What is your comment on the phrase: "A mursal hadith, if a Companion acted upon it, is to be followed"?

The questioner : O Shaykh, a comment on the phrase: "A mursal hadith, if a Companion acted upon it, is a proof"; a comment on this phrase?

The Shaykh : May Allah reward you. Regarding the mursal hadith, I think you know that the scholars of the Ummah, including some hadith scholars, have differed on using it as evidence. Some of them, namely Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him), Abu Hanifah, and a narration from Imam Ahmad, held that the mursal hadith is a proof if its transmitter is trustworthy, and naturally, the chain to it is sound. However, the majority of hadith scholars do not permit using the mursal hadith as evidence; rather, they classify it as a category of weak hadith. But at the same time that they attach it to weak hadith, they have mentioned that a weak hadith is strengthened by some corroborating narrations that match its meaning. So some scholars held that if a mursal hadith comes from some Companions as sound, and they acted upon what is in it, this is evidence that what came in the hadith is established in reality itself; because the original principle is that a Companion does not act upon his opinion and his independent legal reasoning except in rare cases.
Then I add to this something; and that is if a Companion’s opinion comes without a weak hadith; whether the weakness arises from the mursal nature of the one who transmitted it, or from a weakness that occurred in the chain of the hadith attributed to the Companion and raised to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the links of its chain; whether it is this or that, the important thing is that if a report from a Companion comes with a sound chain, and then no hadith comes, even a weak one of any type of weak hadith, and no one is known to have contradicted him among the Companions, then his action is a proof for the later generations; so all the more so if the opinion of this Companion is supported by a mursal hadith or a hadith with a chain, but with that weakness I referred to earlier; at that time we say: the Companion’s opinion is strengthened by the weak hadith, and the weak hadith is strengthened by the Companion’s opinion, so we conclude that this opinion is raised (to the Prophet).
From the examples.

The questioner : Raised to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)?

The Shaykh : Yes, that is it; because it is a mursal that is raised, but the chain.

The questioner : Meaning it can be said to be in the ruling of a raised hadith?

The Shaykh : In the ruling of a raised hadith.

The questioner : Yes, and not actually raised?

The Shaykh : Of course not, in the ruling of a raised hadith.
I wanted to say the example is well known in "Sahih Muslim": from Anas ibn Malik, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade drinking while standing. And in a narration: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) warned against drinking while standing. It was said to Anas: What about eating? He said: That is worse. This is the answer of Anas ibn Malik, and we have no choice but to adopt it; why? Because first: he is a noble Companion who served the Messenger (peace be upon him) for ten years, second: he narrated a hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding the prohibition and warning against drinking while standing, so when he was asked: What about eating? He said: Eating is worse. The witness sees what the absent one does not see, so when he heard from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that explicit prohibition of drinking while standing and gave that answer regarding eating while standing; this is evidence that he comprehended this answer from what he heard from the Messenger (peace be upon him).
So we act upon this report from this Companion, which is not raised, and if a weak hadith comes with at least this meaning; then this hadith takes strength, but we cannot say: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, unless other corroborating narrations come for it.
Now the time is eleven thirty, so perhaps we will suffice with this amount, and we ask Allah to gather us with you soon on another occasion, and we seek forgiveness from Allah, and you may leave having been guided.