Malik, however, differed: he transmitted it from al-Ala, who reported that Abu Sa id, the client of Amir ibn Kurayz, informed him that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ called Ubayy ibn Kab … (the rest of the report). Al-Hakim recorded the narration through Malik’s route (1/557; 2/558). Al-Bayhaqi (2/376) ruled that it is mursal, i.e., the link between Abu Sa id and Ubayy is missing. Al-Suyuti, in Tanwir al-Hawalik, claimed the isnad is connected, asserting that Abu Sa id actually heard it from Ubayy ibn Kab and stating: “Al-Hakim linked the chain from him.” I have not found it in Al-Hakim with a connected chain; he gives it only twice through Malik in mursal form, as shown above. Allah knows best. The hadith also comes through other routes from Abu Hurayrah. Al-Hakim (1/558) narrates it via Muhammad ibn Ishaq → Abd Allah ibn Abi Bakr → Abu al-Zinad → al-Araj → Abu Hurayrah: that the Prophet ﷺ called Ubayy ibn Kab … (the hadith). The chain is sound were it not for Ibn Ishaq’s use of the ambiguous an ana form. Al-Hafiz commented, “This supports the view preferred by al-Tirmidhi.” Curiously, Al-Hakim cited this version as corroboration that Abu Hurayrah heard the hadith from Ubayy ibn Kab, whereas it in fact corroborates his hearing it directly from the Prophet ﷺ. Al-Bukhari (8/307; Juz al-Qira a, 14), Abu Dawud (1/230), al-Tirmidhi, al-Tahawi, al-Bayhaqi, and Ahmad (2/448) likewise transmit it from Ibn Abi Dhib—‘Said al-Maqburi narrated to us from Abu Hurayrah’—in an abridged, elevated (marfu) wording: