Azami 184

Imam Ahmad (6650) reported it from Hasan bin Musa, who said, Ibn Lahia told us, Harith bin Yazid told us, from Jundab bin Abdullah, that he heard Sufyan bin Awf say, I heard Abdullah bin Amr, and he related the hadith. In it is Ibn Lahia, who mixed up in his later years, but Abdullah bin Mubarak reported it in Zuhd (775), and Bayhaqi in Zuhd (203), through the route of Abu Abdul-Rahman (that is, Abdullah bin Yazid Muqri), both of them from Ibn Lahia with his chain, similarly. Both of them heard from him before he began mixing up. In the chain is Jundab bin Abdullah, who is Wabili Kufi, one of the men found in Tajil, and no one besides Harith bin Yazid is mentioned as having narrated from him, but Ajli said, "A Kufan follower, trustworthy." Ibn Hibban did not mention him in Thiqat, though he meets his criteria. There are other chains for it, but the one I have mentioned is the soundest.It has also been narrated as stopping at Abdullah bin Amr, with the wording, "Blessed are the strangers who set things right when people are corrupt." Abu Amr Dani reported it in Fitan (291) with a chain that is not problematic.On this subject there is also a report from Anas, as a saying of the Prophet, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being something strange, so blessed are the strangers." Ibn Majah (3987) reported it from Harmala bin Yahya, who said, Abdullah bin Wahb told us, who said, Amr bin Harith and Ibn Lahia informed us, from Yazid bin Abu Habib, from Sinan bin Saad, from Anas bin Malik, who related it. Sinan bin Saad, also said to be Saad bin Sinan, Bukhari and Ibn Yunus held the first form to be correct. The scholars have spoken critically of him. Imam Ahmad said, "I abandoned his hadith because it is confused." Ibn Saad and Nasai said, "His hadith is objectionable." Juzjani said, "His hadiths are feeble." Ibn Adi mentioned it in Kamil (5/1823) in the biography of Uthman bin Abdullah bin Amr bin Uthman bin Affan, and said, "He narrated objectionable material from Malik, Hammad bin Salama, Ibn Lahia, and others. He was known by the kunya Abu Amr, and he lived in Nasibin, and he moved around the lands, narrating objectionable material from trustworthy narrators in every place he stayed."On this subject there is also a report from Kathir bin Abdullah bin Amr bin Awf bin Zayd bin Malha, from his father, from his grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah said, "Religion will indeed contract toward Hijaz just as a snake contracts into its hole, and religion will indeed cling to Hijaz as the mountain goat clings to the top of the mountain. Religion began as something strange and it will return to being something strange, so blessed are the strangers who set right after me what the people have corrupted of my sunnah." Tirmidhi (2630) reported it from Abdullah bin Abdul-Rahman, Ismail bin Abu Uways informed us, Kathir bin Abdullah bin Amr bin Awf bin Zayd told me with his chain, similarly. Tirmidhi said, "This is a hasan sahih hadith," though in one copy it says only "hasan." The correct view is that it is daif because of Kathir bin Abdullah, since the scholars are unanimous in weakening him. This is one of the places where Tirmidhi was lenient and graded this hadith sahih.From Sahl bin Saad, who said, the Messenger of Allah said, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being as it began, so blessed are the strangers." They asked, "O Messenger of Allah, who are the strangers?" He said, "Those who set things right when people are corrupt." Harawi reported it in Dhamm Kalam (1471), Ibn Adi in Kamil (2/462), and Tabarani in Thalatha, as Haythami said in Majma (7/278), all of them through the route of Bakr bin Sulaym, Abu Hazim told me, from Sahl bin Saad, who related the hadith. Haythami said, "Its narrators are the narrators of the sahih collections except Bakr bin Sulaym, who is trustworthy." I say, this is Bakr bin Sulaym, with the diminutive form, Sawwaf, Abu Sulaym Taifi Madini. Ibn Adi said, "He narrates from Abu Hazim, from Sahl bin Saad and others, things that no one else agrees with him on." Then he said, "Bakr bin Sulaym has, apart from what I have mentioned, few other hadiths, and most of what he narrates is not preserved and not corroborated. He is among the weak narrators whose hadith is nevertheless recorded." Hafiz said, "Acceptable," meaning if corroborated, and I have not found anyone who corroborates him, so he is of weak reliability.From Abu Saeed Khudri, who said, the Messenger of Allah said, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being something strange just as it began, so blessed are the strangers." Tabarani reported it in Awsat (7279) from Muhammad bin Nusayr, who said, Shadhakuni told us, who said, Salm bin Qutayba told us, who said, Muhammad bin Mahzam told us, from Atiya, from Abu Saeed, who related it. Tabarani said, "No one narrated this hadith from Muhammad bin Mahzam except Salm bin Qutayba, and Shadhakuni alone narrated it from him." Haythami found fault with it in Majma (7/278) because of Atiya, saying, "He is daif." Atiya is Ibn Saeed bin