He then added, “This man has no sense; had he shown a little tact toward Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā, he would have become a real man.”

al-Ḥākim said: Abū ʿAlī the ḥāfiẓ narrated to us; Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq narrated to us; Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥīm al-Jawzajānī narrated, saying: I said to Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, “I intend to travel to Basra, and you know the hadith scholars and the relations among them.”

He replied, “When you arrive, ask about Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā al-Naysābūrī. When you see him, stay close to him.” He then said, “No one who has come to us is more knowledgeable of the hadith of al-Zuhrī than he is.” (1)

Ibn Abī Ḥātim said: My father wrote down hadith from Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā in Rayy; he is reliable and truthful, an imam among the imams of the Muslims. My father pronounced him reliable, and I heard him say, “He is the leading scholar of his time.” (2)

al-Nasāʾī said: “Reliable and trustworthy.”

Ibn Abī Dāwūd said: “Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā narrated to us; he was the Commander of the Faithful in hadith.”

al-Ḥākim said: Ibrāhīm ibn Isḥāq al-Qārī narrated to us; Yaḥyā ibn Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā narrated to us; I heard my father say, “Once two men narrate from a transmitter, the label of anonymity is removed from him.” (3)

al-Ḥusayn ibn Muḥammad al-Faqīh said: I heard Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā say: A man came forward to a scholar and said, “Teach me, and be concise.” He replied, “I shall indeed be concise for you; as for…"