Ibn Hibban

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was present among some of his noble companions (may Allah be pleased with them). He said: "Do you not know that I am Allah’s Messenger to you?" They replied: "Yes, we bear witness to this, you are Allah’s Messenger." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Do you not know that whoever obeys me, obeys Allah, and my obedience is part of obedience to Allah?" They replied: "Yes, we bear witness to this, whoever obeys you, obeys Allah, and obeying you is part of obedience to Allah." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Included in obedience to Allah is that you obey me, and included in obedience to me is that you obey your leaders. If they perform prayer sitting, then you also perform prayer sitting."

The same narration is transmitted with another chain. However, in it are these words: "Included in obedience to me is that you obey your leaders." This narration has been transmitted by Imam Abu Ya’la. He says: I asked Yahya bin Ma’een about the narrator named Uqbah, and he replied: He is trustworthy. (Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says:) In this narration, there is a clear statement that when the imam performs the prayer sitting, then the followers performing the prayer sitting is part of obedience to Allah Almighty, which He has commanded His servants, and in my view, this is a type of consensus upon which all agree regarding its permissibility. Because four of the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave fatwa according to this: Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him), Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), Sayyiduna Usayd bin Hudayr (may Allah be pleased with him), and Sayyiduna Qays bin Qahd (may Allah be pleased with him). In our view, the real consensus is the consensus of the noble companions (may Allah be pleased with them) who witnessed the descent of revelation and were protected from distortion and alteration, until Allah Almighty, through them, preserved the religion for the Muslims and protected them from the mischief of critics. No contrary opinion has been transmitted from any of the companions (may Allah be pleased with them) regarding this matter, neither through a connected chain nor through a disconnected chain. Thus, it is as if the companions (may Allah be pleased with them) agreed that when the imam performs the prayer sitting, it is obligatory for the followers to perform the prayer sitting as well. The Tabi’een also gave fatwa according to this, among whom are Jabir bin Zayd and Abu Sha’tha. And from among the Tabi’een, not a single contrary opinion has been transmitted regarding this, neither with a sound chain nor with a weak chain. Thus, it is as if the Tabi’een also agreed upon its permissibility. The first person in this ummah to declare it incorrect for the follower to perform the prayer sitting while the imam is sitting was Mughira bin Muqsim. He was a student of Ibrahim Nakha’i. This ruling was taken from him by Hammad bin Abu Sulayman (who was the teacher of Imam Abu Hanifa), then from Hammad by Imam Abu Hanifa, and after him, his followers adopted it. Among the evidences they present, the strongest is the narration transmitted by Jabir Ju’fi from Imam Sha’bi, who states: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "After me, no one should lead the prayer sitting." Even if the chain of this narration is accepted as authentic, it is mursal (disconnected). And a narration that is mursal, and a narration that is not transmitted, are equal in our view in terms of ruling. The reason is that if we accept the mursal narration of a Tabi’i, even if that Tabi’i is trustworthy and virtuous, and we do so out of good opinion, then it would be necessary for us to accept a similar mursal narration from a Tabi’ Tabi’i as well. And when we accept that, it would be necessary for us to accept such a narration from the students of the Tabi’ Tabi’in as well. And when we accept that, it would be necessary for us to accept it from every person, whenever he claims that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said such and such. In that case, the Shari’ah would become null and void. And it is astonishing regarding the person who presents such a mursal narration as evidence, even though their elders have raised objections about this narration. Husayn bin Abdullah has stated with his chain: Abu Yahya Hammani says: I heard Imam Abu Hanifa saying: Of all the people I have met, I have not seen anyone more virtuous than Ata bin Abi Rabah, and of all the people I have met, I have not seen anyone greater a liar than Jabir Ju’fi. Whenever I brought an issue to him based on my own opinion, he would narrate a hadith about it. And he also claimed that he had so many thousands of hadiths transmitted from the Prophet (peace be upon him) which he had not yet narrated. Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says: So this is Imam Abu Hanifa, who is criticizing Jabir Ju’fi and declaring him a liar. So this is contrary to the stance of the person who claims to be a follower of Imam Abu Hanifa’s school and holds the view that when our imams say in their books that such and such a narrator is weak, this is backbiting. But when he himself needed it, he began to use as evidence the very person whom his own sheikh had declared a liar. And he used him as evidence regarding a matter by which the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is being abandoned. As for Jabir Ju’fi, we have mentioned his case in the book al-Majruhin with clear proofs, the authenticity of which will not be hidden from any intelligent person. So there is no need to mention it again here.