Hadith al-Tayr and the Reality of Its Chain of Transmission
According to نبی کریم صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم, the most beloved personality was سیدنا ابو بکر صدیق رضی اللہ عنہ. In this article, the details are given in the light of authentic hadiths. Some people oppose this matter through Hadith al-Tayr, so let us examine this narration according to the principles of the Muhaddithin:
1. Hadith of Anas Radi Allahu Anhu:
This narration is attributed to سیدنا انس رضی اللہ عنہ: “The Noble Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم had a cooked bird. You صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم prayed: O Allah! Send Your servant who is most beloved among Your creation, so that he may eat the meat of this bird with me. Then سیدنا ابوبکر رضی اللہ عنہ came, but you صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم sent him back. After that سیدنا عمر رضی اللہ عنہ came, and he was also sent back. Then سیدنا علی رضی اللہ عنہ arrived, and you صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم allowed him.”
Commentary:
This narration is “weak” and “denounced” because:
◄ Musheer bin Abdul Malik is the narrator of this hadith, who is weak.
◄ Imam Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, says: Some hadith scholars have criticized him.
◄ Imam Ibn Adi, may Allah have mercy on him, says that Musheer has very few narrations.
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, writes that this narrator was prone to mistakes.
◄ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, classifies him as “Laen” meaning weak.
Clearly, only Hassan bin Hammad Nasibi has called him trustworthy, however, the majority of hadith scholars have declared this narration weak.
2. The chain of Al-Suddi from Anas:
This narration is also “Munkar” (rejected) because its narrator is Ubaidullah bin Musa Absi, who, although trustworthy, hadith scholars have criticized him for this particular narration. Imam Ibn Saad, may Allah have mercy on him, states that he used to narrate rejected narrations from the Shia school of thought, due to which many hadith scholars have declared him weak.
3. The chain of Al-Harith bin Nabhan from Al-Suddi from Anas:
This chain is “fabricated” because it includes Al-Harith bin Nabhan, who is considered “Munkar Al-Hadith” (one who narrates rejected hadith) and “Matrook Al-Hadith” (abandoned narrator).
4. The Method of Hammad bin Mukhtar from Abdul Malik bin Umair:
This chain is also “weak” because its narrator Hammad bin Mukhtar is unknown. Imam Ibn Adi, may Allah have mercy on him, states that he is an unknown narrator.
5. Qattan bin Naseer, Thana Jaafar bin Sulaiman:
This narration is also “rejected.” Although Jaafar bin Sulaiman is trustworthy, according to the hadith scholars, some of his narrations are rejected.
Important Benefit:
Sheikh al-Islam Thani, علامہ ابن القیم رحمہ اللہ, has an important statement: “For Imam Muslim, may Allah have mercy on him, narrating the hadiths of Jaafar bin Sulaiman is not a fault, because he only narrates those hadiths from narrators whom he is certain are reliable. For example, he separates those narrations from trustworthy narrators in which he knows there is an error. Those who err in this matter are either those who accept all narrations of trustworthy narrators without exception or those who declare all narrations of narrators with weak memory as weak. Imam Muslim’s method is the same as that of the reliable imams of this science.”
6. The chain of Abu al-Hindi from Anas:
The narrator of this chain, Abu al-Hindi, is “unknown.”
Imam Khateeb Baghdadi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is unknown; his name is also not known.”
Hafiz Zahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is an obscure narrator.”
7. The chain of Ismail bin Salman Azraq:
This chain is very “weak” because its narrator Ismail bin Salman Azraq is very weak.
He has been declared “weak” and “abandoned” by Imam Yahya bin Ma’in, Imam Abu Zur’ah Razi, Imam Abu Hatim Razi, Imam Nasai, and the majority of the Muhaddithin, may Allah have mercy on them.
8. The chain of Uthman al-Tawil from Anas:
This chain is also “weak” because:
◄ The narrator Uthman al-Tawil is “mukallim fihi” (someone who makes mistakes in narration).
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He sometimes makes mistakes.”
◄ Imam Abu Hatim Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is only a sheikh.”
