al-Halwani’s shaykh was Ghawth ibn Jabir, and Ibn Safwan’s shaykh was Idris, the grandson of Wahb. But how did he overlook Ibn Safwan’s own weakness?! Moreover, what lends the hadith still further strength is that it has another route from Ibn Umar himself, which I mentioned under the preceding hadith.

2620 — “A time will soon come when a man will wish that he had fallen from the Pleiades and had assumed no responsibility whatsoever over the affairs of the people.”

Al-Hakim (4/91), Ahmad (2/377, 520, and 536), and al-Bazzar (2/255/1643) narrated it through Asim ibn Bahdalah, from Yazid ibn Sharik: al-Dahhak ibn Qays sent him with a set of garments to Marwan ibn al-Hakam. Marwan said to the gatekeeper, “See who is at the door.” He replied, “Abu Hurayrah.” So he permitted him to enter and said, “O Abu Hurayrah, tell us something that you heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).” He said, “I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say…” and then mentioned it.

Al-Hakim said, “Its chain of transmission is authentic,” and al-Dhahabi agreed with him. I say: Rather, it is good, because of the well-known criticism concerning Asim ibn Bahdalah. However, it is authentic through another route, narrated by Hisham ibn Hassan, from Abbad ibn Abi Ali, from Abu Hazim—the freedman of Abu Ruhm al-Ghifari—from Abu Hurayrah, attributed to the Prophet with similar wording. Al-Hakim, Ibn Hibban (1559), Ahmad (2/352 and 521), and others narrated it.

This chain is good in light of the preceding one. Its narrators are trustworthy, except for this Abbad, whom no one besides Ibn Hibban declared trustworthy. I have discussed him in al-Taʿliq al-Raghib (2/279). Al-Hakim and al-Dhahabi deemed it authentic, as did Ibn Khuzaymah, as cited in al-Fath (13/169), where this was endorsed.