And Ibn Jurayj called him “Kathīr ibn al-Muṭṭalib,” yet he is likewise unknown, and Ibn Ḥibbān’s endorsement does not lift him out of anonymity. Al-Ḥāfiẓ notes in al-Taqrīb that his ḥadīth is “soft,” i.e., weak.

Moreover, even if the report were authentic, it would still not be a decisive proof for the point Ibn Ḥibbān wished to establish, for it is possible that permission to pass in front of a worshipper who lacks a sutrah is confined to the Sacred Mosque alone—a view some scholars have actually derived from this ḥadīth. Allah knows best.

He then says, concerning its legal ruling: “The Ḥanafīs and Mālikīs maintain that employing a sutrah is only recommended when one fears that someone will pass in front of him… based on the ḥadīth of Ibn ʿAbbās in which the Prophet ﷺ prayed in an open area with nothing before him.” It was narrated by Aḥmad, Abū Dāwūd, and al-Bayhaqī, who added, “It has a corroborating chain, stronger than this, from al-Faḍl ibn ʿAbbās.”

I reply: There are several points of criticism.

First: The rationale they advance is sheer opinion, unsupported by evidence, and it discards the texts that oblige the use of a sutrah—some of which have already been cited—merely on the basis of personal reasoning. This is impermissible, especially since the passer-by could belong to a realm unseen by humans, namely Satan. This is stated explicitly in both the Prophet’s words and deeds ﷺ. It is authentically reported that he said:

“When one of you prays toward a sutrah, let him draw close to it, so that Satan will not cut off his prayer.”

This is recorded in al-Ṣaḥīḥa, 1373. To reinterpret “Satan” here as a human passer-by is figurative speech with no warrant—save a weakness in belief in the unseen!

It is also soundly reported that Satan once tried to spoil the Prophet’s prayer, but Allah enabled him to overpower him; he seized him and choked him until he felt the coolness of his saliva between his fingers, and he said: