Ahmad 7654

Its chain is sahih. It has already appeared as 7371, through the narration of Ibn Uyayna, and as 7372 and 7523, through the narration of Abdul-Wahhab bin Abdul-Majid, both narrating from Ayub, with this wording, and we pointed out many of its routes of transmission at the beginning.Important note. There appears here, in the three original manuscripts, before this hadith, another hadith with this same chain, the chain being repeated, and its wording matching the wording of this hadith. This makes it a meaningless repetition. Its wording in manuscripts K and M reads, "Do not name yourselves by my name, nor take my kunya as your kunya," that is, with the addition of the word "no," which turns it into a prohibition covering both naming and taking the kunya, together.Written in the margin of that, in M, is the following, "Thus it is in another copy, it says, 'Do not name yourselves by my name,' but the well-known version is 'Name yourselves by my name,' without the 'no,' as in the hadith that follows." This is in the handwriting of Shaykh Abdullah bin Salim Basri.I have concluded, indeed I have become fully certain, that this error came from some of the copyists, after which some of them simply followed the others in it. First, because Hafiz bin Kathir mentioned this hadith with this chain, in Jami al-Masanid wal-Sunan 7:271, only once, with this correct wording, "Name yourselves," without the word "no." He mentioned it in the narration of Muhammad bin Sirin, from Abu Hurairah. Had the other, erroneous narration, the one containing the word "no," been established with him in the Musnad, he would have mentioned it, and indeed he would also have pointed out the discrepancy it has with the correct narration.Second, Ibn Hajar mentioned in Fath al-Bari 10:471–473 everything that had come down on this subject, of hadiths, narrations, and wordings, in all their variations. He probably investigated the matter, as was his custom, more thoroughly than anyone else had. Yet he made no mention whatsoever of this narration, despite the strong and obvious occasion calling for it. For he said, "Tabari related a fourth position, which is the prohibition of naming anyone Muhammad absolutely, and likewise taking Abu Qasim as a kunya absolutely." Then he cited, meaning Tabari, through the route of Salim bin Abu Jaad, who said, "Umar wrote, 'Do not name anyone with the name of a prophet.'" And he argued for the holder of this view with what he narrated through the route of Hakam bin Atiya, from Thabit, from Anas, raising it to the Prophet, "They name them Muhammad, then they curse them." This is a hadith recorded by Bazzar, and Abu Yaala as well, and its chain is weak.Had this narration, of the hadith of Abu Hurairah, been established in the Musnad with this sahih chain, Ibn Hajar would have mentioned it, or at least pointed to it and clarified how it could be reconciled with the others, Allah willing. The hadith of Anas, to which Ibn Hajar referred, is found in Majma al-Zawaid 8:48, where it says, "Abu Yaala and Bazzar narrated it, and it contains Hakam bin Atiya, whom Ibn Main deemed trustworthy, while others deemed him weak."From these indications, I have removed the erroneous narration containing "Do not name," since I have become certain that it has no basis. Praise be to Allah for granting this insight.After this, my brother Sayyid Mahmud Muhammad Shakir pointed out that it seems quite plausible, in explaining this addition, the addition of the word "no," that one of the early copyists mistakenly added a line or more while copying, then caught himself and wished to cancel this addition following the method of meticulous scholars, according to the rule laid down by the scholars of hadith terminology for cancelling such additions. So he wrote the word "no" above the word "name yourselves," slightly to its right, then wrote the word "to" at the end of the addition, above the word "he said," slightly to its left, just before the word "name yourselves" that comes after the addition.Then some of the copyists, one or more, copied from that manuscript, and assumed that the word "no" was a correction that the first copyist had inserted between the lines, so they placed it into the middle of the wording at the very start of the Prophet's statement. They failed, however, to notice the word "to" above the word "he said" at the end of the cancelled addition, whether because of how it was written, its overlapping, or its resemblance to the lam of "he said." Such a thing happens often during copying, especially in a large, voluminous book like the Musnad, where the copyist hurries through the copying as much as he can.And Allah knows best which of these actually occurred.