Then something came to my attention that cast doubt on this route: Ibn Abi Shaybah did not transmit it in his Musannaf as a report attributed to the Prophet. Rather, he said (2/233):
“Abu Usamah narrated to us, from Hisham, from Muhammad, who said: ‘I never saw him begin a voluntary prayer except with two rak'ahs.’”
Thus, he stopped the report at Muhammad ibn Sirin.
I then found a supporting transmission for Ibn Abi Shaybah in which it was attributed to the Prophet. Al-Tirmidhi said in al-Shama'il (2/88, with al-Qari's commentary), and al-Baghawi transmitted it from him (4/17/079)—declaring it authentic: “Muhammad ibn al-Ala narrated to us: Abu Usamah informed us of it through this chain.” The aforementioned objection was therefore eliminated, while the preference for attribution to the Companion remained, for the two reasons indicated:
First, Hisham was corroborated by Ayyub and others in reporting it as attributed to the Companion, whereas—to my knowledge—no one corroborated him in attributing it to the Prophet.
Second, we found no corroborating report for it, though we did find support for the Prophet-attributed version in an account of his action, peace and blessings be upon him. Muslim and others narrated it from Aishah, and it has been cited there, as has the hadith under discussion. *
- “If Allah were to call Jesus and me to account for our sins—or, in another narration, ‘for what these two have earned,’ referring to the thumb and the finger beside it—He would punish us and not—in the other narration, ‘yet would not’—wrong us in the least.”
Ibn Hibban narrated it in his Sahih (2/656 and 658), in both wordings; and Abu Nu'aym narrated it in al-Hilyah (8/132), in the other wording, through several routes from Husayn ibn Ali al-Ju'fi, from Fudayl ibn Iyad, from Hisham ibn Hassan, from Ibn Sirin, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: