“He was weak in hadith, but Ibn Hibban was excessive in his judgment of him.”

4. As for the hadith of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, al-Nadr ibn Humayd narrated it from Sa‘d, from al-Sha‘bi, from him, with the same wording, attributing it to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. He added: “Acts of kindness safeguard against evil deaths; maintaining ties of kinship increases one’s lifespan and expands one’s provision. Frequently say, ‘La hawla wa-la quwwata illa Allah’ (There is no power nor strength except through Allah), for it is a treasure from among the treasures of Paradise, and it contains a cure for ninety-nine portions [sic], the least of them being anxiety.” Abu Bakr al-Dhakawani recorded it in Twelve Sessions (9/2).

I say: This is a very weak chain of transmission. Concerning this al-Nadr, al-Bukhari said: “His hadith is rejected.” Abu Hatim said: “His hadith is abandoned.”

5. As for the hadith of Ibn Mas‘ud, Nasr ibn Hammad ibn ‘Ajlan al-‘Ijli narrated it, saying: “Asim ibn Tamim al-Bajali informed us, from Asim ibn Bahdalah, from Abu Wa’il, from Ibn Mas‘ud,” attributing it to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, with the same wording. At its beginning, he added: “Maintaining ties of kinship increases one’s lifespan.” Al-Quda‘i recorded it in Musnad al-Shihab (11/1). Ibn al-Muhibb, I believe, wrote in the margin of the manuscript: “Nasr ibn Hammad is utterly discredited.”

I say: In al-Taqrib, it states: “Weak. Al-Azdi went to excess in claiming that he fabricated reports.”

I say: The addition at its beginning has many corroborating reports in al-Targhib (3/223 and 224). The sources of some of them have previously been traced under nos. 276 and 513.