Abu Dawud

Benefits and Issues:
SA Sayyiduna Bara’ bin Azib radi Allahu anhu narrates:
«رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم رفع يديه حين افتتح الصلاة، ثم لم يرفعھما حتي انصرف.» “I saw the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam; when he began the prayer, he performed the raising of the hands (raf‘ al-yadayn), then did not do it again until he completed the prayer with salam.” [سنن ابي داود:752، مسند ابي يعلي:1689، شرح معاني الآثار:224/1] EA Commentary:
Its chain of narration is weak.
Its narrator, Ibn Abi Layla, is considered “weak” by the majority.

Regarding this hadith:
◈ Imam Abu Dawud rahimahullah says:
«ھذا الحديث ليس بصحيح.»
“This hadith is not authentic.”

◈ Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal rahimahullah says:
«ابن أبي ليلي كان سيء الحفظ.»
“Ibn Abi Layla had a poor memory.” [العلل:143/1]

◈ Imam Bayhaqi rahimahullah says:
«ومحمد بن عبدالرحمن بن أبي ليلي لا يحتج بحديثه، وھو أسوأ حالا عند أھل المعرفة بالحديث من يزيد بن أبي زياد.»
“The hadith of Muhammad bin Abdur Rahman bin Abi Layla is not to be used as proof; according to the hadith scholars, his condition was even worse than that of Yazid bin Abi Ziyad.” [معرفة السنن والآثار للبيھقى:419/2]

752. Commentary:
Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah writes that the hadith scholars are unanimous that the words in this narration (of Bara’ bin Azib) are mudraj (i.e., interpolated). These are additions by Yazid bin Abi Ziyad.

➊ Whereas Shu’bah, Thawri, Khalid Tahan, Zuhayr, and other hadith scholars have narrated this hadith without this addition.

➋ Humaydi said that this addition was narrated by Yazid, and he (in accordance with the meaning of his name) is “one who adds.”

➌ Uthman al-Darimi has transmitted from Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal rahimahullah that “this is not authentic.”

➍ Similarly, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah, Ahmad, Yahya, Darimi, and several other hadith scholars have declared it weak.

➎ Yahya bin Muhammad bin Yahya says: I heard Ahmad bin Hanbal say: “This hadith—except that later, when it was ‘prompted’ to him, he accepted it and began to mention these words.” See also: [التلخيص الحبير : 1؍22]

There are two types of Hasan li-ghayrihi (hasan due to external factors):

➊ One is a narration with a weak chain of transmission (isnad) which is, in itself, weak, while another narration is Hasan li-dhatihi (hasan in itself). This chain, when combined with the Hasan li-dhatihi narration, becomes hasan.

➋ The second is a narration with a weak chain of transmission which is, in itself, weak, and there are other weak and rejected narrations of the same meaning. Some scholars consider this to be Hasan li-ghayrihi, even though this too is a type of weak (da‘if) hadith.

Proof 1: It is absolutely not established from the Qur’an, Hadith, or consensus (ijma‘) that “weak plus weak plus weak” (da‘if + da‘if + da‘if) makes a narration of the Hasan li-ghayrihi category a proof (hujjah).

Proof 2: It is not established from the noble Companions (radi Allahu anhum) that such a narration is a proof.

Proof 3: It is not established from the noble Followers (Tabi‘in, rahimahumullah) that such a narration is a proof.

Proof 4: It is not established from Imam Bukhari, Imam Muslim, and others that such a narration is a proof.

Proof 5: Except for Imam Tirmidhi rahimahullah, it is not established from the general hadith scholars (muhaddithin) that such a “Hasan li-ghayrihi” narration is a proof. For example, Muhammad ibn Abi Layla (weak) narrated a hadith regarding the abandonment of raf‘ al-yadayn (raising the hands) «عن أخيه عيسٰي عن الحكم عن عبد الرحمٰن بن أبى ليليٰ عن البراء بن عازب» [سنن ابي داود: 752]
Its chain is weak.

And it has several weak supporting narrations (shawahid). For example, see [سنن ابي داود 749، 748]

Despite all these supporting narrations, Imam Abu Dawud says:

«هٰذا الحديث ليس بصحيح»

This hadith is not authentic (sahih).

[ابو داود: 752]

For the original article, see: “Tahqiqi wa ‘Ilmi Maqalat” by Shaykh Hafiz Zubair Ali Zai rahimahullah (Volume 1, pages 291 to 304).