◄ According to Imam Ibn ‘Adi, may Allah have mercy on him: “His chain is ‘aziz’ (i.e., with two intermediaries) and he has
سیدنا انس رضی اللہ عنہ سے صرف دو روایات ہیں۔”
◄ Imam Shu’bah, may Allah have mercy on him, narrated from him, but Imam Bazzar, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Whoever
سیدنا انس رضی اللہ عنہ narrates from him is not strong.”
◄ Imam Khalili, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Hadith al-Tayr has not been narrated by any trustworthy narrator.”
◄ Imam Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “It is not established that Uthman al-Tawil heard from سیدنا انس رضی اللہ عنہ.”
9. The chain of Muhammad ibn Iyad from Anas:
This chain is also “weak” because:
◄ The narrator Ibn Iyad is unknown.
◄ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “I do not know him.”
◄ Hafiz Haithami, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “I do not know who he is.”
10. From Ismail ibn Sulayman al-Razi, from Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Sulayman, from Ata from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also unacceptable and has been declared invalid for several reasons:
◄ Inclusion of unknown narrators: This chain includes several unknown narrators whose authenticity cannot be verified. It is obligatory for the one presenting an authentic chain to prove the reliability of all narrators.
Regarding Ismail ibn Sulayman al-Razi:
Imam Aqili, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
“اَلْغَالِبُ عَلٰی حَدِیثِہِ الْوَہْمُ” meaning that his narrations are dominated by doubt.
◄ Imam Aqili also states elsewhere that both mentioned narrations are not authentic and there is no chain of transmission for them.
◄ Hafiz Ibn al-Jawzi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “This narration is not authentic; it includes unknown narrators whose identification is not possible.”
11. From Muslim bin Kaysan, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also very “weak” due to the weakness of the narrator Muslim bin Kaysan al-A‘war, who has been criticized by the majority of hadith scholars:
◄ Hafiz Haithami, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “A large group of hadith scholars have declared him weak.”
◄ Imam Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “The noble hadith scholars have criticized him.”
◄ Imam Fulas, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is a severely rejected narrator.”
◄ Imam Abu Hatim Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “The hadith scholars have criticized him and he is weak in hadith.”
◄ Imam Abu Zur’ah Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, also calls him “weak in hadith.”
◄ Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Imam Nasai, Imam Jowzjani, Imam Yahya ibn Ma’in, and the majority of hadith scholars consider him “weak.”
◄ Imam Ibn ‘Adi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “The weakness in his narrations is very clear.”
◄ According to Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him: “He suffered from confusion of memory in his later years, due to which he narrated baseless reports attributed to trustworthy narrators, and it became difficult to distinguish between authentic and weak narrations.”
12. From Ibrahim ibn Thabit al-Bannani, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also very “weak” due to the weakness of the narrator named Ibrahim ibn Thabit Qassar Basri:
◄ Hafiz Al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “This narrator is very weak.”
◄ He further states that “this narrator is unreliable”
13. From Bishr bin Al-Husayn, from Al-Zubair bin Adi, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is invalid because the narrator named Bishr bin Husayn Asbahani is unreliable:
◄ Imam Al-Daraqutni, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Bishr bin Husayn Asbahani used to narrate fabricated reports from Zubair bin Adi, while Zubair bin Adi is trustworthy”
◄ Imam Abu Hatim Al-Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, also stated the same.
◄ Imam Al-Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “There is criticism of him by the muhaddithin”
◄ Imam Ibn Adi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Most of his narrations are not reliable”
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says that Bishr bin Husayn used to narrate fabricated reports from Zubair bin Adi.
◄ Imam Hakim, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He used to narrate more than one hundred and fifty traditions through Zubair bin Adi, most of which were fabricated.”
14. From Abdullah bin Muhammad bin Amarah, from Malik, from Ishaq bin Abdullah, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also “weak,” its weakness is based on the narrator Ibn Amarah’s unreliability:
◄ Hafiz al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is an obscure narrator; neither has he been authenticated nor has he been declared weak.”
