I heard Abu al-Walid say: “I have not seen anyone in Rayy more learned in hadith than two men: Yahya ibn al-Diris and the man with the extra finger”—meaning al-Sindi. My father was asked about him, and he replied: “A shaykh.” Abu Awanah included reports from him in his Sahih, and Ibn Hibban listed him among the trustworthy narrators, as mentioned in Lisan al-Mizan.
I say: Thus, in my view, the hadith with this chain of transmission is sound. And Allah knows best.
- As for the hadith of Abu Burdah, Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami recorded it in Adab al-Suhbah (p. 26), through Abu al-Fadl al-Marwazi: Isa ibn Yunus narrated to us; al-Sinani narrated to us; al-Husayn ibn Waqid narrated to us from Ibn Abi Burdah, from his father, as a Prophetic report.
I say: This is a mursal chain whose narrators are trustworthy. Al-Sinani’s name was al-Fadl ibn Musa, and Abu al-Fadl al-Marwazi was known as Sadaqah ibn al-Fadl. However, the collector of this report, al-Sulami, is weak and accused of fabricating hadith.
1454 — “Accept Islam, even if you are reluctant.”
Ahmad (3/19/181), Abu Bakr al-Shafiʿi in al-Rubaʿiyyat (1/98/1), and al-Diyaʾ in al-Mukhtarah (100/1–2) narrated it through several routes from Humayd, from Anas: the Messenger of Allah said to a man, “Accept Islam.” He said, “I find myself reluctant.” He then said the words cited above.
I say: Its chain of transmission is authentic according to the criteria of al-Bukhari and Muslim, and Ahmad’s version has a three-narrator chain.
1455 — “Aslam, Ghifar, Ashjaʿ, Muzaynah, Juhaynah, and all those of Banu Kaʿb are my allies, apart from all other people; Allah and His Messenger are their patrons.”
Ahmad (5/417–418) recorded it: Yazid narrated to us; Abu Malik al-Ashjaʿi narrated to us; Musa ibn Talhah narrated to us from Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, from the Prophet, with this wording.
Al-Hakim also recorded it (4/82) through Yahya ibn Jaʿfar: Yazid ibn Harun narrated to us with it, and he said: