وَحَدَّثَنِي أَبُو الطَّاهِرِ أَحْمَدُ بْنُ عَمْرِو بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَمْرِو بْنِ سَرْحٍ، قَالَ: أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ وَهْبٍ، قَالَ: قَالَ لِي مَالِكٌ: «اعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ لَيْسَ يَسْلَمُ رَجُلٌ حَدَّثَ بِكُلِّ مَا سَمِعَ، وَلَا يَكُونُ إِمَامًا أَبَدًا وَهُوَ يُحَدِّثُ بِكُلِّ مَا سَمِعَ».
Translation: Abū al-Ṭāhir Aḥmad b. ʿAmr transmitted from Ibn Wahb, who reported Mālik’s statement: A person who relates everything heard will not remain safe from error, nor can he become an authority to be followed while continuing that practice.
“Imām” here means an authority worth following in knowledge, not specifically the leader of ritual prayer. Reliable scholarship requires discernment: what to transmit, what to withhold and what level of confidence a report deserves.