Source: Sahab website / Hadith and Its Sciences section / The Retractions of Shaykh al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) concerning his rulings on certain hadiths

Additional narrations not found in the original book “Al-Albani’s Retractions,” gathered by Muhammad Abu ʿUmar al-Filastini

Muhammad Abu ʿUmar al-Filastini said:

Fifth:
This is a set of narrations that were missing from the original work. I have located and added them for the author. They include reports for which the Shaykh later reversed his verdict—moving from authentic to weak and vice-versa—as well as several notes and corrections. Allah is the One who grants success.
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(1) “Whoever invokes blessings upon me ten times in the morning and ten times in the evening will attain my intercession on the Day of Resurrection.” – A weak hadith.
It is cited in Daʿīf al-Targhīb (Maʿārif ed.) no. 396, and in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ no. 6357.
Shaykh al-Albani said in Daʿīf al-Targhīb—after al-Munḏirī had stated that al-Ṭabarānī related it with two chains, one of which is good:
“I, al-Albani, say: that is what he claimed, yet al-Sakhāwī challenged him, saying: ‘It is actually disconnected, for Khālid ibn Maʿdān never heard from Abū al-Dardāʾ.’ See al-Ḍaʿīfah 5788.” – End of the Shaykh’s words.

(2) The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to Gabriel, “Why is it that I have never seen Michael laughing?” He replied, “Michael has not laughed since the Fire was created.”
Shaykh al-Albani graded the hadith weak in al-Silsilah al-Ḍaʿīfah 4454 and Daʿīf al-Jāmiʿ 5090.
He later ruled it ḥasan in al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah no. 2511 after finding another chain and a supporting mursal report, and he likewise deemed it ḥasan li-ghayrihi in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb (Maʿārif ed.) no. 3664.

Here a warning is in order about a typographical error that occurred in Al-Irwāʾ—pointed out by the Shaykh in al-Ṣaḥīḥah—where the rulings on two hadiths were exchanged: the authentic was labeled weak and the weak authentic. The clarification follows.

(3) Shaykh al-Albani wrote in al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah, vol. 7, part 2, under hadith 3336, p. 1007 (footnote):
“After quoting Imām al-Dhahabī on Jaʿfar ibn Sulaymān al-Ḍubʿī, I—al-Albani—said: some reports reach him through Jaʿfar → Thābit → Anas, among them the narration ‘Indeed it has only just come from its Lord,’ documented in Al-Irwāʾ (3/143/678), Mukhtaṣar al-ʿUlū (93/25), and Ẓilāl al-Jannah (1/276/622).

Note: the documentation of this hadith was printed on the next page—p. 144—beneath another hadith that is weak, while the latter was documented beneath the former, which is authentic. This is one of the worst printing errors in Al-Irwāʾ, the result of my not supervising the galley proofs and the ignorance of the proof-reader. Some spiteful innovators exploited this inadvertent slip and claimed I had weakened the hadith. May Allah treat him as he deserves.”

The hadith referred to in Al-Irwāʾ, no. 678, is the report of Anas:
“We were struck by rain while we were with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He uncovered part of his garment so the rain touched him. We asked, ‘Why did you do that?’ He said, ‘Because it has only just come from its Lord.’” It is narrated by Muslim and Abū Dāwūd. Yet in the documentation it was marked ‘weak,’ with the note: “Reported by al-Bayhaqī (3/359) from Yazīd ibn al-Hād …,” concluding, “This is munqaṭiʿ.”

The second hadith, no. 679, reads: “It is reported that when the valley flowed with water he ﷺ would say, ‘Come out with us to this valley that Allah has made a means of purification so that we may purify ourselves with it.’” In the documentation it was marked ‘sound’ and traced to Muslim (3/26), Abū Dāwūd (5100), al-Bayhaqī (3/359), and Aḥmad (3/133, 267).

So—may Allah have mercy on you—observe the ignorance of the ignorant. Praise be to Allah; by His grace good works are completed.

The hadith “Indeed it has only just come from its Lord” is also found in Aḥmad’s Musnad (ed. Shākir) nos. 12306 = 3/133 and 13754 = 3/267.

The athar whose chain the Shaykh first graded ‘good’ then authenticated:

(4) Ibn ʿUmar passed by a shepherd and said, “Shepherd! Do you have a ewe fit for slaughter?” The man replied, “Its owner is not here.” Ibn ʿUmar said, “Just say, ‘The wolf ate it.’” The shepherd lifted his head toward the sky and said, “Then where is Allah?” Ibn ʿUmar bought the shepherd and the flock, set the man free, and gave him the sheep.

The Shaykh graded its isnād ‘good’ in Mukhtaṣar al-ʿUlū 127, and later declared it ṣaḥīḥ in al-Ṣaḥīḥah under hadith 3161, pp. 469-470, saying: “This isnād is authentic … Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī cited this athar in al-ʿUlū, attaching it to Abū Muṣʿab al-Zuhrī. I had earlier deemed its chain ‘good’ in my abridgment (p. 127) before finding a connected chain. Now, by Allah’s grace, I have located it.”

A hadith from which the Shaykh retracted his earlier authentication:

(5) “When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ entered the mosque he would say: ‘In the name of Allah, and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah. O Allah, forgive me my sins and open for me the gates of Your mercy.’ And when he left he would say: ‘In the name of Allah, and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah. O Allah, forgive me my sins and open for me the gates of Your bounty.’” Shaykh al-Albani had judged it authentic in Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Mājah 625.