The Shaykh—may Allah have mercy on him—wrote beneath Ḥadīth 4237 of al-Silsilah al-Ḍaʿīfah (p. 244): “He is alluding to the report, ‘Whenever he was worried he would take hold of his beard and look at it,’ yet, as you can see, that is a different narration…. I had already traced it in al-Ḍaʿīfah under no. 707, then resolved to move it to al-Ṣaḥīḥah on account of another chain I came across in Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān (al-Iḥsān) and because I corrected al-Haythamī concerning it in Mawārid al-Ẓamʾān.” The ḥadīth appears in Ṣaḥīḥ Mawārid al-Ẓamʾān under no. 1776/6405 with the wording: “Whenever something distressed the Prophet ﷺ he would take hold of his beard like this,” and Ibn Mus-hir clasped his own beard to demonstrate. In his verification the Shaykh concluded: “ḥasan li-ghayrihi—al-Ḍaʿīfah 707 (second verification) and 4237.”

I searched for the ḥadīth in al-Ṣaḥīḥah but did not find it; perhaps the Shaykh intended to transfer it yet, for reasons unknown to us, did not do so. Allah knows best.

This, then, is a narration the Shaykh first ruled weak and later declared sound when all its chains are considered together.

(10) “I performed ṭawāf with ʿAbd Allāh. When we reached the back of the Kaʿbah I said, ‘Will you not seek refuge?’ He replied, ‘We seek refuge with Allah from the Fire.’ He then continued until he touched the Black Stone, stood between the Corner and the Door, and pressed his chest, face, forearms and palms against it like this, spreading them out; then he said, ‘Thus I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ do.’” Sunan Abī Dāwūd 1899, where the isnād is graded “weak.”

In al-Ṣaḥīḥah 2138 the Shaykh upgraded it to ḥasan on account of several supporting lines, with the wording: “He would press his chest, face, forearms and hands between the Corner and the Door—that is, during ṭawāf.”

Under Ḥadīth 4865 of al-Ḍaʿīfah the Shaykh notes: “The practice of iltizām at that spot is reported from him ﷺ through chains that strengthen one another; for that reason I cited it in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ al-Ṣaghīr, no. 4888 (no. 5012 in the third edition) with the wording, ‘He would press his chest and face to the multazam,’ and I traced it in al-Ṣaḥīḥah 2138, giving it authentic, halted supports from a number of Companions—may Allah be pleased with them.”

It is also found in Sunan Ibn Mājah, no. 2963, and in the edition prepared by Shaykh Mashhūr al-Salman—may Allah preserve him—it is graded ḥasan.

In Manāsik al-Ḥajj wa’l-ʿUmrah he writes: “38 – He may cling to what lies between the Corner and the Door, placing his chest, face and forearms upon it (3) (3). This has been narrated from the Prophet ﷺ via two routes that raise it to the level of ḥasan, and it gains further strength from the established practice of a number of Companions, among them Ibn ʿAbbās—may Allah be pleased with them both—who said, ‘This is the multazam between the Corner and the Door.’ It is likewise authentically reported from ʿUrwah ibn al-Zubayr. All of this is documented in al-Aḥādīth al-Ṣaḥīḥah (2138).”

This, too, is a ḥadīth the Shaykh first deemed weak and later ranked ḥasan.

(11) “Paradise yearns for three: ʿAlī, ʿAmmār and Salmān.” Reported by al-Tirmidhī, no. 3797. The Shaykh graded it weak in al-Mishkāt 6225 and in Hidāyat al-Ruwwāt 6186, saying: “Its isnād is weak—though al-Tirmidhī called it ḥasan—because it contains al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī, who narrates with an unbroken ʿanʿanah…. Yes, the report has another route from Anas that bolsters it, and in that version al-Miqdād is named together with the three; for that reason I cited it in al-Ḍaʿīfah 2328.”

In al-Ḍaʿīfah 2328 (p. 353) he adds: “Indeed, there is another chain from Anas, raised to the Prophet ﷺ, with the wording ‘three’ and without mentioning al-Miqdād or Abū Dharr. Al-Ḥākim and others declared it authentic, but in my view its isnād is weak, as I explained in my notes on al-Mishkāt 6225 (second verification). Nevertheless, taken together the two routes render it ḥasan—Allah knows best.” It also appears in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ, no. 1598, where it is graded ḥasan.

(12) He used to supplicate: “O Allah, preserve me by Islam while standing, preserve me by Islam while seated, preserve me by Islam while reclining; do not allow a spiteful enemy to gloat over me. O Allah, I ask You for every good whose treasures are in Your hand, and I seek refuge with You from every evil whose treasures are in Your hand.” (ḥasan) Recorded in al-Ṣaḥīḥah 1540 and in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ 1260 with the wording: “O Allah, preserve me by Islam while standing, preserve me by Islam while seated, preserve me by Islam while reclining. Do not allow an enemy nor a jealous person to gloat over me….”

The Shaykh remarks in al-Ṣaḥīḥah under no. 1540: “I have found another chain for the report, transmitted by Muʿallā ibn Ruʾbah al-Ḥimṣī….” He then cites the isnād: ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb suffered a misfortune, came to the Prophet ﷺ, complained of it and asked him to order that a measure of dates be given to him. The Prophet ﷺ said, “If you wish I shall teach you words that are better for you.” ʿUmar replied, “Teach them to me and grant me a measure, for I am in need of it.” He then mentioned the supplication. It was reported by Ibn Ḥibbān 2430 and al-Daylamī…. In sum, the ḥadīth is ḥasan when the two chains are combined—Allah knows best.

In Ḍaʿīf Mawārid al-Ẓamʾān (p. 314) the Shaykh judged the report of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb weak, stating: “Weak”—al-Ḍaʿīfah 6003.

(13) “O Allah, strengthen Islam through ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb alone.” The wording without “alone” is authentic; see Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Mājah 85. In al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah the complete form—“O Allah, strengthen Islam through ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb alone”—occurs with a sound isnād, al-Ṣaḥīḥah 3225. Ṣaḥīḥ Mawārid al-Ẓamʾān 1828/2180 notes: “Ṣaḥīḥ li-ghayrihi—al-Ṣaḥīḥah 3225.”

Allah knows best.