300 Origin and progress of writing down historical facts. [No. 4. 



mimicated them to us orally and we impressed them in our memory, 

 you must do the same." 



There is a more simple and apparently more correct version of 

 this 7«adyth extant, it runs : " "We said to Abu Sa'yd, write down 

 these foidythes," and he replied: " We will not write them down. 

 Take them from us as we have taken them from the prophet." 



In another version Abu Nadhrah informs Abu Sa'yd that they 

 have written down Aadythes, and he ordered them to expunge them. 



" Abu Sha'ta relates that 'Abd Allah b. Mas'iid disapproved of 

 writing down 7*adythes." 



*U ^yo dJj^kG j ujU^Jb U^ j xjJj j*| U>oJ <xJU| &xs liJ ^jkfti «3Ui5jJ ^^^Jf 



" It is related by Sha'by (d. 105) that 'Abd al-Katadn, (d. 79) 

 the son of 'Abd Allah b. Mas'ud said, that he (and others) were in 

 the habit of writing down Aadythes which they heard. 'Abd Allah 

 (d. 32) observed it. He called a slave woman, who was his concu- 

 bine, and he sent for our writings, and when she had brought him 

 water, he washed them out." 



8. <JUlc Loj Jli oJ>*i.A> U^ ^d &li\ Jl&i ^±s.t ^«wo ^j d-tXa. 



"Ibn Ma' sud related a ^adyth and his son observed, You are not 

 correct. The father asked, How do you know it ? The son answer- 

 ed, I have written it down. He ordered him to bring the roll and 

 effaced it." 



9. \j*A.\ U^ UsAA* Jlfli lAls* 5 ZjXtf [xiS ^| ^ COJ^ [ Xdjl yi\ ] Jli 



" Abu Bordah (d. in 103) relates, I filled several volumes with 

 Aadythes, which I had heard from my father Abu (Miisa Ash'ary, d. 

 in 42 or 52). He destroyed my writings, and said, Take the M- 

 dythes from us in the same manner as we have taken them." 



Another version of this fotdyth is, that Abu Bordah and a freed 

 slave of his were in the habit of writing down the ^adythes which 

 they heard from Abu Musa. When he observed it, he washed out 

 their writing, which was probably on Gazelle skins or parchment. In 

 another version occur the words bUtf ^l ^ c^tf oii' " I filled a 

 book with what I heard from my father." 



