Al-Munawi left it without comment in al-Fayd, saying nothing at all about its chain of transmission, apart from his remark: “The author marked it as good.” Yet in al-Taysir he said: “Its chain of transmission is authentic.” I have not found it in al-Tabarani’s Musnad Ibn Abbas, nor in Majmaʿ al-Zawaʾid, nor is it listed in its index. And Allah knows best.

2117 — “When he broke his fast, he would begin with dates.”

Al-Nasaʾi narrated it in al-Sunan al-Kubra (65/2), as did al-Firyabi in al-Siyam (4/62/2); Ibn ʿAsakir (4/286/1) narrated it from him, and al-Diyaʾ in al-Mukhtarah (1/292), through Yazid ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz, from Ruqbah, from Burayd ibn Abi Maryam, from Anas, in a report attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).

Al-Nasaʾi said: “Shuʿbah narrated it as a mursal report, from Burayd directly from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and Shuʿbah had stronger retention than the one who narrated this hadith.”

I say: Al-Daraqutni differed with him and gave preference to the connected chain, saying—as al-Diyaʾ related from him—“It appears that Ruqbah retained it correctly.” I say: This is correct, because Ruqbah—namely, Ibn Musqalah—is trustworthy and reliable, as stated in al-Taqrib, and both al-Bukhari and Muslim relied on him. Therefore, Shuʿbah’s narrating it as a mursal report does not impair it, for one who has retained something correctly is proof against one who has not. Yazid ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz was Ibn Sayyah al-Asadi al-Humani; he too was trustworthy and among the narrators relied upon by both al-Bukhari and Muslim. Burayd ibn Abi Maryam was a trustworthy Successor. Thus, the chain of transmission is authentic.