What is the ruling on the hadith: “Whoever performs i'tikaf (spiritual retreat in the mosque) for a day seeking the face of Allah the Exalted, Allah will place between him and the Fire three trenches, each trench being as far as the distance between the two horizons”?

The questioner : This is the third, or last, or fourth question. He says: He cited a hadith here, stating: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: , and the correct form is: three trenches, of course, not three trenches, because...

The Shaykh : …“trench” is masculine.

The questioner : A trench is masculine, so the number accompanying it is feminized. Al-Tabarani and others narrated it with a good chain of narration. So what do you say about this hadith in terms of its authenticity or weakness?

The Shaykh : This hadith is from the portion of my book that will be printed soon, if Allah wills, which is the first part of "Da'if al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib" (Weak Narrations in Encouragement and Warning), so it is weak.
The student : Weak?

The Shaykh: Yes.
The student : So does that mean nothing has been authenticated regarding the virtue of i'tikaf (spiritual retreat in the mosque)?

The Shaykh : Because the only narration mentioned regarding encouragement [of i'tikaf] is this hadith.
Yes.