◄ Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Imam al-Daraqutni transmitted this chain regarding the Hadith of the Birds, and it is a rejected narration. Al-Daraqutni states that Ibn Amarah was unique in narrating from Malik, and other narrators are stronger than him.”
15. From Abi Mukais Dinar, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is false and unreliable:
◄ Hafiz Zahbi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “This narrator is very weak”
◄ He further says: “He used to narrate false traditions attributed to our master Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, and he is accused of lying”
◄ Imam Ibn Adi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is a denier of hadith and the traditions he narrated are very weak”
16. From Yaghnam bin Salim, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also false:
◄ Hafiz Zahbi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Yaghnam bin Salim was a very lying narrator”
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He narrates false traditions attributed to our master Anas, may Allah be pleased with him”
17. From Ali bin al-Hasan, Khalid bin Da’lj narrated to us, from Qatadah, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is false and its narrators are very weak:
◄ Hafiz Zahbi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Ali bin Hasan Sami is counted among the abandoned narrators.”
◄ Regarding Khalid bin Da’lj, the majority of hadith scholars such as Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, Imam Yahya bin Ma’in, Imam Darqutni, and Imam Abu Hatim Razi, may Allah have mercy on them, have declared him “weak.”
◄ Qatadah bin Da’ama, a Tabi’i, is a “Mudallis” and no clarification of his hearing has been found.
18. From Khalid bin Ubaid, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also invalid:
◄ Imam Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “Hadith scholars have criticized him.”
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says that Khalid bin Ubaid Ataki used to narrate from fabricated and forged manuscripts, and it is not permissible to write down his narrations except for the purpose of astonishment.
◄ Both Imam Hakim, may Allah have mercy on him, and Imam Abu Nu’aym al-Asbahani, may Allah have mercy on him, have declared the narration of Khalid bin Ubaid to be false.
19. From Abdullah bin Ziyad Abi al-Ala, from Ali bin Zayd, from Saeed bin al-Musayyib, from Anas
Commentary
This is a very “weak” chain:
◄ Abdullah bin Ziyad was declared “Munkir al-Hadith” (denier of hadith) by Imam Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him.
◄ Ali bin Zaid bin Jud’an was declared weak by the majority of hadith scholars such as Hafiz Haithami, Allama Busiri, Allama Ibn al-Araqi, and Allama Baqa’i.
20. From Maymun Abi Khalaf, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is very “weak,” and the reason is the unreliability of the narrator Maymun bin Jabir Abu Khalaf:
◄ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “He is not reliable at all.”
◄ Imam Aqili, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “His narration is not authentic.”
21. From Abdullah bin Maymun, from Ja’far bin Muhammad, from Abiyah, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is also “very weak,” because:
◄ Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “This narrator is Munkir al-Hadith (denier of hadith) and abandoned.”
22. From Muhammad bin Zakariya bin Dhuwayd, from Humayd al-Tawil, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is “invalid” because:
◄ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, states: “Muhammad ibn Zakariya attributed a false narration to Humayd Tawil.”
23. From Al-Hasan ibn Abdullah al-Thaqafi, from Nafi’, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is “invalid”:
◄ Hafiz Dhahabi classifies Al-Hasan ibn Abdullah al-Thaqafi as “denier of hadith” and “abandoned.”
◄ Nafi’ ibn Harmuz has been declared “weak” and “abandoned” by Imam Ahmad, Imam Yahya ibn Ma’in, Imam Abu Hatim, and other muhaddithin.
24. From Muhammad ibn Sulaym, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is “weak” because:
◄ Muhammad ibn Sulaym is an “unknown” narrator.
25. From Abdullah ibn al-Muthanna, from Thumamah, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is “invalid,” and the narrators listed in its two different versions are also weak:
◄ In the chain of Ibn Asakir, there is Abdus Salam bin Rashid, about whom Hafiz Zahabi says: “There is no information about who he is”
◄ In the chain of Ibn al-Jawzi, Abbas bin Bakkar is included, whom Imam Darqutni calls a “Basri liar.”
