I say: Its chain of transmission is good; all its narrators are trustworthy. His request that Suhayl send him water as a gift is supported by a report from Ibn ‘Abbas, recorded by al-Bayhaqi.
- “Avoid anger.”
Ahmad (5/408) recorded it: Sufyan narrated to us, from al-Zuhri, from Humayd ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Awf, from a man among the Prophet’s Companions, that a man said to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: “Tell me some words by which I may live, but do not give me too much, lest I forget.” He said: “Avoid anger.” The man repeated his request, and he gave the same reply.
I say: This is an authentic chain of transmission. Its narrators are trustworthy and are among those relied upon by al-Bukhari and Muslim. The anonymity of the Companion does not detract from it, as is well known. Al-Suyuti attributed the hadith to Ibn Abi al-Dunya in his Book on the Condemnation of Anger and to Ibn ‘Asakir, overlooking the fact that it is found in al-Musnad. Al-Manawi likewise overlooked this and made no comment at all on its chain of transmission.
- “Avoid the major sins, keep to the right course, and receive glad tidings.”
Ahmad (3/394) recorded it through Ibn Lahi‘ah, who narrated to us from Abu al-Zubayr, from Jabir, that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said it.
I say: This chain of transmission is weak because of Ibn Lahi‘ah, for he had a poor memory, and because Abu al-Zubayr narrated using an unexplicit transmission formula.