except for al-Bazzar’s two shaykhs, including Ibn Jamil, both of whom are trustworthy. Their biographies appear in Tarikh Baghdad (4/76–77).

Al-Mundhiri cited the hadith (4/100) in similar wording and said: “Al-Tabarani narrated it in al-Kabir through several chains, one of which is authentic; and he narrated something similar in al-Awsat.” Al-Haythami further attributed it (10/252) to al-Bazzar, saying: “One of its chains in al-Kabir consists of narrators of the Sahih.” They then cited a similar narration from Abu Hurayrah and said: “Al-Bazzar narrated it, and its narrators are narrators of the Sahih.”

Al-Haythami then cited it from Anas, adding at its end: “He says: ‘I had indeed considered you the least important of the three.’” He said: “Al-Bazzar and al-Tabarani narrated it in al-Awsat. Their narrators are narrators of the Sahih, apart from Imran al-Qattan, who has been declared trustworthy, though there is disagreement concerning him.”

I say: Al-Hajjaj also narrated it in corroboration from Qatadah, from Anas. Al-Hakim transmitted it (1/74) and said: “Authentic according to the criteria of them both.” Al-Dhahabi agreed with him, and it is as they said. This al-Hajjaj is al-Hajjaj ibn al-Hajjaj al-Bahili al-Basri al-Ahwal.

It also has a detailed corroborating report from the hadith of Aishah, attributed to the Prophet. Ibn Abi Hatim narrated it in al-Ilal (2/118) through Abdullah ibn Abd al-Aziz, from al-Zuhri, from Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib and Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, from her. He said: “This is a rejected hadith from al-Zuhri; it does not appear that it can be true. Abdullah ibn Abd al-Aziz is weak in hadith; most of his hadiths are erroneous, and I know of no sound hadith from him.”