The hadeeth: “The believer is between five hardships…”
“The believer is between five hardships: a believer who envies him, a hypocrite who envies him (hasad), a kafir (non-Muslim) who fights him, a soul which contends with him and a devil who leads him astray.”
If this is a hadeeth, who narrated it?
This hadeeth was narrated via two isnads (chains of narration).
1 – It was narrated by al-Daylami in al-Firdaws, as stated by al-Manawi in Fayd al-Qadeer, 5/292, no. 7352, from the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him): “The believer has four enemies: a believer who envies him (hasad), a hypocrite who hates him, a devil who leads him astray and a kafir who fights him.”
Al-Manawi said, after quoting the hadeeth: its isnad includes Sakhr al-Hajibi of whom Al-Dhahabi said in al-Dua’afa’, he is accused of fabricating; Khalid al-Waasiti who is majhool (unknown); and Husayn ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman of whom al-Dhahabi said he forgot and grew old, and Al-Nasai said he changed. End quote.
Al-Shaykh al-Albani said in Da’eef al-Jami’ (4749): It is da’eef jiddan (very weak).
2 – It was narrated by Abu Bakr ibn Lal in Makarim al-Akhlaaq, as stated by al-Iraqi in al-Mughni ‘an Haml al-Asfar, 3/63, from the hadeeth of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him): “The Muslim is between five hardships: a believer who envies him (hasad), a hypocrite who hates him, a kafir who fights him, a devil who leads him astray and a soul that contends with him.”
Al-Iraqi said:
It was narrated by Abu Bakr ibn Lal in Makarim al-Akhlaaq from the hadeeth of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) with a da’eef (weak) isnad. End quote.
So the hadeeth is not proven.
And Allah knows best.
Wister