Abu Dharr reported that the Prophet ﷺ said, "When the drop of fluid has been in the womb for forty nights, the angel of souls comes to it and ascends to the Lord. The angel asks, 'My Lord, is Your servant male or female?' and Allah decrees what He decrees. Then the angel asks, 'My Lord, wretched or blessed?' and what the person will encounter is written between their eyes."The narrator said, Abu Dharr then recited five verses from the opening of Surah at-Taghabun.
أن النبي ﷺ قال: إذا دخلت- يعني النطفة في الرحم أربعين ليلة، أتى ملك النفس، فعرج إلى الرب، فقال: يا رب عبدك أذكر أم أنثى؟ فيقضي الله ما هو قاض. ثم يقول: أي رب أشقي أم سعيد؟ فيكتب بين عينيه ما هو لاق. قال: وتلا أبو ذر من فاتحة التغابن خمس آيات.
Ibn Wahb narrated it in Qadar (36), he said, Abdullah bin Lahia informed me, from Bakr bin Sawada Judhami, from Abu Tamim Jayshani, from Abu Dharr, and he mentioned it. Its isnad is hasan because of the discussion surrounding Ibn Lahia, except that his hadith is hasan when one of the Abadila narrates from him, among them Ibn Wahb.Darimi also narrated it in Radd Ali Jahmiya (94) from Amr bin Khalid Harrani, Ibn Lahia narrated to us, with his isnad, similarly. But Ibn Batta narrated it in Ibana (1417) via the route of Ibn Wahb. And Firyabi in Qadar (123) from Qutayba bin Saeed, both of them from Ibn Lahia with his isnad, stopped [mawquf] at Abu Dharr.So does this discrepancy go back to Ibn Lahia, because he became confused after his books were burned, or did an error occur in Ibn Batta's narration, since everyone who narrated it via Ibn Wahb made it raised [marfu]? Hafiz bin Qayyim also mentioned it in Shifa Alil (101/1) from Ibn Wahb as marfu, and this is what is relied upon.On this subject there is also what was narrated from Ayesha as marfu, "Indeed Allah , when He wants to create a creature, sends an angel, who enters the womb and says, 'O Lord, what will this be?' So He says, 'A boy or a girl,' or whatever Allah wills to create in the womb. Then he says, 'O Lord, is he wretched or blessed?' So He says, 'Wretched or blessed.' Then he says, 'O Lord, what is his lifespan, what are his characteristics?' So He says, 'Such and such.' Then he says, 'O Lord, what is his provision?' So He says, 'Such and such.' Then he says, 'What is his creation, what are his characteristics?' So there is nothing but that it is created together with him in the womb."Bazzar narrated it - Kashf Astar (2151) - from Muhammad bin Muthanna, Abu Amir narrated to us, Zubayr bin Abdullah narrated to us, Jafar bin Musab told me, he said, I heard Urwa bin Zubayr narrating from Ayesha, and he mentioned the same.Lalikai narrated it in Usul Itiqad (1053) by another route from Abu Amir, similarly. In it is Jafar bin Musab, who is the son of Zubayr bin Awwam, from whom no one narrated except Zubayr bin Abdullah, as Ibn Hibban mentioned in Thiqat (133/6), so he is "unknown." Therefore Dhahabi said about him in Mizan (417/1), "It is not known who he is," meaning his condition is not known. Hafiz Haythami was lenient regarding him, saying in Majma (193/7), "Bazzar narrated it and its men are trustworthy [thiqat]," relying on Ibn Hibban's authentication of him.The narrator from him, Zubayr bin Abdullah, is Ibn Ruhayma Umawi, from whom Aqdi and Ibn Mubarak narrated. Abu Hatim said about him, "Acceptable in hadith [salih al-hadith]," and Ibn Hibban included him in his Thiqat (332/6). So he is acceptable in hadith, and is accepted in corroborations, and therefore Hafiz said about him, "Acceptable [maqbul]."On this subject there is also what is narrated from Abdullah bin Amr bin As. Ibn Wahb narrated it in Qadar (45), and from him Ibn Batta narrated it in Ibana (1418). Firyabi narrated it in Qadar (146) from Saeed bin Abu Maryam, both of them (meaning Ibn Wahb and Ibn Abu Maryam) from Ibn Lahia, from Kaab bin Alqama, from Isa bin Hilal, from Abdullah bin Amr, stopped at him [mawquf]. Its isnad is hasan, except that it is mawquf.It was also narrated from Jabir as marfu. Ahmad narrated it (15269) from Ahmad bin Abdul-Malik, Khattab bin Qasim narrated to us, from Khaseef, from Abu Zubayr, from Jabir, and he mentioned it. Firyabi narrated it in Qadar (143), and Ibn Batta in Ibana (1405), both of them by the route of Khaseef, from Abu Zubayr, with the same wording.Khaseef, with the diminutive form, is Ibn Abdul-Rahman Jazari, Abu Awn. Most scholars judged him daif. Ibn Hibban said, "He was a righteous, jurist, devout old man, except that he erred frequently in what he narrated, so he would narrate alone from well-known narrators things not corroborated by others, but he is truthful [saduq] in his narration."