8795), through several routes from ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ, who said: Al-Layth narrated to me; Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān narrated to me, from Zayd ibn Aslam, from ʿAṭāʾ ibn Yasār, from Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī: A man greeted the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was praying, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) returned the greeting with a gesture. When he concluded the prayer, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) then spoke to him about it.
Al-Ṭabarānī said: “No one narrated it from Ibn ʿAjlān other than al-Layth.” I say: He is Ibn Saʿd, the leading Egyptian authority. Thus, the chain is good, despite the well-known disagreement concerning Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān.
Al-Haythamī considered it defective on account of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ, saying (2/81): “Al-Bazzār narrated it, and its chain includes ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ, the scribe of al-Layth. ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Shuʿayb ibn al-Layth declared him trustworthy, saying: ‘Trustworthy and reliable,’ while Aḥmad and others deemed him weak.” Al-Ḥāfiẓ took a middle position concerning him, holding that he is trustworthy in reports narrated from him by the major imams, such as al-Bukhārī, Abū Ḥātim, and others like them. See his biography in the introduction to Fatḥ al-Bārī.
It is apparent that he did not attribute it to al-Ṭabarānī—although it meets his criteria. Either he himself omitted it, for which there are precedents, or it was omitted by a copyist. The former is more likely, since he likewise did not include it in Majmaʿ al-Baḥrayn (2/176), even though al-Ṭabarānī’s work is one of its source texts, as is known to those familiar with the two Majmaʿ compilations.
Moreover, the man who greeted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd, as Abū Hurayrah narrated from him that he said: “I passed by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was praying, so I greeted him, and he gestured to me.” Al-Ṭabarānī narrated this from him with an authentic chain, and it is documented in al-Rawḍ al-Naḍīr (637). This occurred upon his return from his migration to Abyssinia. This is authentically established from him through more than one route. Its documentation has preceded in volume five, no. (2380), and also in al-Rawḍ (605).