Junada Awfi, weakened by Abu Dawud, Nasai, Abu Hatim, and others. Ibn Main said, "Acceptable." The conclusion is that he was a Shia who practiced concealment of his sources, and when he narrates alone without corroboration, his hadith is not accepted.From Jabir bin Abdullah, who said, the Messenger of Allah said, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being something strange, so blessed are the strangers." He asked, "Who are they, O Messenger of Allah?" He said, "Those who set things right when people are corrupt." Tabarani reported it in Awsat (4912) from Umara bin Wathima bin Musa bin Furat Misri, Abu Rifa, who said, Abu Salih Abdullah bin Salih told us, who said, Layth bin Saad told me, who said, Yahya bin Saeed told me, who said, Khalid bin Abu Imran wrote to me, who said, Abu Ayyash told me, who said, I heard Jabir bin Abdullah, and he related the hadith. Tahawi reported it in his commentary (689), Lalikai in Sunnah (173), and Bayhaqi in Zuhd (page 198), all of them through the hadith of Abdullah bin Salih, with his chain, similarly. In it is Abdullah bin Salih, about whom there is disagreement, but he is not problematic as a supporting witness. Haythami found fault with the report because of him in Majma (7/278), saying, "Abdullah bin Salih, secretary of Layth, is daif, though he has also been deemed reliable." However, he is corroborated, for Harawi reported it in Dhamm Kalam (1472) through his route and also through the route of Ibn Wahb, both of them from Layth bin Saad, with his chain, similarly. Tabarani also reported it in Awsat (8971) through another route from Khalid bin Abu Imran with his chain. But its foundation rests on Abu Ayyash, who is Maafiri Misri. A group narrated from him, but I have not come across any scholar who declared him trustworthy, not even Ibn Hibban, who did not mention him in Thiqat, despite his standard practice of mentioning unknown narrators, and this man meets his criteria. Hafiz said of him, "Acceptable," meaning when corroborated, and I have not come across anyone who corroborates him in this hadith.From Salman, who said, the Messenger of Allah said, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being something strange." Tabarani reported it in Kabir (6/314) from Abdullah bin Ahmad bin Hanbal, Ibrahim bin Hasan Allaf told us, Isa bin Maymun told us, from Awn bin Abu Shaddad, from Abu Uthman, from Salman, who related the hadith. Harawi also reported it in Dhamm Kalam (1477) through another route from Ibrahim bin Hasan Allaf, with his chain, similarly, and he added at the end, "So blessed are the strangers." In it is Isa bin Maymun, who is Madani, freedman of Qasim bin Muhammad, known as Wasiti. Bukhari said, "His hadith is objectionable." Abu Hatim said, "His hadith is not sound." Haythami found fault with it because of him in Majma (7/279), saying, after attributing it to Tabarani, "In it is Isa bin Maymun, who is discarded as a narrator."From Abdul-Rahman bin Sana, that he heard the Prophet say, "Islam began as something strange, then it will return to being something strange just as it began, so blessed are the strangers." It was asked, "O Messenger of Allah, who are the strangers?" He said, "Those who set things right when people are corrupt. By the One in whose hand is my soul, faith will indeed withdraw toward Madinah just as floodwater draws together. By the One in whose hand is my soul, Islam will indeed contract toward the area between the two masjids just as a snake contracts into its hole." Abdullah bin Ahmad reported it in his additions to the Musnad (16690) from Abu Ahmad Haytham bin Kharija, who said, Ismail bin Ayyash told us, from Ishaq bin Abdullah bin Abu Farwa, from Yusuf bin Sulayman, from his grandmother Maymuna, from Abdul-Rahman bin Sana, who related the hadith. Harawi reported it in Dhamm Kalam (1478), and Ibn Adi in Kamil (4/1615), both of them through the route of Ismail bin Ayyash with his chain, similarly. In it is Ishaq bin Abdullah bin Abu Farwa, who is discarded as a narrator, accused of lying by Ibn Main and others, and Hafiz Haythami found fault with the report because of him in Majma (7/278). Ibn Abu Hatim said in Jarh wa Tadil, in the biography of Abdul-Rahman bin Sana, "He narrated a hadith from the Prophet whose chain is not sound, because its narrator is Ishaq bin Abu Farwa." Bukhari and others weakened this hadith because of Ibn Abu Farwa.From Abu Musa Ashari, who said, the Messenger of Allah said, "The Hour will not come until you see the earth turn to blood, and Islam will be something strange." Then he related the hadith. Haythami mentioned it in Majma (7/279) in this truncated form, without attributing it to its source, perhaps it was dropped from the printed edition, and he said, "In it is Sulayman bin Ahmad Wasiti, and he is daif." I say, this Sulayman bin Ahmad Wasiti is among those who steal hadiths. Ibn Adi gave his biography in Kamil (3/1139–1140) and said, "Sulayman has isolated and strange hadiths, narrated from him by Ali bin Abdul-Aziz and others, and in my view he is among those who steal hadith and confuse