Al-Haythami criticized it solely on account of this Abu Bakr, saying: “He is a Successor whom I do not know, while the rest of its narrators have been declared reliable.” It seems that he was alluding to a weakness in Abu Maʿshar’s retention; his name was Najih.
- As for the hadith of Wahshi, Wahshi ibn Harb ibn Wahshi narrates it from his father, from his grandfather, with the wording: “Return the greeting, lower your gaze, guide the blind man (1), and help the oppressed.” Al-Tabarani also narrated it (22/138/367). Al-Haythami said: “Its narrators are trustworthy, though some of them have weakness.”
I say: No one other than Ibn Hibban declared Harb ibn Wahshi reliable (4/173), and his status is unknown, as I explained in Taysir al-Intifaʿ.
Know that these hadiths contain a fine collection of important Islamic etiquettes concerning sitting in roads and in the courtyards of homes. Muslims should give them due attention, especially those that are obligatory, such as lowering one’s gaze from women—a matter enjoined in many other hadiths—and in the words of our Lord, Mighty and Majestic:
“Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and guard their chastity. That is purer for them. Indeed, Allah is All-Aware of what they do.” (al-Nur: 30)
If this divine command was addressed directly to that first generation—the purest and most illuminated—and at that time nothing of women could be seen except the face and hands of some of them, as