Hadith 21501

Chapter 5

باب 5

(5) باب فِي أَنَّ الإِسْنَادَ مِنَ الدِّينِ وَأَنَّ الرِّوَايَةَ لَا تَكُونُ إِلَّا عَنْ الثِّقَاتِ وَأَنَّ جَرْحَ الرُّوَاةِ بِمَا هُوَ فِيهِمْ جَائِزٌ بَلْ وَاجِبٌ وَأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ مِنْ الْغِيبَةِ الْمُحَرَّمَةِ بَلْ مِنْ الذَّبِّ عَنْ الشَّرِيعَةِ الْمُكَرَّمَةِ

(5) Chapter: That Which is Related to the Statements 'The Chain of Narration is from the Religion'; 'Transmissions are not Taken Except from Trustworthy Narrators'; and 'Criticism of the Narrators With What is Permissible Regarding Them, Even Obligatory and That It is not the Prohibited Kind of Backbiting, Rather it is the Defense of the Noble Sharī'ah'
29
حَدَّثَنَا نَصْرُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ الْجَهْضَمِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا الأَصْمَعِيُّ، عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، قَالَ أَدْرَكْتُ بِالْمَدِينَةِ مِائَةً كُلُّهُمْ مَأْمُونٌ . مَا يُؤْخَذُ عَنْهُمُ الْحَدِيثُ يُقَالُ لَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِهِ .

Nasr bin Alī al-Jahdhamī narrated to us, al-Asma'ī narrated to us, on authority of Ibn Abī-Zinād, on authority of his father, he said:
'I met one hundred [transmitters] in al-Madīnah, each of whom were reliable. Narrations were not taken from one about who it was said, 'he is not from its people'.'

Reference: Sahih Muslim Introduction 30

In-book reference: Introduction, Narration 29