she spoke about this on the basis of opinion and interpretation, not a hadith in her possession. We shall see below that Abū ʿAbd Allāh rejected ʿĀʾishah’s view on the strength of the established report that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said, “I saw my Lord.” We shall explain, Allah willing, the agreement among the reports traced back to the Prophet on this matter.

If this is what Abū Dharr meant—given that they also narrated from him through that other sound chain, from Yazīd ibn Sharīk, from Abū Dharr, that he said, “Muhammad saw his Lord with his heart”—then this indicates that what he narrated from the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not negate the vision of the heart which he affirmed. Rather, it either indicated such a vision or did not indicate its absence.

Abū Dharr is the one most entitled to be consulted on this question, for he asked the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) about it, and he was among the most eminent Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). For this reason, Imam Ahmad relied on the reports transmitted from him and from Ibn ʿAbbās. Al-Athram was among the most learned and perceptive of Abū ʿAbd Allāh’s companions, and among those best versed in hadith and jurisprudence.

As for Abū Dharr’s report traced back to the Prophet, scholars disagreed over whether it implied affirmation or denial of the vision. Ahmad therefore did not cite it as evidence. Abū Bakr ibn Khuzaymah said: “A report has been transmitted from Abū Dharr over whose interpretation our scholars have differed, because it was narrated in wording that admits of denial