What is Sahih Ibn Hibban? And is it Sahih (authentic)?

Imam Ibn Hibban is Muhammad ibn Hibban al-Tamimi al-Busti. He was one of the great jurists and memorizers of hadith, and a scholar of medicine, astronomy, language, and preaching. One of his most famous books is Sahih Ibn Hibban, also known as Al-Musnad Al-Sahih 'ala al-Taqasim wa al-Anwa', which is a valuable book meticulously edited by its author.

His aim in compiling this book was to facilitate the memorization of authentic hadiths for students. He divided the hadiths into five main categories: commands, prohibitions, reports, permissible acts, and the specific actions of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.

Ibn Hibban stipulated for the authenticity of a hadith that five conditions must be met in every narrator: justice in religion, truthfulness in narrating, understanding of what he narrates, knowledge of what might corrupt the meanings of what he narrates, and that his narration be free from tadlis (deceptive narration).

Some scholars believe that Ibn Hibban was lenient in his authentication and attestation, as he might attest to unknown narrators and use their hadiths as evidence, which places his attestation at the lowest degrees of authentication. Therefore, Al-Suyuti and others believe that Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah is of a higher rank than Sahih Ibn Hibban due to Ibn Khuzaymah's stringent verification.

His methodology in his Sahih was to avoid repeating hadiths unless it was for the addition of a necessary word or to cite evidence for a meaning in another narration.