Aban ibn Abi Ayyash

At fifteen years of age, Aban met Sulaym ibn Qays who taught him about Shi'a Islam. Eventually, he was entrusted with the book of Sulaym ibn Qays.

After the Battle of Karbala, when he was starting to get old, he went to Shiraz. After that, he went to Basra where he met Hasan al-Basri and asked him about the authenticity of the book. Hasan answered "it’s all true". Aban then went to Mecca where he talked to Sahabas and Taba'een, and all agreed to the events as portrayed in the book. He was still unsure about some of the more explicit parts of the book, so he took it to the Shi'a Imam Ali ibn Hussain, whom happened to be in Mecca that year.

Two old Sahaba were accompanying Ali ibn Hussain: Abu Tufail and Umar ibn Abi-Salman. Ali ibn Hussain told one of the Sahabas to read it for him. For three days, they did nothing but read the book, and at the end Ali ibn Hussain declared the content authentic. Aban became a known and prominent Sahaba to Ali ibn Hussain, and then to the following two Shi'a Imams: Muhammad al-Baqir ibn Ali and Ja'far al-Sadiq ibn Muhammad Baqir.

While Abban himself is an extremely weak narrator. And it is one of those lucky persons about which there is consensus among both shia and sunni rijal scholars that he is weak and liar. But they (shias) have accepted from this weak/liar narrator not just few narrations but an entire book, which is sadly the foundation of all their major beliefs.

Abban bin Abi Ayyash in Shia Rijal: WEAK (DAEEF)

1. Rijal Al-Khoi No.22 , Abban bin Abi Ayash is weak according to Shaikh Toosi and Ibn Ghadairi. 2. See Rijal Tusi 3. See Rijal Ibn Gadairi 4. See Allama Al Hilli, Daeef Jiddan "Very Weak'

Other shia rijal books, confirming the same.

4. See Rijal Ibn Dawud 5. See Jami‘ Al-Ruwat 6. See Al-Mufid min Mujam Rijal Al-Hadith 7. See Mustadrakat Ilm Al-Rijal

Abban bin Abi Ayyash in Sunni Rijal: WEAK (DAEEF), ABANDONED (MATRUK), LIAR (KADDHAAB)

• Sahaba