What is status of this Hadith?
اللَّهُمَّ ائْتِنِي بِأَحَبِّ خَلْقِكَ إِلَيْكَ يَأْكُلُ مَعِي هَذَا الطَّيْرَ . فَجَاءَ عَلِيٌّ فَأَكَلَ مَعَهُ
Answer
Translation:
Rasulullah (sallallahu’alayhi wasallam) one day had a [cooked] bird on his plate, and he made the following du’a:
‘O Allah, bring to me the person most beloved to you, so he may eat with me this bird.’
Sayyiduna ‘Ali (radiyallahu’anhu) was the one who appeared, and he ate with Nabi (sallallahu’alayhi wasallam).
(Sunan Tirmidhi, Hadith: 3721)
Authenticity
This Hadith is labelled by the Muhaddithun as Hadithut Tayr (The Hadith of the bird).
There exists numerous chains for this, all of which are weak with variation in their level of weakness.
Therefore one may encounter the verdicts of several Hadith Masters declaring this as weak.
However, when all these weak chains are combined, they do acquire sufficient strength.
‘Allamah ‘Alaiy (rahimahullah) writes: ‘The truth is that these chains could easily reach the level of hasan (sound). If not, then [it will be considered as] weak that is tolerated [for matters like these]. To claim that it is a fabrication, despite all its chains, is incorrect.’
(An-Naqdus Sahih, Hadith: 17. Also see Ajwibatul Hafiz Ibn Hajar li Ahadithil Masabih, Hadith: 16)
And Allah Ta’ala Knows best,
Answered by: Moulana Muhammad Abasoomar
Checked by: Moulana Haroon Abasoomar