And Musa ibn Wardan was truthful, though he sometimes erred; he has been omitted from Ibn Majah’s chain of transmission. For this reason, al-Marwazi narrated it in Zawa’id al-Zuhd (968), as did Ibn Abi ‘Asim (253–254) and al-Bayhaqi in Shu‘ab al-Iman (1/379, Indian edition).

Ibn Majah also has a corroborating report for it, as does Ibn Abi ‘Asim (252), narrated by ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Zayd ibn Aslam, from Abu Hazim, from Sahl ibn Sa‘d, attributing it to the Prophet with the same wording. ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Zayd ibn Aslam is very weak, but he was supported by ‘Uqbah ibn Muhammad, from Zayd ibn Aslam, with the same report. Ibn Abi ‘Asim narrated it (250). Its narrators are trustworthy apart from this ‘Uqbah, who apparently was the brother of Asbat ibn Muhammad. Ibn Abi Hatim (3/1/317) quoted his father as saying: “I do not know him.”

The hadith has another corroborating report, but it is a weak mursal report. In sum, the hadith is good when all its routes are taken together, Allah willing. See Takhrij al-Sunnah by Ibn Abi ‘Asim (296–299), which contains further source documentation.

1333 — “If the fluid from which a child is formed were poured onto a rock, Allah would surely bring forth a child from it—or a child would emerge from it. And Allah will most certainly create every soul He is to create.”

Ahmad (3/140) narrated it: Abu ‘Asim narrated to us: Abu ‘Amr—Mubarak al-Khayyat, the grandfather of the children of ‘Abbad ibn Kathir—informed us, saying: I asked Thumamah ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn Anas about coitus interruptus. He said: I heard Anas ibn Malik say: A man came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and asked him about coitus interruptus. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, then mentioned it.

Ibn Abi ‘Asim also narrated it through this route in al-Sunnah (320).