’ Alī bin Hujr as-Sa’dī narrated to us, Alī bin Mushir narrated to us, Muhammad bin Qays il-Asadī informed us, on authority of Alī ibn Rabī’at al-Asadī, on authority of al-Mughīrat ibn Shu’bah, on authority of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah upon him a similar narration, however he did not mention the words ‘Indeed a lie upon me is not like a lie upon anyone else’.
Introduction - Sahih Muslim 4 b
This narration from Alī bin Hujr as-Sa'dī through the chain of Alī bin Mushir, Muhammad bin Qays, Alī ibn Rabī'at al-Asadī, and al-Mughīrat ibn Shu'bah reports a Prophetic tradition similar to other narrations concerning the prohibition of attributing false statements to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).
Textual Analysis
The narrator explicitly notes the omission of the phrase "Indeed a lie upon me is not like a lie upon anyone else," indicating careful transmission practice and scholarly precision in distinguishing between complete and incomplete versions of hadith.
This demonstrates the meticulous methodology of early hadith scholars in preserving the exact wording of Prophetic traditions, even when reporting similar narrations with minor variations.
Legal and Theological Implications
Despite the omitted phrase, the core message remains intact: attributing false statements to the Prophet (peace be upon him) constitutes a grave sin, as established through multiple authentic chains of transmission in Sahih Muslim and other canonical collections.
Scholars emphasize that even without the specific comparison, the prohibition remains absolute due to the Prophet's unique position as the final messenger and the necessity of preserving the purity of Islamic teachings from fabrication.
Chain of Transmission Evaluation
The isnad features reliable narrators, including al-Mughīrat ibn Shu'bah, a prominent Companion known for his numerous transmissions, and subsequent narrators in the chain are recognized as trustworthy by classical scholars of hadith criticism.
Such variant narrations serve to strengthen the overall authenticity of the hadith through multiple independent chains, while also providing insight into the rigorous verification processes employed by early Muslim scholars.