another about arithmetic, another about poetry, another about hadith, and yet another about some intricate problem.

Yaḥyā ibn Bukayr narrated from al-Layth ibn Saʿd, who said:
“I saw Abū al-Zinād followed by three hundred disciples—students of jurisprudence, poetry, and various other disciplines. Not long afterward he was left alone, and the people turned to Rabīʿah instead.

Rabīʿah used to say, ‘A handspan of favor is better than a fathom of knowledge.’

Abū Yūsuf reported from Abū Ḥanīfah, who said:
‘I arrived in Medina, went to Abū al-Zinād, and saw Rabīʿah. The people, however, were gathered around Rabīʿah, though Abū al-Zinād was the more learned of the two. I said to him, “You are the most learned man in your city, yet everyone follows Rabīʿah?” He answered, “Woe to you! A handful of fortune is better than a sackful of knowledge.”’

Aḥmad ibn Abī Khaythamah related from Muṣʿab ibn ʿAbd Allāh, who said:
‘Abū al-Zinād was the jurist of Medina. He was skilled in writing and accounting, serving as scribe for Khālid ibn ʿAbd al-Malik ibn al-Ḥārith ibn al-Ḥakam in Medina, and also for ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd ibn al-Khaṭṭāb. He later presented the financial records of the Medinan dīwān to Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Malik and sat with him in the company of Ibn Shihāb.

Hishām asked Ibn Shihāb, “In which month did ʿUthmān distribute the stipends to the people of Medina?”
He replied, “I do not know.”

Abū al-Zinād remarked, ‘We used to think that whatever Ibn Shihāb was asked, he possessed its knowledge.’

Hishām then questioned me, and I said, “In Muḥarram.”

Hishām said to Ibn Shihāb, “Abū Bakr, this is knowledge I have gained today.” He replied, “The gathering of the Commander of the Believers is indeed a setting in which knowledge should be shared.”

He continued: ‘Abū al-Zinād was an adversary of Rabīʿah al-Raʾy, and the two of them were the city’s jurists in their era. Al-Mājishūn, Yaʿqūb ibn Abī Salamah, used to support Rabīʿah against Abū al-Zinād. Al-Mājishūn was the first man of reputable standing in Medina to learn singing.’

Abū al-Zinād said: ‘My situation is like that of a wolf that persistently harried the people of a village, devouring…’