What is your opinion of the statement of al-Mu'allimi (may Allah have mercy on him)
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The questioner : Shaykh Abd al-Rahman ibn Yahya al-Mu'allimi says in the introduction to his edition of the book "Al-Fawa'id al-Majmu'ah" by al-Shawkani: "When the imams and preservers of hadith reject a text, and the chain of narration appears to be sound, they seek for it a decisive defect wherever it may be found. If they do not find a decisive defect wherever it may be found, they attribute to it a non-decisive defect, such as saying that the narrator did not explicitly state that he heard the hadith, even though he is not known for concealment (tadlis). He gave as an example the hadith of the beast in the biography of Amr ibn Abi Amr, the freed slave of al-Mut'ib, from Ikrimah. Al-Bukhari said: 'And as for Amr, I do not know whether he heard from Ikrimah or not.' So here, the question is: Is it permissible for me, if I find a text to be denounced (munkar), to come and say that this narrator did not explicitly state that he heard the hadith, even though he is not known for concealment (tadlis)?The Shaykh : Abd al-Rahman mentioned the reasoning for this story. Shall I mention it, O my Shaykh?
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : He said: "Their argument for this is that when it becomes clear in the mind of the critic that the text is denounced (munkar), he looks to the weakest point where a defect might enter and holds onto it. And if it is not so, this method can be used in other places."
The Shaykh : This statement resembles the statement of ... you mentioned there, and perhaps ...
The student: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : I referred to this earlier—and upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings—I also referred to it earlier regarding the case where there is a hadith of Qatadah from Anas with a connected chain (mu'annan). The original rule is to smooth out his narration, unless there is something that leads us to attribute a defect to it, and we find no defect other than the connected chain (mu'annan). This is sound speech, but who is capable of doing this?
The student : The great preservers.
The Shaykh : The preservers and those who follow their path. Otherwise, opening this door opens ... a great deal, yes.
The questioner : Yes, meaning, so the narrator is accused of having heard or not having heard ... this is not permissible except for the great preservers only?
The Shaykh : Otherwise, the scope for attributing defects to a denounced text would be narrowed.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Absolutely, it is not permissible.
The questioner : It is not permissible.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : ... and its placement in my study is better than that of Qatadah, because some of them say, as I think, and I am hesitating now, that the narration of Yahya from Abu Salama is a book.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : ... Ubayd ibn Salam.
The Shaykh : Ubayd ibn.
The questioner : Salam.
The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct. And I had addressed this issue in my response to al-Ansari, which was not published in detail. Then many years passed, and al-Ansari published his response to which I had replied, which is now known in the world of publications.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Well, what about the others? Did our brother Abu Abdullah take his wife?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : He left his wife there. Well.
The questioner : ... the issue is, in the narration of Yahya ibn Abi Kathir ... Ibn Abi Hatim narrates from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir that he went to dictate the hadiths he had from Ubayd ibn Abi Salam. So they were asked, "Did you hear these ...?" He said to them, "No." They said, "Did you hear them from a man who heard them from Zayd?" He said to them, "No." So they said to him: "How do you narrate these hadiths when you have not heard them ... nor from a man who heard them from him?" He said: "What do you think if a man wrote hadiths from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), bringing the ink and pen and writing hadiths from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) like these, would he be lying?" So he means ... the expression is that he has a good opinion, meaning of the one who narrates these hadiths, that they are authentic hadiths ... the man whom that person mentioned from Zayd ...
The Shaykh : Yes, but it is not hidden from you that the legal ruling in matters where there may be disagreement cannot be measured from the perspective of one single imam of hadith.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : I am saying, I have not finished my statement. Yahya is speaking about himself in what Abu Hatim mentioned.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : I am saying now that there are many hadiths in the two Sahihs, let alone others, narrated through the path of Yahya ibn Kathir from Abu Salama. So what do we say? We must say one of two things or one of two matters: Either we say that if the statement of Abu Hatim in what he narrated from Yahya ibn Abi Salama is true, its implication is that the narration in the two Sahihs, let alone others, is disconnected (munqati'). Or we say: No, these narrations are not disconnected, because Yahya ibn Abi Kathir is a trustworthy narrator who is relied upon in the two Sahihs. So that narration may be established. Now the question arises regarding what you mentioned. I remember that a narration like this passed by me, but the question now is: Do you remember, and perhaps you are fresh with it, that Abu Hatim mentioned its chain of narration in this story to Yahya ibn Kathir?
