According to the Muhaddithin, Baqiyah bin Walid is guilty of Tadlis Taswiyah
Imam Abu Hatim al-Razi Rahimahullah:
He Rahimahullah says regarding a hadith narrated through the chain: “إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ رَاهُوَيْهِ، عَنْ بَقِيَّةَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبُو وَهْبٍ الْأَسَدِيُّ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا نَافِعٌ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ“:
هَذَا الحديثُ لَهُ عِلَّةٌ قَلَّ مَنْ يَفْهَمُهَا، رَوَى هذا الحديثَ عُبَيْدُ اللّٰه بنُ عَمْرٍو عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ أَبِي فَرْوَةَ، عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنِ ابن عمر، عن النبيِّ، وعُبَيْدُ اللّٰه بنُ عمرو كنيتُهُ أَبُو وَهْبٍ، وَهُوَ أَسَدِيٌّ فكأَنَّ بَقِيَّةَ بن الوليد كَنَّى عُبَيْدَ اللّٰه بْنَ عَمْرٍو، ونَسَبه إِلَى بَنِي أَسَد، لِكَيْلا يُفْطَنَ بِهِ، حَتَّى إِذَا تَرَكَ إِسحاقَ بنَ أَبِي فَرْوَة مِنَ الوَسَطِ لا يُهتَدَى لَهُ، وَكَانَ بَقِيَّةُ مِنْ أَفعلِ الناسِ لِهَذَا، وأما ما قَالَ إِسحاقُ فِي روايته عَنْ بَقِيَّة، عَنْ أَبِي وَهْب: حَدَّثنا نَافِع، فهو وَهَمٌ، غير أَنَّ وجهه عندي: أن إِسْحَاق لعلَّه حفظَ عَنْ بَقِيَّةَ هَذَا الحديثَ، ولمَّا يَفْطَنْ لِمَا عَمِلَ بَقِيَّةُ من تركِهِ إِسحاقَ من الوسطِ، وتكنيتِهِ عُبَيْدَ اللّٰهِ بنَ عمرو، فلم يفتقدْ لفظَ بَقِيَّةَ فِي قوله: حَدَّثنا نَافِع، أو عَنْ نَافِعٍ۔
“In this hadith, there is a reason that few people can understand. This hadith was narrated by Ubaidullah bin Amr from Ishaq bin Abi Farwah from Nafi from Ibn Umar from the Prophet ﷺ. Ubaidullah bin Amr’s kunya is Abu Wahb, and he is from the Asadi tribe (the name of the Asadi tribe). So Baqiyah bin Walid mentioned his kunya instead of his name and attributed him to Bani Asad, so that he could not be recognized. Even Ishaq bin Abi Farwah was omitted from the chain between Ubaidullah and Nafi so that it could not be traced. Baqiyah was the one who most frequently did this, and Ishaq bin Rahwayh, who in his narration said ‘حدثنا عن بقیہ عن ابی وہب‘ Nafi, made a mistake. Perhaps when Ishaq bin Rahwayh heard this hadith from Baqiyah, he did not understand that Baqiyah had omitted Ishaq bin Abi Farwah from the chain and gave Ubaidullah bin Amr a kunya. Ishaq bin Rahwayh could not determine whether Baqiyah said ‘حدثنا عن ابی وہب‘ Nafi or ‘عن ابی وہب‘ Nafi.”
This is called Tadlees Taswiyah, where the narrator omits any narrator from any part of the chain of transmission. This example clearly shows what Baaqiyah Tadlees used to do, and Imam Abu Hatim Al-Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, even considered Baaqiyah to be the most skilled in this act. And the narrator he omitted from the chain (Ishaq ibn Abi Farwah) is a very weak narrator; the hadith scholars have declared him weak in hadith, abandoned in hadith, and a denier of hadith, and some have even reported him as a liar. Imam Al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, writes about him: “مُجْمَعٌ عَلَى ضَعْفِهِ” meaning there is consensus among the hadith scholars about his weakness.
So imagine the condition of those narrations which Baaqiyah would have narrated with tadlees. Sometimes the hadith scholars even called his continuous (mu’anna) narrations fabricated.
Imam Khateeb Baghdadi, may Allah have mercy on him:
He declared Baqiyah to be one who practices tadlis taswiyah, and he said, “All the statements of Imam Abu Hatim, may Allah have mercy on him, regarding this hadith are correct” (i.e., the one in which tadlis taswiyah of Baqiyah is mentioned).
Imam Salah al-Din Alai, may Allah have mercy on him:
He declared Baqiyah bin Walid to be one who practices tadlis taswiyah excessively.
And he, may Allah have mercy on him, supported this by quoting the words of Imam Abu Hatim al-Razi, may Allah have mercy on him.
