Ishaq ibn Sayyar said, “I have never seen anyone whose demeanor was finer than his.” (1)

Abu Dawud remarked, “He heard from his father and later recited his memorized material back to him, and he was a man who spent the night in worship.” (2)

Al-Husayn ibn Abi al-Husayn ibn Abi Kamil related: “I heard Khaythamah say, ‘I went to Abu Dawud al-Sijistani and he dictated to me a hadith from al-ʿAbbas ibn al-Walid. I said, “Al-ʿAbbas also narrated it to me.” He asked, “Did you see him?” I replied, “Yes.” He said, “When did he die?” I answered, “In the year 271 AH.” That is Khaythamah’s report. As for ʿAmr ibn Duḥaym, he said that al-ʿAbbas died in Rabiʿ al-Akhir—specifying the very day—in the year 270 AH. From this I calculated that his total lifespan was one hundred years, eight months, and twenty-two days, and he remained robust to the end.’

Khaythamah ibn Sulayman also said, ‘One day al-ʿAbbas ibn al-Walid was joking with a maid of his; she pushed him, he fell, and his leg broke. Because of that he did not narrate to us for twenty days. Whenever we met the girl we would say, “May Allah requite you! You broke the shaykh’s leg and kept us from the hadith.”’

Ismaʿil ibn ʿAbd al-Rahman informed us in the year 93, and Abu Muhammad ibn Qudamah and al-Husayn ibn Ṣasra did likewise; Ahmad ibn ʿAbd al-Hamid and Ahmad ibn ʿAbd al-Rahman al-Husayni also narrated to us. They said:

‘Muhammad ibn Ghassan related to us; they said that ʿAbd al-Wahid ibn Muhammad al-Azdi told us; ʿAbd al-Karim ibn al-Muʾammal informed us…’