26. From Salim, the freed slave of Umar bin Ubaidullah, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is false because:
◄ About the narrator Ahmad bin Saeed bin Farqad, Hafiz Zahabi says: “He narrated Hadith al-Tayr from the chain of Sahihayn, but he himself is accused of fabricating hadith.”
27. From Mufaddal bin Salih, from al-Hasan bin al-Hakam, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is “invalid”:
◄ Imam Bukhari and Imam Abu Hatim declared Mufaddal bin Salih al-Asadi as “Munkir al-Hadith” (denier of hadith).
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban says that “He is a denier of hadith and frequently narrates distorted reports.”
28. From Hammad, from Ibrahim al-Nakha’i, from Anas
Commentary
This chain of narration is fabricated (man-made), because:
◄ Muhammad bin Ishaq bin Ibrahim Ahwazi is “accused of fabrication” (accused of lying).
◄ There are several other defects in this chain that impair its authenticity.
29. From Abd al-Malik bin Abi Sulayman, from Anas
Commentary
This narration is weak due to discontinuity (break in the chain of narration):
◄ Imam Abu Hatim al-Razi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “The narration of Abd al-Malik bin Abi Sulayman from our master Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, is mursal (interrupted).”
30. From Yahya bin Abi Kathir, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is weak because:
◄ Yahya bin Abi Kathir is a mudallis (one who conceals a defect in the chain) and he narrated with the word “from” (عن) but did not specify hearing directly.
◄ Yahya bin Abi Kathir’s hearing from our master Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, is not established.
31. From Khalid bin Ubaid Abi Isam, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is invalid because:
◄ In this, Khalid bin Ubaid Ataki is a “discarded” narrator, as has been explained in detail earlier.
32. From Umar bin Abdullah bin Ya’la bin Murrah, from his father, from his grandfather, and from Anas
Commentary
This chain is very weak because:
◄ Umar bin Abdullah bin Ya’la was declared “weak and defective” by hadith scholars such as Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, Imam Yahya bin Ma’in, Imam Abu Hatim Razi, Imam Abu Zur’ah, Imam Bukhari, and Imam Nasai, may Allah have mercy on them.
◄ Imam Darqutni, may Allah have mercy on him, called him “discarded.”
◄ Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, said: “His narrations from his father are rejected.”
33. From Abdullah bin Al-Muthanna, from Aban, from Anas
Commentary
This chain is invalid because:
◄ Aban bin Abu Ayash is a “discarded narrator.”
◄ The biography of Abu Al-Walid Hashim bin Ahmad bin Masrur is unknown.
◄ The authentication of Ubaidullah bin Ishaq bin Sahl Sanjari is required.
◄ There are additional defects present in this chain.
34. From Al-Hasan, from Anas bin Malik
Commentary
This chain of narration is weak because:
◄ Harun bin Muhammad bin Munkhal Wasiṭi is “unknown.”
◄ Musa bin Saad Basri is also “unknown.”
◄ Hafs bin Umar Adani is considered very “weak” by the majority of hadith scholars.
◄ Imam Hasan Basri is “mudallis” and did not specify his hearing.
Summary: All Narrations of Hadith Attributed to Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (RA)
After investigating all the chains of narration of Hadith At-Tayr and other narrations attributed to Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (RA), it has been established that:
◄ All the chains of narration are weak, and many narrators are abandoned or weak.
◄ Many narrations have breaks in the chain of narration, meaning the chain of narrators is incomplete.
◄ Several chains include mudallis narrators who narrated through ‘an’ana (indirect transmission), while their hearing is not confirmed.
◄ Some narrators have been accused by hadith scholars of fabricating (lying) and there are allegations of narrating fabricated hadiths.
◄ The majority of hadith scholars such as Imam Bukhari, Imam Abu Hatim, Imam Ibn Hibban, Imam Nasai, Imam Darqutni, and Imam Ibn Adi, may Allah have mercy on them, have declared the narrators in these chains of transmission as weak, abandoned, or rejecters of hadith.
Conclusion:
◄ All the chains of transmission attributed to Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, are weak and unreliable, and it is not correct to trust them.