He is a teacher of Imam al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, and al-Dhahabi says about him, “الامام المفتي المحدث”
Imam Ibn Farah, may Allah have mercy on him:
He mentioned the example of Baqiyah for tadlis taswiyah and the commentary of Imam Abu Hatim al-Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, on it.
He is also a teacher of Imam al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him; al-Dhahabi writes about him, “ابن فرح شيخنا الإمام العالم الحافظ الزاهد شيخ المحدثين”
Imam Ibn Qattan al-Fasi, may Allah have mercy on him:
You criticize a narration narrated by Baqiyah bin Walid which comes with this chain: حَدَّثَنَا ابن قتيبة، حَدَّثَنَا هشام بن خالد حَدَّثَنَا بَقِيَّة حَدَّثَنِي ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ عَنْ عَطَاءٍ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ, stating: فَمَا بَقِيَ فِيهِ إِلَّا التَّسْوِيَةُ, meaning there remains the possibility of tadlis taswiyah in it.
The meaning is that although Baqiyah has explicitly mentioned that he heard from his teacher, yet above that in the chain there is “عن” which leaves the possibility of tadlis taswiyah. Therefore, the chain is weak. And on which narrator in this chain is the accusation of tadlis taswiyah? Obviously on “Baqiyah bin Walid,” and this is what is being indicated.
Allama Zainuddin Iraqi, may Allah have mercy on him:
He also declared Baqiyah to be one who commits tadlis taswiyah. And for this, he also quoted the statement of Imam Abu Hatim al-Razi, may Allah have mercy on him.
In his book “Al-Taqyeed wal-Izhaah” (p. 96), he also did the same, may Allah have mercy on him.
Allama Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
وبقية صدوق لكنه يدلس ويسوي وقد عنعنه عن شيخه وعن شيخ شيخه۔
“Baqi is truthful, but he practices tadlis taswiyah and he has narrated this hadith munn’an from his teacher and his teacher’s teacher.”
At one place, while declaring a narration of Baqi weak, it is stated:
ففيه تدليسه التسوية لأنه عنعن لشيخه۔
“In it, Baqi’s tadlis taswiyah is present because he narrated from ‘an’ beyond his teacher.”
At another place, it is written:
وإنما عابوا عليه التدليس والتسوية وقد صرح بتحديث شيخه له وبسماع شيخه فانتفت الريبة۔
“The muhaddithin have accused Baqi of tadlis taswiyah (but here) he has explicitly stated his hearing from his teacher and his teacher’s teacher, therefore the doubt about tadlis taswiyah is removed.”
And it is said:
وقد أمن تدليسه لتصريحه في هذا بالتحديث، لكن ينظر في حديث بحير عن خالد لأن بقية كان يُسَوِّي۔
“Baqi has removed the fear of his tadlis by explicitly stating his hearing here, but Bahir’s ‘an’ Khalid will be examined, because Baqi used to commit tadlis taswiyah.”
Consider that Baqi has explicitly stated his hearing, yet Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) says that the matter of tadlis is not yet resolved, rather Bahir’s ‘an’ Khalid remains, because Baqi was guilty of tadlis taswiyah. Now look at the chain of the narration presented by Mirza Sahib, there too Bahir’s ‘an’ Khalid is present, so deciding about it is not very difficult.
Imam Ibn Milqan, may Allah have mercy on him:
He wrote at one place:
قد صرح بقية بالتحديث فقال: نا شعبة، لكن لا ينفعه ذلك فإنه معروف بتدليس التسوية۔
“Baqiyah explicitly stated ‘na’ (no) regarding the sanad, but this will not benefit him because he is known for tadlis taswiyah.”
At another place, he said a similar thing that Baqiyah used tadlis taswiyah, therefore merely specifying his sanad from his teacher will not benefit him (meaning his narration will not be authentic unless the sanad is proven to be musalsal).
We are also saying the same that the narration from Musnad Ahmad which you are presenting as Baqiyah’s explicit sanad is not sufficient for the authenticity of the narration, rather the chain still contains “an” (from), whereas for Baqiyah it is necessary that he also explicitly states the sanad from his teacher because Baqiyah commits tadlis taswiyah and if any weak narrator is dropped from any part of the chain.
Imam Shams ad-Din al-Sakhawi, may Allah have mercy on him:
You write about Tadlis Taswiyah: وَكَانَ بَقِيَّةُ من أفعل النَّاس لَهُ “And Baqiyah bin Walid was the most prominent among the people in this (tadlis).”
Allama Shams al-Din al-Barmawi, may Allah have mercy on him:
He declared Baqiyah bin Walid to be a perpetrator of Tadlis Taswiyah.
