Weakness of the Hadeeth: rewards are multiplied 700 times in Dhul-Hijjah

بسم الله والحمد لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله ، وبعد

[Note: there are many authentic Ahaadeeth on the virtues of the first 10 Days of Dhul-Hijjah, but the two quoted below are weak with these wordings.]

Hadeeth 1:

From the route of Mas`ood Ibn Waasil on the authority of Nahhaas bin Qahm on the authority of Qataadah on the authority of Sa`eed bin al-Musayyib on the authority of Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه that the Messenger of Allaah صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

[First part of the Hadeeth] “There are no days more loved to Allaah for you to worship Him therein than the ten days of Dhul Hijjah.” [Second part] “Fasting any day during it is equivalent to fasting one year and to offer salatul tahajjud (late-night prayer) during one of its nights is like performing the late night prayer on the night of power. [i.e., Lailatul Qadr].”

[Related by at-Tirmidhee in his Sunan (758), Ibn Maajah in his Sunan (1728), and al-Baihaqi in Shu`ab al-Imaan (3480)]

Hadeeth 2:

There is another Hadeeth reported by al-Baihaqee in Shu`ab al-Imaan (3481) and it has: “Fasting a day in it is like fasting a year and the reward for a good deed is multiplied seven hundred times in it.”

The scholars’ statement regarding this Hadeeth:

*Abu 'Eesa (i.e. Imaam al-Tirmidhee) said after quoting this Hadeeth: “This Hadeeth is “Gharib” (strange), we do not know of it except as a narration of Mas`ood bin Waasil from An-Nahhaas. (He furthers said:) I asked Muhammad (i.e. Imaam al-Bukhaaree) about this Hadeeth and he did not know of it’s like from other than this route (i.e. there is no other chain of narration except for this one).

The defect in this chain is because of Mas`ood bin Waasil and his teacher Nahhaas bin Qahm.

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++Scholars verdict on Nahhaas bin Qahm:

*Imaam Yahya bin Sa`eed has criticized Nahhaas bin Qahm due to his weak memory.

*Abu Haatim al-Raazee said: He (Nahhaas bin Qahm) has no value (i.e. his words are not accepted).

*Abu Ja`far al-`Uqaili mentioned Nahhaas bin Qahm among the weak narrators.

*Abu Haatim bin Hibbaan said about Nahhaas bin Qahm: He used to attribute spurious narrations to famous narrators and would oppose the more reliable narrators and it is not allowed to take from him.

*Imaam Abu Dawood said about him: He is not strong.

*Imaam al-Nasaa’ee said: He is weak.

*Imaam al-Dhahabee said: The scholars have declared him weak.

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++Scholars verdict on Mas`ood bin Waasil:

*Imaam Ibn al-Jawzee mentioned him among the weak narrators.

*Imaam Ibn Hajar said: Weak in Hadeeth.

*Imaam al-Daraqutnee said: He is weak.

*Sulaimaan bin Dawood al-Tayaalisee also declared him weak.

*Other scholars who graded Mas`ood bin Waasil as weak are, al-Dhahabee, al-Mizzee, al-Baghawee, al-Baihaqee.

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++About the Ahaadeeth:

*Ibn Hajar رحمه الله also graded this Hadeeth as “Dha`eef” in Fath al-Baaree (2/461).

*Shaikh Shu`aib al-Arna’oot also graded this Hadeeth as “Dha`eef” in his checking of Sunan Ibn Maajah and said: Mas`ood bin Waasil and his teacher Nahhaas bin Qahm, both are weak.

*Shaikh al-Albaanee graded it as “Dha`eef” in al-Dha`eefah (5142), Dha`eef al-Jaami` al-Sagheer (5161), al-Dha`eef al-Targheeb wal-Tarheeb (734).

Shaikh al-Albaanee further said: the first part of the Hadeeth is Saheeh as it is also reported from Ibn `Abbaas, Ibn Mas`ood and Ibn `Umar رضي الله عنهما. The weakness is in the second part.

*The second Hadeeth of rewards being multiplied seven hundred times is also graded as “Dha`eef” by Shaikh al-Albaanee in al-Dha`eef al-Targheeb wal-Tarheeb (735).