A critical study of a rule mentioned by Al-Albani in the introduction to his book: (Tamam Al-Minnah) related to the authentication of Ibn Hibban

Al-Albani spoke about some rules related to the sciences of hadith and its terminology in the introduction to his book: (Tamam al-Minnah fi al-Ta’liq ‘ala Fiqh al-Sunnah by Sheikh Sayyid Sabiq). Among these rules is a rule related to the authentication of Ibn Hibban entitled: (The Fifth Rule: Not to rely on the authentication of Ibn Hibban). Al-Albani believes that Ibn Hibban is one of those who are lenient in authentication, especially the authentication of unknowns, following some of the later scholars: such as al-Dhahabi and Ibn Hajar. He went on to say that he should not be relied upon in this area. Therefore, the researcher studied Ibn Hibban’s method in authenticating narrators, especially those whom Ibn Hibban alone authenticated. Through the study, the researcher found that the matter is not as al-Albani said. The research showed that Ibn Hibban was one of the people of complete induction into the conditions of men, and whoever contemplates his writings with a fair contemplation will know that he was an ocean of knowledge. Also, the narrators whom he translated in his book (al-Thiqat) are not equal, as some have understood, so they should not be looked at with one eye, as some of them explicitly declared their authenticity, some of them hinted at it, and some of them were silent about them, as the research showed.