474 – On the authority of Ibn ʿUmar — may Allah be pleased with them both — the Prophet ﷺ said: “When you lay your deceased in the grave say, ‘In the name of Allah and upon the creed of the Messenger of Allah.’” It was recorded by Aḥmad, Abū Dāwūd, and al-Nasāʾī. Ibn Ḥibbān declared it ṣaḥīḥ, while al-Darāquṭnī judged it mawqūf. (1)

Hadith grading:
The report is sound whether taken as marfūʿ (traced back to the Prophet) or as mawqūf (a Companion’s statement).
All four Sunan compilers, Ibn Ḥibbān, al-Ḥākim ⦗1/520⦘, and Ibn Abī Shaybah ⦗3/19⦘ transmitted it in marfūʿ form. Ibn al-Sunnī ⦗584⦘ cited it through the chain of al-Ḥajjāj → Nāfiʿ → Ibn ʿUmar. A careful survey of the various chains confirms its authenticity; hence al-Ḥākim maintained that it meets the conditions of al-Bukhārī and Muslim. Ibn Ḥibbān likewise narrated it through Shuʿbah → Qatādah as a marfūʿ report, and Ibn al-Mulqin favored the marfūʿ attribution.

Vocabulary of the hadith:
– Bismillah: i.e., “In the name of Allah,” meaning, “I place him, introduce him, or bury him (seeking Allah’s blessing).”
– Millah (creed): the foundational doctrines of a revealed law. It is ascribed to Allah’s messengers, not directly to Allah; in other words, it refers to what Allah legislated through His messengers. The term can also be used for a false creed, as in the saying, “Unbelief is one creed.”