The questioner : He mentioned its chain of narration, yes.
The Shaykh : And did you study the chain of narration?
The questioner : ... and Ibn Khuzaymah also mentioned the chain of narration in the book of Tawhid and said that Muslim took it from him ...
The Shaykh : Muslim took it from him?
The questioner : Yes, Muslim took this story from Ibn Khuzaymah.
The Shaykh : Where did Muslim take it from?
The questioner : ... it is not in the introduction ... Yahya ibn Abi Kathir narrated from ... from Zayd, or from his father? Because Salam is in four: Zayd and Mu'awiyah ...
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : So Mu'awiyah and his father, Mu'awiyah is the brother of Zayd, Mu'awiyah and his father ... naturally from his grandfather, there is no doubt that ...
The Shaykh : Do you mean by the grandfather Mansur?
The questioner : Mansur, yes. As for from Zayd, he is ... from Abu Salam himself, who is his father, or from Zayd ibn Abi Salam.
The Shaykh : You are talking about Yahya ibn Abi Kathir.
The questioner : Yes, in the narration of Ibn Khuzaymah.
The Shaykh : In his narration from whom.
The questioner : Meaning ... from Zayd ibn Abi Salam, or from Abu Salam, who is considered the father, because his narration from the father is established, and ... Abu Hatim, by his chain, that ... Yahya ibn Abi Kathir to Mu'awiyah ibn Abi Tamam said to him, "Your father is still informing us ... he confirmed the hearing from the father, and at the same time ... from Mu'awiyah, but from Zayd ...
The Shaykh : I am confused now, the narration of Yahya ibn Abi Kathir that I was going around about from Abu Salama.
The questioner : No, I said from Zayd ...
The Shaykh : I said that this narration is present in the two Sahihs and other than the two Sahihs.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : And peace be upon you.
The questioner : The narration in "Sahih Muslim" from Zayd, which is:, Yahya ibn Abi Kathir from Zayd.
The Shaykh : Yes, yes.
The questioner : Ibn al-Qattan attributed a defect to the narration due to disconnection.
The Shaykh : In any case, I do not recall an answer now because the time has passed ... recalling it in the texts, so ... this story?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : In any case, the time has run out for us now, so please allow us to leave, because we have another meeting, if Allah wills.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : He said: "Their argument for this is that when it becomes clear in the mind of the critic that the text is denounced (munkar), he looks to the weakest point where a defect might enter and holds onto it. And if it is not so, this method can be used in other places."
The Shaykh : This statement resembles the statement of ... you mentioned there, and perhaps ...
The student: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : I referred to this earlier—and upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings—I also referred to it earlier regarding the case where there is a hadith of Qatadah from Anas with a connected chain (mu'annan). The original rule is to smooth out his narration, unless there is something that leads us to attribute a defect to it, and we find no defect other than the connected chain (mu'annan). This is sound speech, but who is capable of doing this?
The student : The great preservers.
The Shaykh : The preservers and those who follow their path. Otherwise, opening this door opens ... a great deal, yes.
The questioner : Yes, meaning, so the narrator is accused of having heard or not having heard ... this is not permissible except for the great preservers only?
The Shaykh : Otherwise, the scope for attributing defects to a denounced text would be narrowed.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Absolutely, it is not permissible.
The questioner : It is not permissible.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : ... and its placement in my study is better than that of Qatadah, because some of them say, as I think, and I am hesitating now, that the narration of Yahya from Abu Salama is a book.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : ... Ubayd ibn Salam.
The Shaykh : Ubayd ibn.
The questioner : Salam.
The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct. And I had addressed this issue in my response to al-Ansari, which was not published in detail. Then many years passed, and al-Ansari published his response to which I had replied, which is now known in the world of publications.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Well, what about the others? Did our brother Abu Abdullah take his wife?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : He left his wife there. Well.
The questioner : ... the issue is, in the narration of Yahya ibn Abi Kathir ... Ibn Abi Hatim narrates from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir that he went to dictate the hadiths he had from Ubayd ibn Abi Salam. So they were asked, "Did you hear these ...?" He said to them, "No." They said, "Did you hear them from a man who heard them from Zayd?" He said to them, "No." So they said to him: "How do you narrate these hadiths when you have not heard them ... nor from a man who heard them from him?" He said: "What do you think if a man wrote hadiths from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), bringing the ink and pen and writing hadiths from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) like these, would he be lying?" So he means ... the expression is that he has a good opinion, meaning of the one who narrates these hadiths, that they are authentic hadiths ... the man whom that person mentioned from Zayd ...
The Shaykh : Yes, but it is not hidden from you that the legal ruling in matters where there may be disagreement cannot be measured from the perspective of one single imam of hadith.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : I am saying, I have not finished my statement. Yahya is speaking about himself in what Abu Hatim mentioned.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : I am saying now that there are many hadiths in the two Sahihs, let alone others, narrated through the path of Yahya ibn Kathir from Abu Salama. So what do we say? We must say one of two things or one of two matters: Either we say that if the statement of Abu Hatim in what he narrated from Yahya ibn Abi Salama is true, its implication is that the narration in the two Sahihs, let alone others, is disconnected (munqati'). Or we say: No, these narrations are not disconnected, because Yahya ibn Abi Kathir is a trustworthy narrator who is relied upon in the two Sahihs. So that narration may be established. Now the question arises regarding what you mentioned. I remember that a narration like this passed by me, but the question now is: Do you remember, and perhaps you are fresh with it, that Abu Hatim mentioned its chain of narration in this story to Yahya ibn Kathir?
The questioner : He mentioned its chain of narration, yes.
The Shaykh : And did you study the chain of narration?
The questioner : ... and Ibn Khuzaymah also mentioned the chain of narration in the book of Tawhid and said that Muslim took it from him ...
The Shaykh : Muslim took it from him?
The questioner : Yes, Muslim took this story from Ibn Khuzaymah.
The Shaykh : Where did Muslim take it from?
The questioner : ... it is not in the introduction ... Yahya ibn Abi Kathir narrated from ... from Zayd, or from his father? Because Salam is in four: Zayd and Mu'awiyah ...
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : So Mu'awiyah and his father, Mu'awiyah is the brother of Zayd, Mu'awiyah and his father ... naturally from his grandfather, there is no doubt that ...
The Shaykh : Do you mean by the grandfather Mansur?
The questioner : Mansur, yes. As for from Zayd, he is ... from Abu Salam himself, who is his father, or from Zayd ibn Abi Salam.
The Shaykh : You are talking about Yahya ibn Abi Kathir.
The questioner : Yes, in the narration of Ibn Khuzaymah.
The Shaykh : In his narration from whom.
The questioner : Meaning ... from Zayd ibn Abi Salam, or from Abu Salam, who is considered the father, because his narration from the father is established, and ... Abu Hatim, by his chain, that ... Yahya ibn Abi Kathir to Mu'awiyah ibn Abi Tamam said to him, "Your father is still informing us ... he confirmed the hearing from the father, and at the same time ... from Mu'awiyah, but from Zayd ...
The Shaykh : I am confused now, the narration of Yahya ibn Abi Kathir that I was going around about from Abu Salama.
The questioner : No, I said from Zayd ...
The Shaykh : I said that this narration is present in the two Sahihs and other than the two Sahihs.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : And peace be upon you.
The questioner : The narration in "Sahih Muslim" from Zayd, which is:
In the prayer is proof.
في الصلاة برهانThe Shaykh : Yes, yes.
The questioner : Ibn al-Qattan attributed a defect to the narration due to disconnection.
The Shaykh : In any case, I do not recall an answer now because the time has passed ... recalling it in the texts, so ... this story?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : In any case, the time has run out for us now, so please allow us to leave, because we have another meeting, if Allah wills.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.