Muhammad bin Muslim
Muḥammad ibn Muslim al-Thaqafī al-Kūfī was a Shia Muslim muhaddith, qadi and an ascetic who was highly regarded in the legal circles of Kufa. He was a prominent companion of fifth Shia Imam Muhammad al-Baqir and his son and successor Ja'far al-Sadiq, and is considered one of the People of Consensus by Shia Muslims. The scholars of rijal regard him as the most learned jurist among Shia hadith transmitters. According to a hadith from Ja'far al-Sadiq, Muhammad b. Muslim was one of the revivers of the teachings of Muhammad al-Baqir.
early life
Muhammad was born in Kufa. He was a [mawla|] of Banu Thaqif and his kunya was Abu Ja'far. In rijal sources, several epithets have been attributed to him, including al-Awqas, al-A'war, al-Haddaj, al-Qasir, al-Tahhan, al-Samman, al-Ta'ifi, and al-Thaqafi.Scholarly Status
Muhammad studied under Muhammad al-Baqir in Medina for four years. According to a report, Jafar al-Sadiq counted Muhammad b. Muslim among the trustees of his father, al-Baqir, in matters of religion and as a protector of the Shia. Ja'far al-Sadiq would refer the people who were not able to stay in contact with him to Muhammad. According to a hadith, Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq said that "None of the Shia were more knowledgeable in fiqh than Muhammad."It is reported that primary Sunni figures such as Abu Hanifa would refer to him in scholarly issues.
He reportedly heard thirty-thousand hadiths from al-Baqir and sixteen thousand hadiths from Imam al-Sadiq.