1492 — “The Jews split into seventy-one sects: one in Paradise and seventy in Hell. The Christians split into seventy-two sects: one in Paradise and seventy-one in Hell. By Him in Whose hand is my soul, my community will surely split into seventy-three sects: one in Paradise and seventy-two in Hell.” It was asked, “Messenger of Allah, who are they?” He replied, “They are the united community.”

It was transmitted by Ibn Majah (2/479), Ibn Abi ‘Asim in al-Sunnah (The Sunnah) (63), al-Lalaka’i in Sharh al-Sunnah (Explanation of the Sunnah) (1/23/1), through two routes from ‘Abbad ibn Yusuf, who said: Safwan ibn ‘Amr narrated to me from Rashid ibn Sa‘d, from ‘Awf ibn Malik, tracing it to the Prophet.

I say: This is a sound chain of transmission. Its narrators are well-known and trustworthy, apart from ‘Abbad ibn Yusuf, the Kindi of Hims. Ibn Hibban listed him in al-Thiqat (The Trustworthy Narrators), and others also declared him trustworthy; a number of narrators transmitted from him. This hadith has corroborating reports, some of which have preceded under no. 203.

1493 — “Spread greetings of peace, and you will be safe.”

It was transmitted by al-Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad (Manners in the Singular) (477/1266), Ahmad (4/286), Abu Ya‘la (101/2), Ibn Hibban (1934), Abu Nu‘aym in Akhbar Isfahan (Reports of Isfahan) (1/277), as well as al-‘Uqayli in al-Du‘afa’ (The Weak Narrators) (356), Abu Hamid ibn Bilal al-Naysaburi in his hadith collection (15/1), ‘Abd al-Rahim al-Sharabi in Ahadith Abi al-Yaman wa-Ghayrihi (Hadiths of Abu al-Yaman and Others) (83/1), and al-Quda‘i (61/1), from Qinnan ibn ‘Abd Allah, from ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Awsajah, from al-Bara’, tracing it to the Prophet. Through this same route, al-Diya’ transmitted it in al-Muntaqa min Masmu‘atihi bi-Marw (Selections from What He Heard in Marw) (71/1).

Al-‘Uqayli said: “’Abd Allah ibn Ahmad narrated to us: I heard my father say: I heard Yahya ibn Adam say: ‘Qinnan is not one of your men.’” His father said: “Yahya was sparing in his mention of people; I never heard him mention anyone other than Qinnan.” Al-‘Uqayli said: