What is the authenticity of the hadith of the Thaqif delegation, in which it is stated that a Muslim sets aside a portion of the Qur'an to maintain?

The questioner : I want to cite a hadith, and I want to know the grade of its authenticity?

The Shaykh: Go ahead.

The questioner : The hadith is recorded in "Sunan Abu Dawud." It was narrated to us by Musaddad, who informed us from Qaran ibn Tamam. Also, it was narrated to us by Abdullah ibn Sa'id, who informed us from Abu Khalid, and this is his wording, from Abdullah ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Ya'la, from Uthman ibn Abdullah ibn Aws, from his grandfather. Abdullah ibn Sa'id said in his narration: Aws ibn Hudhayfah. He said: We came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) as the Thaqif delegation. The Ahlaf tribe stayed with al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) housed the Banu Malik in a tent of his. Musaddad said: He was among the delegation.

The Shaykh : Musaddad.

The questioner : Musaddad, yes, and he was among the delegation that came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) from Thaqif. He said: Every night he would come to us after the 'Isha' prayer to tell us stories. Abu Sa'id said: He would stand on his feet until he shifted from one foot to the other due to the length of standing. Most of what he told us was about what he had experienced with his people from Quraysh. Then he would say: . Musaddad said: In Makkah. When we left for al-Madinah, there was a series of battles between us and them; we would gain the upper hand over them, and they would gain the upper hand over us. One night he was late for the time he usually came to us, so we said: You have been late to us tonight. He said: - And this is the point of the hadith - .

The Shaykh : Is this "juz' (part)" or "hizb (portion)"?

The questioner : I am in "Sunan Abu Dawud"... the text of "Sunan Abu Dawud" that I took in... but the hadith now I took from the old edition of "Sunan Abu Dawud" , so what is the grade of the hadith?

The Shaykh : The hadith is established, and it is from the section of "Sahih Abu Dawud" as I recall.

The questioner : I did not find it in "Sahih Abu Dawud."

The Shaykh: I did not find it.

The questioner : I did not find it. In the second part, in the two parts, the first and the second, I searched in the same chapter under the chapter title and did not find it.

The Shaykh : I say: What is in my mind is that it is in "Sahih Abu Dawud" which I started with decades ago, and that the wording is: and not .

The questioner : And this is what I read in the two volumes...

The Shaykh : Okay; did you go back to "Sharh 'Awn al-Ma'bud" - for example -; the old Indian edition?

The questioner : The Shaykh : Al-Mubarakpuri.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : This is it. This Indian edition is more correct than the editions printed now; because in truth, through experience, I find that today's publishing offices do not have anyone who cares about correcting the hadith books they publish as they used to care about publishing them. They used to take care to bring these books out corrected, seeking nearness to Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He). But now the matter has become a purely material, commercial issue. Therefore, when you read , I wondered in my mind: Did you make a mistake, or is the source you relied upon the one that is in my mind from that distant time, that it is with the wording: ? The scholars used this hadith as evidence that it is from the Sunnah for a person to organize his times in reading the Qur'an, each according to what is easy for him. This is attested by the hadith of Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As when his father married him to a girl from Quraysh. After a few days, his father asked her about her condition with her husband. Her answer was that she said: "He has not yet lain with us in a bed." This is an allusion that the man is as if he had not married, because he stands in prayer at night and fasts by day. So he reads the Qur'an every night and fasts constantly. When 'Amr ibn al-'As heard from his daughter-in-law =
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= the point is that 'Amr ibn al-'As (may Allah be pleased with him), when he heard this from his daughter-in-law, it was as if he complained about his son to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr says: So either the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent for me, or he met me, and he said to me: . He said: That was the case, O Messenger of Allah. He said (peace and blessings be upon him): . Here is the point: . He said: O Messenger of Allah, I am young, I have strength, I am able to do more than that - and upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. He said: . He said: I am able to do more than that. And so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) kept lowering the requirement for him until he said to him: - and upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Then he set for him (peace be upon him) a methodology in fasting and said to him: . He said: O Messenger of Allah, I am young, I have strength, I am able to do more than that. So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) kept giving him more than what he had given him, until he finally said to him: . He said: O Messenger of Allah, I want something better than that. He said: . 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr said: When I grew old and aged, I used to say: I wish I had accepted the dispensation of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)!
In a narration in "Musnad Imam Ahmad," the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)... . And this is what happened to Ibn 'Amr; he had in the prime of his youth a burst of energy; meaning excessive activity. So he desired to increase, increase, increase; even though the Messenger (peace be upon him) had given him the final limit prescribed by the Shari'ah. So he wished he had accepted the first advice; to fast three days of every month, and to read a complete recitation of the Qur'an in the whole month. But after he parted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) on the limit he requested, it became very difficult for him to leave the thing he had insisted on and parted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding. So he used to say: I wish I had accepted the dispensation of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)!
So the point of this story is that a Muslim may adopt a specific portion according to his energy and according to his free time. So that hadith confirms that the wording is "hizb" and not "juz'."