What is the benefit of classifying an authentic hadith into authentic in itself and authentic by other means?

The questioner : Our Shaykh, may Allah bless you, this five-part classification regarding the division of hadith into authentic and authentic by other means, may Allah bless you, we want to benefit from it. What is its practical benefit for the student of knowledge?

The Shaykh : What is it?

The questioner : What is its benefit for the student of knowledge?

The Shaykh : Ah, its benefit is very important.

The questioner : Can you benefit us, may Allah bless you?

The Shaykh : Every day we receive this, and this truly delights me in one way and bothers me in another. Every day we receive observations from some students from different countries: "You weakened such-and-such a hadith, so how did you authenticate such-and-such a hadith, and how?"... He has a perspective. What concerns me now regarding this classification is that objections are frequently raised, and the most recent one, incidentally, was with me today. I do not know if you know him personally, perhaps you have heard his name: Abdullah Al-Olush.

The questioner : I know him.
The student : He was with us yesterday.

The Shaykh : He was with you?
The student : Yes, he was with us.

The Shaykh : Good, he visited me today, so he took out a paper and said to me:
The student : From your former students.

The Shaykh : Yes, indeed, what Allah willed, a young man like the Shaykh or more.
The student : A Shaykh and a young man.

The Shaykh : The point is that he extends his hand to his pocket, pulls out a paper, and presents it, saying, "What is your opinion of Shu'ayb ibn Hisham? The one I know says that you consider him a weak narrator." I told him, "Yes, I still hold that opinion, and I say that his narrations may be cited as evidence of support (shahid) but not as a primary proof (hujjah), because he used to make many mistakes and errors." He said to me, "But I saw a hadith," and he pulled out the paper which stated that it is an authentic (sahih) hadith. This is where the answer lies. So I gave him a lecture similar to that one, in which I mentioned the three categories. I told him, "One of the reasons that moved my mind to this innovation is that people have found my statement in the margin of *Sahih al-Targhib*—'Sahih'—difficult to understand. They go back to the chain of the hadith and find Shu'ayb ibn Hisham in it. They ask, 'How did the Shaykh authenticate this hadith when he himself considers its narrator weak?' But now, when they find it is 'Sahih li-ghayrihi' (authentic due to other supporting chains), they take the warning. They at least take heed. Yes, they took the warning that they should not mislead the Shaykh first, and then they took the warning to investigate as the Shaykh investigated; he may have been right, and he may have been wrong, but that is a separate matter. However, the phrase 'Sahih li-ghayrihi' implies that there is another chain, which opens up more room for research than stopping at the chain that, for example, al-Mundhiri attributed to Ahmad. Indeed, Ahmad narrated it through Shu'ayb. But in my tracking, which I followed, I established the authenticity of Abu Dawud's hadith. I wrote an introduction for it stating that when I intended to undertake the project of bringing the Sunnah closer to the Ummah, two paths opened up before me: Should I study Abu Dawud's chain alone and judge the hadith based on its chain, or should I broaden my scope and look to see if this weak narrator has a supporting chain (mutaba'ah), or if this hadith has another chain, perhaps, perhaps? Then the latter option became more compelling to me, because this is what is obligatory for us, considering that we want to present the authentic Sunnah to the Ummah, even if it takes a long time. It is not important that we increase the number of narrations we publish, but they must be what? Mature. Here, this terminology gives a warning to sincere students and a caution to those with ill intent at the same time.
The student : As you said, our Shaykh, a Shaykh and a young man.

The Shaykh : The point is, he extended his hand to his pocket and looked at a paper and presented that: "What is your opinion of Shu'ayb ibn Hushayb?" The one I know, he says that you consider the man weak. I said to him, "Yes, I am still of this opinion, and I say that it is cited as a reference but not used as a proof, because he used to make many mistakes and errors." He said to me, "But I saw a hadith," and he took out the paper which says that it is an authentic hadith. Here is the answer, so I gave him a lecture similar to that one, and I mentioned to him the three categories. I said to him, "This is one of the reasons that moved my mind to this innovation: people found it difficult to accept my note on the margin of *Sahih al-Targhib*: 'Authentic.' They go back to the chain of the hadith and find Shu'ayb ibn Hushayb in it. How did the Shaykh authenticate this hadith when he himself weakens its narrator? But now, when they find 'authentic by other means,' they take the warning, they take at least their caution. Ah, they took the warning that they do not mislead the Shaykh first, then they took the warning to search as the Shaykh searched; he may have been right and he may have been wrong, that is a second matter. But it is understood from the word 'authentic by other means' that there is another chain, which opens the field for more research than stopping at this chain which, for example, al-Mundhiri attributed, saying: 'Ahmad narrated it.' And indeed, Ahmad narrated it from the path of Shu'ayb. But in my tracking, which I based on, I established the authenticity of Abu Dawud's hadith. I wrote an introduction for it stating that when I intended the project of approximating the Sunnah before the Ummah, two paths opened before me: should I study Abu Dawud's chain alone and judge the hadith he has based on its chain, or should I expand and look, perhaps this weak person has a supporting chain, perhaps this hadith has another chain, perhaps, perhaps. Then the other matter became more probable for me, because this is what is obligatory for us, considering that we want to present the authentic Sunnah to the Ummah, even if it takes a long time. It is not important to increase the output, but it must be what? Mature. Here, this terminology gives a warning to sincere students and a caution to those with ill intent at the same time.
The student : By Allah, O our Shaykh, so that it is not misunderstood, because the word "bid'ah" (innovation) has been repeated, and I fear that the word "bid'ah" will be taken in a negative sense. Therefore, it is necessary to mention the context. Our Shaykh, your postponing the time of lunch until after the 'Asr prayer—we said this is a bid'ah, and we said in response to that, "The blessing of bid'ah." The blessing of bid'ah is...

The Shaykh : Ah, and this is the reality, meaning both.
The student : By Allah, O our Shaykh, so that it is not misunderstood, because the word "innovation" was repeated, so I fear that the word "innovation" will be taken in a bad sense. Therefore, it is necessary to mention the occasion. Our Shaykh, you postponed the time of lunch until after Asr, we said this is an innovation, and we said in response to that, "The blessing of innovation," the blessing of innovation is...
The student : And this is it.

The Shaykh : Yes, all of it needs correction, or else I am currently working on the second and third parts of *al-Targhib*, but we started printing the first part in this style, yes.
The student : On this basis, if Allah wills, may Allah prolong your blessed life, this means the books of Sunan that...

The Shaykh : Yes, all of them need correction, or am I now in the process of the second and third parts of *al-Targhib*? But we started printing the first part in this pattern, ah.
The student : I wish, our Shaykh, if Abu al-Yasir, one of the diligent students in this field, were tasked with investigating these hadiths and presenting what is possible...