Is this narration authentic?
Sayyiduna Abu Mas’ud (radiyallahu ‘anhu) says: “Once Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) delivered such a sermon as we had never heard before and he said: Whomsoever I name, get up. In this way he expelled thirty six persons from the Masjid.”
Answer
The full narration is as follows:
Sayyiduna Abu Mas’ud (radiyallahu ‘anhu) says: “Once Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) delivered a sermon wherein he praised Allah and said, ‘Among you are hypocrites, whomsoever I name, should stand up.’ Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) then announced, ‘Stand up so and so, stand up so and so, stand up so and so. In this manner he named 36 people.
Sayyiduna ‘Umar (radiyallahu ‘anhu) passed by some of these people who were named, he knew a few of them from before. They were covering themselves. He asked them ‘What is the matter.’ When they informed him of what Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, he said, ‘May you be far [from the mercy of Allah] for the rest of the day.’
(Musnad Ahmad, vol. 5 pg. 273, Al Mu’jamul Kabir, Hadith: 687, volume: 17)
‘Allamah Haythami (rahimahullah) states that he has not come across anyone who has discussed the credibility/unreliability of two narrators. The chain therefore consists of unknown narrators and will therefore be weak.
(Majma’uz Zawaid, vol. 1 pg. 112)
And Allah Ta’ala Knows best.
Answered by: Moulana Suhail Motala
Approved by: Moulana Muhammad Abasoomar
Checked by: Moulana Haroon Abasoomar