Abu Dawud said: Hamzah ibn Saʿid al-Marwazi—who was trustworthy—narrated to us:
“I asked Abu Bakr ibn ʿAyyash, saying, ‘Have you heard what occurred with Ibn ʿUlayyah concerning the Quran?’
He replied, ‘Woe to you! Whoever claims that the Quran is created is, in our view, an unbelieving heretic, an enemy of Allah. We neither sit with him nor speak to him.’

Yahya ibn Ayyub transmitted from Abu ʿAbd Allah al-Nakhaʿi, who said:
“For fifty years no bedding was ever spread out for Abu Bakr ibn ʿAyyash.”

Ibn Abi Shaykh related: Yahya ibn Saʿid told us:
“I journeyed with Abu Bakr ibn ʿAyyash to Mecca, and I have never seen anyone more scrupulous. A man presented him with some fresh dates; when he learned they had been taken from an orchard belonging to Khalid ibn Salamah al-Makhzumi, he went to Khalid’s family, sought their permission, and then gave away the value of the dates in charity.”

Abu ʿAbd Allah al-Muʿayṭi said:
“I saw Abu Bakr ibn ʿAyyash in Mecca. Sufyan ibn ʿUyaynah came to him and sat down before him in humility. A man approached Sufyan to ask about a hadith, whereupon he said, ‘Do not ask me about a hadith while this shaykh is seated here.’ ”
Yaʿqub ibn Shaybah transmitted this from al-Muʿayṭi, adding: “Abu Bakr then began to say, ‘O Sufyan, how are you, and how is your father’s household?’ ”

Ahmad ibn Hanbal said:
“I heard Abu Bakr say, ‘ʿAbd al-Malik ibn ʿUmayr said to me, “Narrate to me.” I used to narrate to Abu Ishaq al-Sabiʿi, and he would listen attentively; and I would narrate to al-Aʿmash, and he would ask me to repeat.’ ”

Abu Hisham (1) al-Rifaʿi said:
“I heard Abu Bakr say, ‘I am two years older than Sufyan al-Thawri.’”