Imam Zarkashi, may Allah have mercy on him:
Regarding the details of Tadlis Taswiyah, he says:
وَمِمَّنْ اشْتُهِرَ بِفِعلِ هَذَا بَقِيَّة بن الْوَلِيد۔
“And among the most famous people for this act is Baqiyah bin Walid.”
And he, may Allah have mercy on him, also cited the same passage from “Al-‘Ilal” by Ibn Abi Hatim in his example, which clearly states that Baqiyah omitted his teacher from the chain of narration, who is a severely weak narrator.
Imam Ibn ‘Iraqi, may Allah have mercy on him:
بقية بن الوليد مشهور بالتدليس مكثر له عن الضعفاء يعاني تدليس التسوية وهو أفحش أنواع التدليس۔
“Baqiyah bin Walid is very famous for committing Tadlis Taswiyah and he drops weak narrators from the chain, which is the worst type of tadlis.”
Allama Burhan al-Din Subt al-Ajami, may Allah have mercy on him:
بقية بن الوليد مشهور بالتدليس مكثر له عن الضعفاء وتعاني تدليس التسوية وقد تقدمت صورته۔
“Baqiyah bin Walid is famous for doing tadlees taswiyah (equivocal concealment) much more than weak narrators, and the case of tadlees taswiyah has already passed.”
And when his case was explained, it was added: This is the worst type of tadlees. Even after such clear statements, to say that Baqiyah is worse than tadlees taswiyah is very strange! The muhaddithin consider him famous for this act and say he committed it very frequently.
Imam Shahab al-Din al-Busiri, may Allah have mercy on him:
While declaring a narration weak, he says:
وَبَقِيَّةُ هُوَ ابْنُ الْوَلِيدِ يُدَلِّس بتدليس التَّسْوِيَة۔
“And Baqiyah bin Walid used to do tadlees taswiyah.”
Imam Ahmad bin Muhammad al-Qastalani, may Allah have mercy on him:
تدليس التسوية بأن يسقط ضعيفًا بين شيخيهما الثقتين، فيستوي الإسناد كله ثقات، وهو شر التدليس، وكان بقية بن الوليد أفعل الناس له۔
“Tadlees taswiyah is when a narrator drops the weak narrator among two narrators above him and equates the chain with trustworthy narrators, and this is the worst kind of tadlees, and Baqiyah bin Walid was the one who did this the most.”
Allama Ibn Ameer al-Hajj, may Allah have mercy on him:
Also declared Baqiyah as one who did tadlees taswiyah.
Imam Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, may Allah have mercy on him:
He has also narrated that he is the mediator and the one who settles the matter of the remaining Ban Walid.
Allama Muhammad bin Ismail al-San’ani, may Allah have mercy on him (Author of Subul al-Salam):
You also consider Baqiyah to be a Sahib al-Taswiyah.
Therefore, from the statements of all these Muhaddithin, it becomes absolutely clear that Baqiyah bin Walid practiced Tadlees Taswiyah, and among the Muhaddithin, he was the most famous for this act. This is a more dangerous and worse form of Tadlees than ordinary Tadlees. The condition for one who practices Tadlees Taswiyah is that he must explicitly mention the hearing (Sama’) at all levels of the chain of narration and must not use words like “an” or “qala” anywhere. However, in the narration mentioned by Mirza Sahib from Abu Dawood and Musnad Ahmad, the word “an” is present in Bahir’s narration from Khalid, therefore the narration is weak.
Imam Abdul Azim al-Mundhiri, may Allah have mercy on him, writes under this narration of Sunan Abu Dawood:
وفي إسناده بقية بن الوليد، وفيه مقال۔
“There is Baqiyah bin Walid in its chain of narration and there is criticism (Jarh) on him.”
And most of the criticism on Baqiyah is regarding his Tadlees. Allama al-Mundhiri himself states about Baqiyah in one place: أحد الأعلام ثقة عند الجمهور لكنه مدلس۔
“He was among the great scholars and trustworthy according to the majority of Muhaddithin, but he was a Mudallis.”
Maulana Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri, may Allah preserve him, writes regarding this narration: “The chain is weak. Baqiyah bin Walid committed Tadlees Taswiyah; continuous hearing (Sama’ bil Musalsal) is required!”
Allama Shoaib al-Arnaut states:
اسناده ضعيف، بقية وهو ابن الوليد مدلس ويسوي، وقد عنعن۔
“Its chain is weak; Baqiyah bin Walid is a Mudallis and practiced Tadlees Taswiyah, and here the narration is through the form ‘an’.”
Therefore, those scholars who have declared this narration weak are one hundred percent correct based on the evidence. And those who have declared it authentic, their statement is rejected.
