review what he has memorized more frequently than the first, for if he fails to do so it will slip from memory and be lost.

Someone may ask, “Is there a remedy or medicine for forgetfulness?” We reply, “Yes—by Allah’s grace, there is: writing.” For that reason Allah bestowed the gift of writing upon His servants, saying, “Recite in the name of your Lord who created, created man from a clot. Recite, and your Lord is the Most Generous, the One who taught by the pen” (Al-ʿAlaq 96:1-4). He first said, “Recite,” then followed it with, “the One who taught by the pen,” meaning: recite from what you have stored in memory; and if that is not possible, then recite from what you have written. Thus Allah has shown us how to treat the ailment of forgetfulness—by curing it through writing. Today, writing is even more accurate than before, for—praise be to Allah—we now have recording devices.

As for his phrase “from someone like him,” it means that the narrator must himself be upright and precise, and that he must transmit from someone who is likewise upright and precise. If an upright narrator reports from an open sinner, his report is not sound. Likewise, if an upright man with a strong memory narrates from someone with a weak memory who is often forgetful, his narration is not accepted and cannot be deemed authentic, because he did not receive it from a narrator as reliable as himself.