to the village, and he would not be satisfied with us (1) until he had served us food. He was an elderly man of generous heart, and his village was Bashan (2), one farsakh from the provincial seat.

Ali ibn al-Bukhari informed me; Abu al-Yaman al-Kindi—in the year 600—told us; ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad told us; Ahmad ibn ʿAli the ḥāfiẓ told us; Muhammad ibn ʿUmar ibn Bukayr narrated to us; al-Husayn ibn Ahmad al-Ṣaffār narrated to us; Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Yasin narrated to us; I heard Ishaq ibn Muhammad ibn Burjah say:

Malik ibn Sulayman said, “Ibrahim ibn Tahman had a distinguished stipend from the public treasury which he would draw upon regularly, and he was liberal with it.

He was once (3) questioned in the Caliph’s court, whereupon he answered, ‘I do not know.’

They said to him, ‘You receive such-and-such every month, yet you cannot answer a single question?’

He replied, ‘I only accept payment for what I do know. If I were to take payment for what I do not know, the public treasury would be exhausted on my account, and still my ignorance would not be exhausted.’

The Commander of the Faithful admired his answer, ordered that he be given a handsome reward, and increased his stipend (4).

I say: The ḥadith scholar Muhammad ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿAmmar was singular in claiming that Ibrahim ibn Tahman is weak and that his narrations are inconsistent.

Al-Daraqutni and others said, ‘He is reliable; the only criticism directed at him concerns his inclination toward irjāʾ.’

Al-Jawzajani remarked, ‘A distinguished man, yet accused of irjāʾ (5).’

Al-Sulaymani indicated the same.