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Ummah after its Prophet is Abū Bakr, then Umar.” He gave the same answer to his son (1), [Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya] (2), as narrated by al-Bukhārī in his Sahīh (3) and by other scholars of the upright faith.
(1) N, M, A, L: “to his son.”
(2) He was Abū al-Qāsim Muhammad ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Tālib, known as Ibn al-Hanafiyya after his mother. He most likely died in 81 AH. See his biography in Ibn Khallikān, 3/310–313; *Shadharāt al-Dhahab*, 1/88–90. The Mukhtāriyya—the followers of al-Mukhtār ibn Abī ʿUbayd al-Thaqafī—were a branch of the Kaysāniyya who believed in his imamate. Al-Shahrastānī states in *al-Milal wa al-Nihal*, 1/132–133, that Ibn al-Hanafiyya repudiated al-Mukhtār upon learning of his claims. See also *Maqālāt al-Ashʿarī*, 1/90–91.
(3) The report is found in al-Bukhārī, 5/7 (Book of the Virtues of the Companions of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—chapter: “Al-Humaydī and Muhammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh Narrated to Us”). Its wording is: Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya related: “I asked my father, ‘Who is the best of people after the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace?’ He replied, ‘Abū Bakr.’ I asked, ‘Then who?’ He replied, ‘Then ʿUmar.’ Fearing that he would next say ʿUthmān, I asked, ‘Then you?’ He replied, ‘I am merely one man among the Muslims.’” This report, with slight differences in wording, is also found in *Sunan Abī Dāwūd*, 4/288 (Book of the Sunnah, chapter on precedence in merit).
In *Sunan Ibn Mājah*, 1/39 (Introduction, “The Virtue of ʿUmar”), ʿAbd Allāh ibn Salama related: “I heard ʿAlī say: ‘The best of people after the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—is Abū Bakr, and the best of people after Abū Bakr is ʿUmar.’”
The report also occurs with similar wording twenty-four times in the second volume of the al-Maʿārif edition of Ahmad’s *Musnad*, as follows: from Abū Juhayfa (hadith nos. 833, 835–837, 871, 878–880, and 1054); from ʿAbd Khayr al-Hamdānī (nos. 908, 909, 922, 932–934, 1030, 1031, 1040, 1052, and 1060); from ʿAbd Khayr, from his father (nos. 926 and 932); from Wahb al-Suwāʾī (no. 834); and from ʿAlqama ibn Qays (no. 1051). Shaykh Ahmad Shākir—may Allah have mercy on him—graded the chains of all these reports as sound, except those of nos. 922 and 1030, which he graded as good, and no. 1052, which he graded as weak.
Al-Suyūtī cited two hadiths in *al-Jāmiʿ al-Kabīr*, 1/518. The first is: “The best members of this community after its Prophet are Abū Bakr and ʿUmar.” He then wrote: “Kr = Ibn ʿAsākir in his *Tārīkh*, from ʿAlī; he said that the reliably preserved version is *mawqūf* (a Companion report).” The second is: “The best members of my community after me are Abū Bakr and ʿUmar.” He then wrote: “Kr = Ibn ʿAsākir in his *Tārīkh*, from ʿAlī and al-Zubayr together; K = al-Hākim in his *Tārīkh*, from Abū Hurayra.” The second hadith also appears in *al-Jāmiʿ al-Saghīr*, 2/10 (Mustafā al-Halabī ed., 1358 AH/1939), but al-Suyūtī did not list al-Hākim as its source there. Al-Suyūtī graded this hadith as good, whereas al-Albānī graded it as weak in *Daʿīf al-Jāmiʿ al-Saghīr*, 3/137.
الْأُمَّةِ بَعْدَ نَبِيِّهَا أَبُو بَكْرٍ، ثُمَّ عُمَرُ، وَبِذَلِكَ أَجَابَ ابْنَهُ
(١)
[مُحَمَّدَ ابْنَ الْحَنَفِيَّةِ]
(٢)
فِيمَا رَوَاهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ فِي صَحِيحِهِ
(٣)
، وَغَيْرُهُ مِنْ عُلَمَاءِ الْمِلَّةِ الْحَنِيفِيَّةِ.
(١) ن، م، أ، ل: لِابْنِهِ.
(٢) هُوَ أَبُو الْقَاسِمِ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ، وَيُعْرَفُ بِابْنِ الْحَنَفِيَّةِ نِسْبَةً إِلَى أُمِّهِ، وَقَدْ تُوُفِّيَ عَلَى الْأَرْجَحِ سَنَةَ ٨١ هـ. انْظُرْ تَرْجَمَتَهُ فِي ابْنِ خَلِّكَانَ ٣/٣١٠ - ٣١٣؛ شَذَرَاتِ الذَّهَبِ ١/٨٨ - ٩٠. وَالْفِرْقَةُ الْمُخْتَارِيَّةُ (أَصْحَابُ الْمُخْتَارِ بْنِ أَبِي عُبَيْدٍ الثَّقَفِيِّ) وَهِيَ وَاحِدَةٌ مِنْ فُرُوعِ الْفِرْقَةِ الْكَيْسَانِيَّةِ كَانَتْ تَعْتَقِدُ بِإِمَامَتِهِ. وَيَذْكُرُ الشَّهْرَسْتَانِيُّ (الْمِلَلَ وَالنِّحَلَ ١/١٣٢ - ١٣٣) أَنَّ ابْنَ الْحَنَفِيَّةِ تَبَرَّأَ مِنَ الْمُخْتَارِ لَمَّا وَقَفَ عَلَى مَزَاعِمِهِ. وَانْظُرْ أَيْضًا مَقَالَاتِ الْأَشْعَرِيِّ ١/٩٠ - ٩١.
