your Lord, Mighty and Majestic.” I said, “Which jihad is best?” He replied, “The one whose horse is hamstrung and whose blood is shed.” I said, “Which hours are best?” He replied, “The depth of the latter part of the night ...”

I say: This chain of transmission is weak. Muhammad ibn Dhakwan—who is al-Tahi—and Shahr are both weak. However, most of the hadith has been established through other routes.

First: Ahmad (5/187) narrated its final passage through Abu Bakr ibn Abdullah, from Habib ibn Ubayd, from Amr ibn Abasah, from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to similar effect.

Its narrators are trustworthy, apart from Abu Bakr—who is Ibn Abi Maryam—for he had a poor memory. Ahmad also narrated it (5/111–113–114), as did Ibn Majah (1364), through Yazid ibn Talq, from Abd al-Rahman al-Baylamani, from Amr ibn Abasah, who said: “I came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, who has embraced Islam?’ He replied, ‘A free man and a slave.’ I then said, ‘Is there an hour closer to Allah, Exalted is He, than another?’ He replied, ‘The depth of the latter part of the night.’” Ibn Majah, however, has: “the middle of the night,” and this is anomalous.

I say: Ibn al-Baylamani is weak, and Ibn Talq is unknown. Yet this passage has another authentic chain from Amr ibn Abasah; the discussion of it may be found in Sahih Abi Dawud (1198).

Second: As for the passage, “Which jihad is best?” Ahmad (4/114) narrated through Abu Qilabah, from Amr ibn Abasah, who said: A man said, “O Messenger of Allah, what is Islam?” He replied, “That your heart submit to Allah, Exalted is He, and that the Muslims be safe from your tongue and hand.” He said, “Which Islam is best?” He replied, “Faith.” He said, “What is faith?” He replied, “That you believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, His messengers, and the resurrection after death.” He said, “Which faith is best?” He replied, “Migration.” He said, “What is migration?” He replied, “That you forsake evil.” He said, “Which migration is best?” He replied, “Jihad.”

He said, “What is jihad?” He replied, “That you fight the disbelievers when you encounter them.”