Ahmad 7355

Its isnad is sahih. Bukhari related it, 11:125, from Ibn Madini, and Muslim, 2:314, from Amr Naqid and Zuhayr bin Harb, all three of them from Sufyan, with the same chain. But in their version, it reads, "seeking refuge from the hardship of trial, the depths of misery, evil judgment, and the gloating of enemies," and the wording given here is Bukhari's. Neither of them mentioned the number of these three things. In Bukhari's version, Sufyan said, "The hadith has three phrases, and I added one myself, but I do not know which of them it was." In Muslim's version from Amr Naqid, Sufyan said, "I doubt that I added one of them."Bukhari also related it, 11:449, from Musaddad from Sufyan, with this same isnad, with the wording, "From the Prophet ﷺ, who said, 'Seek refuge in Allah from the hardship of trial...'" making it a hadith consisting only of speech.What seems clear to me is that Ahmad's version from Sufyan is the best of them, and that Sufyan was uncertain between the two phrases "the hardship of trial" and "evil judgment," and perhaps he later forgot and added "the hardship of trial."Al-juhd, with the jim vowelled either fatha or damma, means hardship. Darak al-shaqaa, with the ra vowelled fatha, though it may also be left unvowelled, means overtaking and catching up. Al-shaqaa means destruction, and it is also used for the cause that leads to destruction. This is what Hafiz said in Fath [Bari].