(٣) الْأَثَرُ فِي: الْبُخَارِيِّ ٥/٧ (كِتَابَ فَضَائِلِ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ -، بَابُ حَدَّثَنَا الْحُمَيْدِيُّ وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ) وَنَصُّهُ. . عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ ابْنِ الْحَنَفِيَّةِ قَالَ: قُلْتُ لِأَبِي: أَيُّ النَّاسِ خَيْرٌ بَعْدَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ -؟ قَالَ: أَبُو بَكْرٍ. قُلْتُ: ثُمَّ مَنْ؟ قَالَ: ثُمَّ عُمَرُ. وَخَشِيتُ أَنْ يَقُولَ: عُثْمَانُ. قُلْتُ: ثُمَّ أَنْتَ. قَالَ: مَا أَنَا إِلَّا رَجُلٌ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ. وَهَذَا الْأَثَرُ مَعَ اخْتِلَافٍ يَسِيرٍ فِي الْأَلْفَاظِ - فِي: سُنَنِ أَبِي دَاوُدَ ٤/٢٨٨ (كِتَابُ السُّنَّةِ، بَابٌ فِي التَّفْضِيلِ) . وَفِي سُنَنِ ابْنِ مَاجَهْ ١/٣٩ (الْمُقَدِّمَةَ، فَضْلُ عُمَرَ) . . عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ سَلَمَةَ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ عَلِيًّا يَقُولُ: خَيْرُ النَّاسِ بَعْدَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَخَيْرُ النَّاسِ بَعْدَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ عُمَرُ. وَوَرَدَ الْأَثَرُ فِي مُسْنَدِ أَحْمَدَ فِي الْجُزْءِ الثَّانِي (ط. الْمَعَارِفِ) بِأَلْفَاظٍ مُتَقَارِبَةٍ ٢٤ مَرَّةً كَالْآتِي: عَنْ أَبِي جُحَيْفَةَ (الْأَحَادِيثَ رَقْمَ ٨٣٣، ٨٣٥ - ٨٣٧، ٨٧١، ٨٧٨ - ٨٨٠، ١٠٥٤) وَعَنْ عَبْدِ خَيْرٍ الْهَمْدَانِيِّ (الْأَرْقَامَ ٩٠٨، ٩٠٩، ٩٢٢، ٩٣٢ - ٩٣٤، ١٠٣٠، ١٠٣١، ١٠٤٠، ١٠٥٢، ١٠٦٠) . وَعَنْ عَبْدِ خَيْرٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ (٩٢٦، ٩٣٢) وَعَنْ وَهْبٍ السُّوَائِيِّ (٨٣٤) . وَعَنْ عَلْقَمَةَ بْنِ قَيْسٍ (١٠٥١) وَقَدْ صَحَّحَ الشَّيْخُ أَحْمَد شَاكِر - رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ - سَنَدَ جَمِيعِ هَذِهِ الْآثَارِ مَا عَدَا سَنَدَ الْآثَارِ ٩٢٢، ١٠٣٠ فَقَدْ حَسَّنَهُمَا، ١٠٥٢ فَقَدْ ضَعَّفَهُ. وَذَكَرَ السُّيُوطِيُّ فِي الْجَامِعِ الْكَبِيرِ ١/٥١٨ حَدِيثَيْنِ الْأَوَّلُ هُوَ: " خَيْرُ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ بَعْدَ نَبِيِّهَا أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرُ " ثُمَّ قَالَ: " كر = ابْنُ عَسَاكِرَ فِي تَارِيخِهِ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ وَقَالَ: الْمَحْفُوظُ مَوْقُوفٌ " وَالثَّانِي هُوَ: " خَيْرُ أُمَّتِي بَعْدِي أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرُ " ثُمَّ قَالَ: " كر = ابْنُ عَسَاكِرَ فِي تَارِيخِهِ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ وَالزُّبَيْرِ مَعًا، ك = الْحَاكِمُ فِي تَارِيخِهِ عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ " وَجَاءَ الْحَدِيثُ الثَّانِي فِي الْجَامِعِ الصَّغِيرِ ٢/١٠ (ط. مُصْطَفَى الْحَلَبِيِّ، ١٣٥٨ ١٩٣٩) وَلَمْ. يَذْكُرْ أَنَّ الْحَدِيثَ عَنِ الْحَاكِمِ، وَحَسَّنَ السُّيُوطِيُّ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ، وَلَكِنَّ الْأَلْبَانِيَّ ضَعَّفَهُ فِي " ضَعِيفِ الْجَامِعِ الصَّغِيرِ ٣/١٣٧ ".