“A fair and authentic hadith.” I say: Its chain meets Muslim’s criteria, and Abū Hudhayfa’s name was Salama ibn Suhayb. The Musnad states that Talha narrated from him. This is a useful detail that you will not find in his biographical notice, so I wished to record it here that it might be preserved. Both the Musnad and al-Tahāwī also state that he was one of Abd Allāh’s companions—that is, Ibn Masūd. Al-Tahāwī said: “This indicates his eminent standing and lofty rank.”

428 — (Ibn Masūd said: “We were with the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—when a man got up—that is, he left the gathering—and another man began backbiting him after he had gone. The Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—said to this man: ‘Pick your teeth.’ He replied: ‘Why should I pick my teeth? I have eaten no meat!’ He said: ‘You have eaten the flesh of your brother.’” Al-Tabarānī; its narrators are narrators of the authentic collections.) p. 309.

Authentic. Al-Tabarānī narrated it in al-Mujam al-Kabīr (3/63/2): Muhammad ibn Abd Allāh al-Hadramī narrated to us: Abū Bakr ibn Abī Shayba narrated to us: Abū Khālid narrated to us, from Yūnus ibn Abī Ishāq, from Abū Ishāq, from Abū al-Ahwas, from Abd Allāh, who said—and he then mentioned the hadith.

I say: All the narrators in this chain are trustworthy narrators used by Muslim, except al-Hadramī, who was a reliable hadith master. However, Abū Ishāq—Amr ibn Abd Allāh al-Sabīī—was known to obscure his immediate source in transmission, and his memory had deteriorated. Were it not for that, I would have declared it authentic. Al-Mundhirī said of the hadith in al-Targhīb (3/298): “It is a singular hadith, narrated by Abū Bakr ibn Abī Shayba and al-Tabarānī, and its narrators are narrators of the authentic collections.” Al-Haythamī said in al-Majma (8/94): “Al-Tabarānī narrated it, and its narrators are narrators of the authentic collections.” He then cited a corroborating report from Abū Hurayra through two routes and with two wordings. It also has another corroborating report from Anas cited by al-Mundhirī, and a third from Yalā ibn Shabāba cited by him. By virtue of these corroborations, the hadith is authentic. Allah knows best.

429 — (Jābir reported: “We were with the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—when a foul-smelling wind blew,”