who said:
“No one among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ narrated more reports from the Prophet ﷺ than Abū Hurayrah. When Marwān was governor of Madinah, he wanted to put all of Abū Hurayrah’s narrations into writing, but Abū Hurayrah refused and said, ‘Transmit them orally just as we have transmitted.’

When Abū Hurayrah declined, Marwān caught him unawares. He positioned a skilled scribe beside him, summoned Abū Hurayrah, and Abū Hurayrah began narrating while the scribe wrote until the whole body of his reports had been recorded.

Then Marwān said, ‘Do you realize that we have now written down all of your ḥadith?’

He replied, ‘Have you really done so?’

‘Yes,’ answered Marwān.

He said, ‘Then read them back to me.’

They read them aloud, whereupon Abū Hurayrah remarked, ‘You have certainly preserved them; but if you would follow my advice, you would erase them.’

So Marwān erased them. (1)

Haudhah ibn Khalīfah heard this directly from him.

Hammād ibn Zayd reported: ʿAmr ibn ʿUbayd al-Anṣārī narrated to me, and Abū al-Zuʿayziʿah, Marwān’s scribe, narrated to me that Marwān sent for Abū Hurayrah, questioned him, and seated me behind the couch while I wrote. When a full year had passed, he brought the document, placed Abū Hurayrah behind a curtain, and began asking him about what had been recorded; he neither added nor omitted a word, nor advanced nor delayed anything. (2)

I say: This is how true memorization should be.