What is the grade of the hadith: “Whoever fasts Ramadan and follows it with six days of Shawwal, he will emerge from his sins as if he were born on the day his mother gave birth to him”?

Eid Abbasi : What is the grade of the hadith: ?

The Shaykh : This is one of the authentic hadiths that Imam Muslim included in his *Sahih*. It is one of the rulings on which the jurists nearly reached consensus, but unfortunately, they did not. It is reported from Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) that he disliked fasting the six days of Shawwal. The majority of scholars argued against him using this hadith, which is undoubtedly a decisive proof. However, some scholars reported a reason from Imam Malik for his position of disliking the fasting of these six days. He said: So that people do not believe it is obligatory, especially since it is connected to Ramadan, and the only thing separating it from the fasting of Ramadan is the day of Eid. He feared that some people might assume that fasting these six days is obligatory, so Imam Malik forbade or disliked fasting them.
The meaning of the words of these scholars attributed to Malik is that Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) does not deny the original legitimacy of these six days. He agrees with the majority of scholars who hold that it is a recommended practice. However, he dislikes persisting in it; that is, if everyone who fasts Ramadan also fasts the six days, then over time, even if distant, fasting the six days would appear to be part of the completion of the fast of Ramadan. This is what Malik feared, so he held the view that it is disliked. There is no doubt that his statement has validity in terms of the principles of jurisprudence. Some of the Hanafis held a similar view, such as the custom of the imam reading Surat al-Sajdah and Surat al-Dahr in every Friday Fajr prayer. The Hanafi jurists stated that the imam should occasionally leave out the recitation of these two surahs so that the common people do not assume that reading these two surahs is among the obligations, or even the pillars, of the Friday Fajr prayer. This is, in reality, as we said, a type of knowledge that few people pay attention to. If there is an atmosphere in some Islamic countries where it is actually feared, or where the fear has materialized, that some common people assume that fasting the six days of Shawwal is an obligatory matter, then it is obligatory for some scholars not to adhere to it, while alerting people through their sermons, admonitions, and lessons that this fasting is not among the obligatory matters, but rather among the recommended matters.