Hadith says the Prophet ﷺ did not perform Wudu after cupping?

There is a Hadith that mentioned the Prophet ﷺ did not perform Wudu after cupping. However, the narration is weak.

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو سَهْلِ بْنُ زِيَادٍ، نا صَالِحُ بْنُ مُقَاتِلٍ, ثنا أَبِي, ثنا سُلَيْمَانُ بْنُ دَاوُدَ أَبُو أَيُّوبَ, عَنْ حُمَيْدٍ عَنْ أَنَسٍ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ «احْتَجَمَ فَصَلَّى وَلَمْ يَتَوَضَّأْ وَلَمْ يَزِدْ عَنْ غَسْلِ مَحَاجِمِهِ». (سنن الدارقطني)

On the authority of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ engaged in cupping, then he ﷺ prayed without performing ablution (Wudu). He ﷺ did not do anything beyond washing the area of cupping. (Sunan al-Darqutni, 554)

The Hadith above mentions the Prophet ﷺ did not perform Wudu after cupping. However, it is not evidence against the Hanafi position that bleeding nullifies Wudu because the narration is weak. Although weak Hadith are used for certain aspects of the Deen, they are not used for fundamental issues of Fiqh. After narrating the Hadith Imam al-Bayhaqi said:

أخبرنا أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الْحَافِظُ، قَالَ: سَأَلْتُ الدَّارَقُطْنِيَّ عَنْ صَالِحِ بْنِ مُقَاتِلِ بْنِ صَالِحٍ، فَقَالَ: يُحَدِّثُ عَنْ أَبِيهِ، لَيْسَ بِالْقَوِيِّ. (الخلافيات بين الإمامين الشافعي وأبي حنيفة وأصحابه)

Abu ‘Abdillah al-Hafiz said: I asked al-Darqutni about Salih bin Muqatil ibn Salih, so he said: he narrated from his father, he was not reliable (Qawi). (Imam al-Bayhaqi, al-Khilafiyaat bayna al-Imamyan al-Shafi’ wa Abi Hanifah wa Ashabihi).

Imam al-Bayhaqi clarified that Salih bin Muqatil is a weak narrator. Therefore, his presence in the chain renders the Hadith weak. Other Hadith scholars identified this weakness too.

حديث (أن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم احتجم فصلى ولم يتوضأ ولم يزد على غسل محاجمه ) رواه الدارقطني وفي إسناده صالح بن مقاتل وهو ضعيف. (الدراري المضية شرح الدرر البهية)

Hadith: The Prophet ﷺ engaged in cupping, then he ﷺ prayed without performing ablution (Wudu). He ﷺ did not do anything beyond washing the area of cupping. It was narrated in Darqutni, and in his Isnaad (chain) is Salih bin Muqatil and he is weak. (Imam al-Showkani, al-Darari al-Mudiyyah, Sharh al-Durar al-Bahiyyah).

And Allah Most High Knows Best

-Answered by Shaykh Noorud-deen Rashid (02.03.2022)

 -Special thanks to Sidi Yusuf Asghar for assisting with Nusoos translation.

See also:
What do the different Hadith classification terms mean?
Using Weak Hadith

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