Is there a Prophetic hadith from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, with the meaning: "Choose well for your offspring, for the root is deep-seated," or "Choose well for your children, for the root is deep-seated"? And if a girl is of good character and religious, but her brothers are bad, does that affect the validity of the marriage?

The phrase "al-irq dassas" (heredity is deceptive/insidious) is not found in the Sunan collections or books of knowledge, though it is common on the tongues of the general public. Ibn al-Jawzi reported a similar hadith with the wording: "Choose for your progeny, for heredity is deceptive/insidious." He mentioned that it was narrated from Umar, Ibn Umar, Anas, and A'ishah, but he ruled it to be weak. Nevertheless, the concept of choosing for one's progeny is legislated and encouraged in Islamic law. It is also a right of children upon their father, as stated in the hadith narrated by Ibn Majah: "Choose for your progeny, marry those who are suitable, and marry your daughters to those who are suitable." Al-Albani graded this hadith as hasan (good). "Choosing for one's progeny" means selecting women who are religious and righteous. It is preferable that they come from a good and righteous family, but if not, the righteousness of the wife alone is sufficient.