Those who liked to relate hadith just as they heard it, and those who permitted otherwise

Ibn Awn said: Muhammad bin Sirin, al-Qasim bin Muhammad and Raja' bin Haywah were among those who strove to narrate hadith exactly as they heard it, and al-Hasan al-Basri, Ibrahim and al-Sha'bi were among those who did not strive for this.

Ibn Awn said: I said to Muhammad (Ibn Sirin): "So-and-so does not take care to narrate a hadith just as he heard it." He said: "If he were to take care to do so, it would be better for him."

Umarah said that Abu Ma'mar would follow even a grammatical error in a hadith, so that he could relate it just as he had heard it.

Ash'ath said that al-Hasan al-Basri and al-Sha'bi, both of them, saw no harm in moving parts of a hadith earlier or later. And Ibn Sirin would take pains to narrate a hadith just as he had heard it.

Isma'il bin Umayyah said: We would try to get Nafi' to correct grammatical errors in hadith, but he would refuse.

Al-A'mash said: I asked Abu al-Duha: "Are the words 'al-musawwirin'?" He said: "They are 'al-musawwirin'."

Jabir said: I asked Amir: "If I hear a grammatical error in a hadith, what should I do?" He said: "Correct it."