It was recorded by al-Tabarani in al-Mu‘jam al-Kabir (3/204/1). Al-Haythami said (8/57): “I do not know Asbat ibn ‘Azrah, but the rest of its narrators are narrators of the Sahih.” I say: Ibn Abi Hatim states in al-Jarh wa-al-Ta‘dil (Narrator Criticism and Accreditation) (1/1/332): “Asbat ibn Zur‘ah. He narrated from Mujahid, and Isra’il narrated from him.” He added nothing further.

I say: It appears that he is the same person, but his father’s name has been corrupted in one of the two books, al-Mu‘jam or al-Jarh wa-al-Ta‘dil. The former is more likely, since al-Tarikh al-Kabir (1/2/53) agrees with al-Jarh wa-al-Ta‘dil. In either case, he is unknown.

2388 — “He forbade withholding the surplus water of a well,” that is, its excess water.

Ahmad (6/268) narrated it: Ya‘qub related to us; he said: My father related to us, from Ibn Ishaq, who said: Abu al-Rijal Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman related to me from his mother, Amrah bint ‘Abd al-Rahman, from Aishah, the Prophet’s wife, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him—and then he cited it.

Ahmad also narrated it (6/139), as did Ibn Hibban (1141), through other routes from Muhammad ibn Ishaq with this chain. Ahmad (6/112 and 252), al-Hakim (2/61), and Ibn ‘Adi (121/1) then narrated it through other routes from Abu al-Rijal, with the wording: “No surplus water in a well may be withheld.” Al-Hakim said: “Its chain of transmission is authentic.”

I say: Through these routes, its chain as far as Abu al-Rijal meets the criteria of al-Bukhari and Muslim, and it was corroborated by his son, Harithah ibn