Dhakwan Abu Salih, from Mu‘awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said it. The additional wording occurs in one narration of Ahmad. Al-Hakim also recorded it but made no comment on it, while al-Dhahabi said: “I say: It is authentic.”

I say: It is as he said, if he means that it is authentic due to corroborating evidence; otherwise, it is good, because of the well-known disagreement concerning ‘Asim ibn Bahdalah.

It also has another route, narrated by al-Mughirah from Ma‘bad al-Qass, from ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Abd, from Mu‘awiyah, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, say:

“Whoever drinks wine, flog him; then if he repeats it, flog him …”

It contains the additional wording. Ahmad recorded it (4/93–97).

I say: Its chain of transmission is authentic according to the criteria of al-Bukhari and Muslim. ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Abd is al-Qari; Ma‘bad is Ibn Khalid ibn Murayr al-Jadali; and al-Mughirah is Ibn Miqsam.

Moreover, the hadith is of the highest degree of authenticity, for it was narrated by a number of other Companions, including Abu Hurayrah, Jarir ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Bajali, ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Umar, al-Shurayd Abu ‘Amr, ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amr, and Shurahbil ibn Aws. Al-Hakim cited its chains of transmission back to them. Ibn Hibban likewise authenticated it on the authority of Abu Hurayrah and also on the authority of Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri.

It has been claimed that the hadith is abrogated, but there is no evidence for that. Rather, it is decisive and not abrogated, as the eminent scholar Ahmad Shakir established in his commentary on al-Musnad (9/49–92), where he examined its chains exhaustively, leaving nothing further to be said. However, we hold that it falls under discretionary punishment: if the imam considers execution appropriate, he may carry it out; and if he does not consider it appropriate, he need not execute the offender. Flogging, however, is required on every occasion. This is the view chosen by Imam Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him.

1361 — “When you drink milk, rinse your mouths, for it contains fat.”

Ibn Majah recorded it (1/181) through Muhammad ibn Khalid—the original text has: Khalid ibn Muhammad—from Musa ibn Ya‘qub, who said: Abu ‘Ubaydah ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn Zam‘ah narrated to me from his father, from Umm Salamah, the wife of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said it.