“ʿAṭāʾ’s narration from ʿĀʾishah is not admissible as proof unless he says, ‘I heard [her].’” The hadith is authentic, however, for it has other routes and supporting reports, cited in al-Irwāʾ (1116).

I have only included it here because of the account of the woman with ʿĀʾishah and her saying, “No,” for this explicitly establishes that the ʿaqīqah (birth sacrifice) cannot be fulfilled with anything other than sheep. It has another route, which al-Bayhaqī (9/301) and others narrated through Ibn Abī Mulaykah, who said: A son was born to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr, and ʿĀʾishah was told, “O Mother of the Believers, perform the ʿaqīqah for him with a camel.” She replied, “Allah forbid! Rather, [do] as the Messenger of Allah said: ‘Two comparable sheep.’” Its chain of transmission is good, as I have explained in al-Irwāʾ (4/390).

ʿAbd al-Razzāq also narrated it in al-Muṣannaf (4/328/7956), and Ibn Ḥazm narrated it from him (1/317), through another route from Ḥafṣah bint ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, from ʿĀʾishah. It states that Ḥafṣah bore a son to al-Mundhir ibn al-Zubayr, and she was told, “Why do you not perform the ʿaqīqah for your son with a camel?” She replied, “Allah forbid! My aunt ʿĀʾishah used to say: ‘For a boy, two sheep; and for a girl, one sheep.’” Its chain of transmission is authentic. Al-Tirmidhī and others also narrated it as attributed to the Prophet, without mentioning the camel or her words, “Allah forbid.” It is cited there.

I then saw that Ibn Rāhūyah said elsewhere in his Musnad (4/149/1): Yaʿlā ibn ʿUbayd informed us: ʿAbd al-Malik informed us, from ʿAṭāʾ, from Abū Kurz, from Umm Kurz, who said: A woman from the household of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr said, “If ʿAbd al-Raḥmān’s wife gives birth...” The hadith is like Ibn Idrīs’s narration. He then also related it immediately after this hadith of Yaʿlā. This makes clear that it is interrupted—indeed, it has a double break—for between ʿAṭāʾ and ʿĀʾishah are Abū Kurz and Umm Kurz.