1986 - Isma'il ibn Mas'ud informed us, saying: Yazid — and he is Ibn Zuray' — narrated to us, saying: Hisham ibn Abi 'Abd Allah narrated to us, from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, from Abu Ibrahim al-Ansari, from his father, that he heard the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say in the prayer over the deceased: "O Allah, forgive our living and our dead, our present and our absent, our males and our females, our young and our old."(1)

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(1) Authentic by virtue of its multiple chains and supporting witnesses, but this chain is weak; Abu Ibrahim al-Ansari and his father are unknown.

There is disagreement concerning its chain of transmission from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, as will follow. However, al-Bukhari said — as transmitted from him by al-Tirmidhi following hadith (1024): The most sound of the narrations in this regard is the hadith of Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, from Abu Ibrahim al-Ash-hali — meaning al-Ansari — from his father.

Hisham ibn Abi 'Abd Allah al-Dastuwa'i narrated it — as here, and in "al-Sunan al-Kubra" (2124) and (10857), and the "Musnad" of Ahmad (17544) and (23495) — from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, from Abu Ibrahim al-Ansari, from his father.

Aban ibn Yazid followed Hisham in his chain, narrating it — as Ahmad recorded (17543) and (17545) — from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, with the same chain.

Al-Awza'i narrated it from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, and there is disagreement concerning him:

Haqqal ibn Ziyad narrated it — as al-Tirmidhi recorded (1024) — and al-Mu'afa ibn 'Imran — as the author recorded in "al-Kubra" (10856) — both from al-Awza'i, from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, with the same chain. Al-Tirmidhi said: A hasan sahih hadith.

Shu'ayb ibn Ishaq narrated it — as Abu Dawud recorded (3201) — and Haqqal ibn Ziyad — as al-Tirmidhi recorded (1024) — and Abu al-Mughirah 'Abd al-Quddus ibn al-Hajjaj — as the author recorded in "al-Kubra" (10852) — and al-Walid ibn Muslim — as Ibn Hibban recorded (3070) — all four from al-Awza'i, from Yahya, from Abu Salamah ibn 'Abd al-Rahman, from Abu Hurayrah.

Al-Daraqutni said in "al-'Ilal" 14/309: What is preserved is: from al-Awza'i, from Abu Salamah, as mursal.

Ayyub ibn 'Utbah narrated it — as Ahmad recorded (8809) — from Yahya, from Abu Salamah, from Abu Hurayrah. And Ayyub ibn 'Utbah is weak.

Aban ibn Yazid narrated it — as Ahmad recorded (17545) — from Yahya, from Abu Salamah, from the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, as mursal. This is a chain whose narrators are all trustworthy. Abu Hatim al-Razi affirmed its mursal status via the route of Abu Salamah in "al-'Ilal" of his son (1047) and (1058), as did al-Daraqutni in "al-'Ilal" 9/325 and 14/308, =