matters."From Wathila bin Asqa, from the Prophet, who said, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being something strange just as it began, so blessed are the strangers." It was asked, "O Messenger of Allah, who are the strangers?" He said, "Those who set things right when people are corrupt." Tamam reported it in his Fawaid (1705, 1706) through routes from Sulayman bin Salama Khubairi, Mummal bin Saeed Rahbi told us, from Ibrahim bin Abu Abla, from Wathila bin Asqa, who related the hadith. Its chain is very daif, for Khubairi is discarded as a narrator. Ibn Abu Hatim said, "My father heard from him but did not narrate from him, and I asked him about him, and he said, discarded as a narrator, not to be relied on, and I mentioned that to Ibn Junayd, who said, he spoke truly, he used to lie, and I will not narrate from him after this." His teacher Mummal bin Saeed is objectionable in his hadith, as Abu Hatim said. Ibn Hibban said, "Very objectionable in his hadith. I do not know whether the objectionable material entered through him or through Sulayman bin Salama, who narrated from him, because Sulayman used to narrate fabricated material attributing it to reliable narrators. Whether the fault lies with him, or with Mummal, or with both together, relying on any report they narrate is invalidated." See Majruhin (1075).From Abu Darda, Abu Umama Bahili, Anas bin Malik, and Wathila bin Asqa, who said, the Messenger of Allah came out to us while we were disputing about some matter of religion, and he became extremely angry, angrier than he had ever been, and he rebuked us sharply, saying, "O nation of Muhammad, do not stir up against yourselves the blazing of the Fire." Then he related a long hadith, saying at the end of it, "Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being as it began, so blessed are the strangers." They asked, "O Messenger of Allah, who are the strangers?" He said, "Those who set things right when people are corrupt, who do not dispute in the religion of Allah, and who do not declare any of the people of monotheism to be a disbeliever because of a sin." This is very daif. Tabarani reported it in Kabir (8/178–179), Ibn Adi in Kamil (6/2089–2090), Ibn Hibban in Majruhin (896), and Bayhaqi in Zuhd (199), all of them through the route of Muhammad bin Sabbah Jarjarai, except Bayhaqi, who reported it through the route of Saeed bin Muhammad Jarmi, both of them from Kathir bin Marwan Filastini, from Abdullah bin Yazid Dimashqi, who said, Abu Darda, Abu Umama Bahili, Anas bin Malik, and Wathila bin Asqa told me, who said, and they related the hadith. Tabarani and Ibn Hibban related it in full, but Ibn Adi shortened it, saying, "Then he related a long hadith," and mentioned within it, "Islam began as something strange." Bayhaqi likewise mentioned it in shortened form.Khatib reported it in Tarikh Baghdad (12/481) and said afterward, "It has reached me from Ibrahim bin Abdullah bin Junayd, who said, I asked Yahya bin Main about Kathir bin Marwan Muqaddasi, and he said, he is nothing, a liar, he used to narrate objectionable material in Baghdad." Ibn Adi said, Abbas said, I heard Yahya bin Main say, "Kathir bin Marwan is daif, and I myself have narrated from him," and in another place, "Kathir bin Marwan Shami is nothing." He also said, "Kathir bin Marwan has hadiths that are not many, but as much as he narrates, the trustworthy narrators do not corroborate him in it." End of quote. Ibn Hibban said, "Very objectionable in his hadith, it is not permissible to rely on him, nor to narrate from him, except as a matter of astonishment." Haythami found fault with the report because of him in Majma (1/156), saying, "Kathir bin Marwan is very daif."From a man who said, I was in a gathering that included Umar bin Khattab in Madinah, and he said to a man among the group, "O so-and-so, how did you hear the Messenger of Allah describe Islam?" He said, I heard the Messenger of Allah say, "Islam began as a young camel, then a two-year-old, then a three-year-old, then a four-year-old, then a mature one with a full-grown canine tooth." He said, Umar bin Khattab then said, "There is nothing after full maturity but decline." Imam Ahmad (15802) reported it from Muhammad bin Jafar, Awf told us, who said, Alqama Muzani told me, who said, a man told me, and he related the hadith. Its chain is daif, because the narrator is unnamed. Abu Yaala (192) reported it through the route of Yazid bin Zuray and Yahya bin Saeed, from Awf, with the same account, and added, Yazid said in his account, in the masjid of Basra, he said, a man told me whose name he mentioned, but Awf forgot his name. Haythami mentioned it in Majma (7/279) and said, "Ahmad and Abu Yaala reported it, and in it is an unnamed narrator, but the rest of its narrators are trustworthy."His saying, "a mature one with a full-grown canine tooth" refers to a camel whose canine tooth has emerged and whose strength has become complete, which occurs after eight years, after which it is said, a mature one of one year past maturity, a mature one of two years past maturity.