(1) He is Qasim ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Dimashqi, Abu Abd al-Rahman, a Syrian and a client (mawla) of the Umayyad house of Abi ibn Harb. Some leading hadith critics declared him reliable, while others voiced reservations. In sum, he is saduq (truthful) and thiqa (reliable) when narrating from trustworthy transmitters, but his reports from weak narrators are objectionable, and he frequently relates mursal traditions. He died in 112 AH. See: Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib al-Tahdhib 8:322-24, no. 581 q. (2) All the extant manuscripts read: bi-l-siyaha (“through ascetic wandering”), whereas both the printed edition and Sunan Abi Dawud read: fi l-siyaha (“in ascetic wandering”). (3) Sunan Abi Dawud, Book of Jihad, chapter “Prohibition of wandering ascetically,” hadith no. 2486, 3/12. Also recorded by al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak 2/73, who judged the chain sound and noted that al-Bukhari and Muslim did not include it. (4) The word ummatahu (“his community”) is absent from MS At. (5) Ibn Jarir al-Tabari relates with his chain from Ubayd ibn Umayr that when the Prophet was asked about “those who wander” (al-saihun) he said, “They are those who fast.” He likewise reports from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah said to him, “The saihun are those who fast.” Ibn Jarir also cites similar interpretations from early authorities such as Ibn Abbas, Ibn Masud, Said ibn Jubayr, Mujahid, al-Dahhak, al-Hasan, and others. See: Tafsir Ibn Jarir al-Tabari 11:28–29, on the verse “Those who repent and worship …” (Surat al-Tawba 9:112). (6) Same as the previous note. (7) Same as the previous note. (8) The phrase fi l-Quran (“in the Qur’an”) is missing from MS B.