They continue to dispute the prohibition of that matter, even though authentic hadiths (1) from the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and from the Successors have established it.
Muhammad ibn Yahya (2) was one of the leading imams of the hadith scholars. Abu Nuʿaym al-Isfahani (3) said: “Muhammad ibn ʿAbd Allah—meaning al-Hakim—narrated to us; I heard Yahya (4) ibn Mansur the judge say: I heard my maternal uncle ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿAli ibn al-Jarud say: I heard Muhammad ibn Sahl ibn ʿAskar say, ‘We were in the company of Ahmad ibn Hanbal when Muhammad ibn Yahya entered. Ahmad rose to greet him, and the people were astonished. He then said to his sons and companions, “Go to Abu ʿAbd Allah and write from him.”’”
People have differed over the term muḥdath (newly originated): is it synonymous with the word makhlūq (created) or not? There are two opinions on the matter:
He also dedicated a separate chapter to Islam’s ruling on al-tahlil (legalization), and at its conclusion stated: “… the muhallil marriage has never been permitted in any religious community, nor was it practiced by any of the Companions, nor did any of them issue a fatwa to that effect.”
(1) The interpolated phrase appears in manuscripts S and T.
(2) He is Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Abd Allah al-Dhahli al-Nayshāburi, known as Abu Abdullah. See his biographical entry above, p. 338.
(3) Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi mentions him in Tarikh Baghdad (vol. 3, p. 416), transmitting the isnad and the two wordings cited by the shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him). Al-Dhahabi also lists him in Siyar Aʿlam al-Nubalaʾ (vol. 12, p. 280).
(4) The original text reads “Abu Yahya,” which is incorrect. The correct name—attested by manuscripts S, T, Tarikh Baghdad, and Siyar Aʿlam al-Nubalaʾ—is Abu Muhammad Yahya ibn Mansur ibn Yahya ibn Abd al-Malik, qadi of Nayshabur. Al-Dhahabi, citing al-Hakim, reports: “He held the judgeship for about twelve years, then was deposed by order of Abu Ahmad al-Hanafi in 339 AH. He was the foremost hadith scholar of Nayshabur in his time and was commended in his judicial capacity. May Allah have mercy on him.” He died in 351 AH. See Siyar Aʿlam al-Nubalaʾ (vol. 16, p. 28) and Shadharāt adh-Dhahab by Ibn al-ʿImad (vol. 3, p. 9).