Sunan Abi Dawud 4617
سنن أبي داود#4617Sound chainحَدَّثَنَا هِلاَلُ بْنُ بِشْرٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادٌ، قَالَ أَخْبَرَنِي حُمَيْدٌ، قَالَ كَانَ الْحَسَنُ يَقُولُ لأَنْ يُسْقَطَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ إِلَى الأَرْضِ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ أَنْ يَقُولَ الأَمْرُ بِيَدِي .
Humaid said:Al-Hasan used to say that his fall from the heaven on the earth is dearer to him than uttering: The matter is in my hand
Scholarly Authentication
The label above is the grade most of these scholars gave, each scholar counted once — one dissenting opinion no longer speaks for all of them. If any scholar calls a narration fabricated, that verdict is shown instead, whatever the others say. When they judged only its chain of narrators (“Isnaad”), the label says “Sound chain”. Each scholar's own wording:
Our source also lists this ruling under Muhammad Muhyi Al-Din Abdul Hamid, the editor of the printed edition it was taken from. It is al-Albani's ruling printed again, so it is counted once.
In-book reference: 42:22