as well as Jarir ibn ʿAbd al-Hamid, Shuʿayb ibn Safwan, Yahya ibn Abi Zaʾida, al-Walid ibn Muslim, Muhammad ibn ʿUmar al-Waqidi, and a number of others.

Among those who narrated from him were: Abu Bakr ibn Abi al-Dunya, Ishaq al-Harbi, Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Baghindi, Ahmad ibn al-Husayn al-Sufi al-Saghir, Sulayman ibn Dawud al-Tusi, and many more.

He held the judgeship of the Eastern District during the caliphate of al-Mutawakkil. He was a leading personality—dignified, generous, much praised, and of great standing.

Sulayman al-Tusi said, “I heard Abu Hassān say, ‘I have been occupied with history for sixty years.’”

Ahmad ibn Hanbal was asked about Abu Hassān. He replied, “He used to be with Ibn Abi Dawud and was one of his intimates. As for what he believes today, I do not know.”

Ishaq al-Harbi related: “Abu Hassān al-Ziyadi told me that he saw the Lord of Might in a dream. He said, ‘I beheld a tremendous light that I could not possibly describe, and within it I saw a man whom I took to be the Prophet ﷺ, as though he were interceding with his Lord on behalf of a man from his community. Then I heard a voice say, “Has it not sufficed you that I revealed to you in Surah al-Raʿd, ‘And indeed your Lord is full of forgiveness for mankind despite their wrongdoing’ (13:6)?” Then I awoke.’”

Al-Khatib said, “Abu Hassān was one of the upright, trustworthy scholars. He held the judgeship of the Eastern District and was both generous and noble.”

Yusuf ibn al-Bahlul al-Azraq reported: “Yaʿqub ibn Shaybah told us that the day of ʿId dawned upon a man who possessed one hundred dinars and nothing else. A friend wrote to him seeking some help with expenses, so he sent him the entire hundred dinars. Before long, a note reached him from one of his brothers…"