English translation
690. (There is another chain) from ‘Ali meaning, Ibn Al-Madīnī, from Sufyān, from Ismā‘īl bin Umayyah, from Abū Muḥammad bin ‘Amr bin Ḥuraith, from his grandfather Ḥuraith — who was a man from Banū ‘Udhrāh — from Abū Hurairah, from Abūl-Qāsim ﷺ. And he mentioned the Hadīth about the line. (Da‘īf) Sufyān said:[1] “We have not found anything to strengthen this Hadīth, and it has not been narrated except with this chain.” He (‘Ali bin Al-Madīnī) said: “I said to Sufyān: ‘They differed in it’[2] so he discussed it for a while then said: ‘It is not preserved except from Abū Muḥammad bin ‘Amr.’” Sufyān said: “After Ismā‘īl bin Umayyah died, a man arrived here, so he sought out this Shaikh Abū Muḥammad until he found him, then he questioned him about it, but he was confused about it.” Abū Dāwūd said: I heard Aḥmad — meaning Ibn Ḥanbal — may Allāh have mercy upon him, being asked more than once about how this line should be drawn, so he said: “Like this” indicating similar to a crescent, horizontally (in front of him). Abū Dāwūd said: And I heard Musad-dad say: (“(Abdullāh) bin Dāwūd said: ‘A (straight) line.’” Abū Dāwūd said: And I heard Aḥmad say more than once that it should be drawn in a semi-circular fashion in front of the person praying.