he would approach with his whole body and turn away with his whole body. May my father and mother be sacrificed for him! I have never seen anyone like him, neither before nor after him.”

Ibn Sa‘d transmitted it (1/414–415).

I say: The narrators in its chain of transmission are trustworthy, apart from ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Qudamah, who is weak, as stated in al-Taqrib. Ibn Ma‘in and Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr nevertheless deemed him trustworthy; thus, a narrator like him may be cited in corroboration, if Allah Most High wills.

Al-Bazzar also transmitted it (3/122/2387) through Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Himsi: ‘Amr ibn al-Harith narrated to us from ‘Abd Allah ibn Salim, from al-Zubaydi, from al-Zuhri, from Sa‘id ibn al-Musayyib, who heard Abu Hurayrah describing the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, saying:

“He was of medium stature, though nearer to tall; intensely fair in complexion, black-bearded, with beautiful hair and long eyelashes...”

The hadith continues, but without mentioning the flanks. Al-Bazzar said: “We know of no one who narrated it from al-Zuhri, from Sa‘id, from Abu Hurayrah, besides al-Zubaydi.”

I say: This is an authentic chain of transmission, provided it is free from the defect of Ishaq al-Himsi. Al-Hafiz said: “He frequently errs, and Muhammad ibn ‘Awf plainly declared him to be a liar.”

The phrase, “long eyelashes,” occurs through a sound route from Abu Hurayrah in another hadith previously cited under no. 2095, which includes the words: “He would approach with his whole body and turn away with his whole body.”

This report, as well as the phrase just mentioned, is corroborated by a hadith from ‘Ali through several routes from him in al-Tabaqat (1/410–413), which states: “I never saw anyone like him, neither before nor after him.”

It is also found in al-Tirmidhi’s al-Shama’il (15/4, abridged edition). Ibn Hibban also authenticated it (2117, Mawarid) through another route, whose documentation was likewise previously given under no. 2053. *