and the connected chains referred to above. And Allah knows best.

945 — “Talhah has made [Paradise] obligatory.”

It was narrated by al-Tirmidhi (1/316), in al-Shama’il (p. 85), Ibn Hibban (2212), al-Hakim (3/374), Ahmad (1/165), and Ibn Hisham in al-Sirah (3/91–92), through Muhammad ibn Ishaq, from Yahya ibn ‘Abbad ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, from his father, from his grandfather ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, from al-Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwam, who said: “The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, was wearing two coats of armour on the day of Uhud. He attempted to climb onto a rock but was unable to do so, so he had Talhah sit beneath him. The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, then climbed onto him until he was settled upon the rock.” He said: “I heard the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, say…” He then cited it.

Al-Hakim said: “Authentic according to Muslim’s criteria!” Al-Dhahabi concurred with him. Al-Tirmidhi said: “A good, singular hadith; we know it only through the hadith of Ibn Ishaq.”

I say: Ibn Ishaq explicitly stated direct transmission in the narrations of Ahmad, Ibn Hisham, and Ibn Hibban, so we are thereby safe from his concealment in transmission. Thus, the hadith is good, as al-Mundhiri said. It is not, however, according to Muslim’s criteria, since Muslim only narrated from Ibn Ishaq in supporting reports. Yet it has a corroborating report from the hadith of ‘A’ishah, the Mother of the Believers, attributed to the Prophet with the same wording. Al-Hakim narrated it (3/376) and said: “Authentic according to Muslim’s criteria.” But al-Dhahabi rejected this, saying: “I say: No, by Allah! Ishaq ibn Yahya ibn Talhah was declared abandoned by Ahmad.”