But the hadith is authentic, for it is also narrated from Anas—and was declared authentic by al-Hakim and al-Dhahabi—as well as from Abu Hurayrah and Bishr ibn Ka‘b. I have documented their hadiths in Funeral Rulings (p. 46), where I explained that the practice of some people, following the funeral prayer, of saying, “What do you testify concerning him? Testify to his goodness,” is a vile innovation, and that the hadith does not support it. Refer to it.
- “Recite, O so-and-so, for tranquility descended for the Quran, or when the Quran is recited.”
Ahmad (4/284) recorded it: ‘Affan narrated to us; Shu‘bah narrated to us from Abu Ishaq, who said: “I heard al-Bara’ say: ‘A man was reciting Surah al-Kahf while he had a tethered mount beside him. The animal began to shy away, and the man saw a cloud, or a mist, that had enveloped him. Alarmed, he went to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and related this to him. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said...”’ I asked: “Did the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, name that man?” He replied: “Yes.” He then cited the report.
I say: This is an authentic chain of transmission meeting the criteria of al-Bukhari and Muslim. It was also recorded by al-Bukhari (6/458, Fath), Muslim (2/193), Ahmad (4/281), and Abu Ya‘la (2/479–480), through other routes from Shu‘bah with the same report. Al-Bukhari also recorded it in Exegesis (8/450) and in Merits of the Quran (9/52), as did Muslim, Ahmad (4/293 and 298), and Ibn Nasr (p. 97, al-Athariyyah edition), through other routes from Abu Ishaq with the same report.
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar did not come across al-Bukhari’s route in Merits in al-Nukat al-Ziraf (2/42), even though he referred to it in his commentary on the hadith in the cited place in Exegesis. Exalted is He who does not forget. I chose to begin by tracing the hadith through Shu‘bah’s route rather than the other routes,