I say: that is exactly as he stated—indeed, the report is most probably muʿḍal (missing two consecutive transmitters). Al-Aʿmash usually narrates from Ibn Masʿūd through two intermediaries, as anyone who closely studies the Musnad of Ibn Masʿūd will know. Furthermore, we cannot ascertain whether the chain is even sound up to al-Aʿmash, because the book’s abridger, Shaykh al-Maqrīzī, dropped the isnād. Had he not done so, we could have determined the reliability of many of the book’s traditions. Most likely it is not authentic even to al-Aʿmash, for al-Ṭabarānī transmitted this report through the same Zayd ibn Wahb—as cited in al-Majmaʿ (3/172)—yet he made no mention of al-Aʿmash’s statement. Perhaps there is in that chain a weak narrator on account of poor memory or some other flaw; Allah knows best.

This is all that we have come across of the reports attributed to the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, which add to the number of rakʿahs established in the Sunnah for the tarāwīḥ prayer—and every one of them is weak; none is sound. Al-Tirmidhī has already pointed out their weakness, as noted earlier. I suspect that the esteemed reader has never seen them gathered in one book with such comprehensive tracing of the chains and meticulous scholarly verification. Praise be to Allah; by His grace righteous deeds are perfected. ⦗82⦘