Weak Hadeeth # 10 : The Quran has 1027000 letters

{ حدثنا محمد بن عبيد بن آدم بن أبي إياس العسقلاني حدثني أبي عن جدي آدم بن أبي إياس ثنا حفص بن ميسرة عن زيد بن أسلم عن أبيه عن عمر بن الخطاب قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم القرآن ألف ألف حرف وسبعة وعشرون ألف حرف فمن قرأه صابرا محتسبا كان له بكل حرف زوجة من الحور العين : لا يُروى هذا الحديث عن عمر رضي الله عنه إلا بهذا الإسناد }

It is reported from ‘Umar bin al-Khattab, he said: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, “the Qur’an has 1027000 letters. Whoever will recite it with patience with the intention of seeking Allah’s pleasure will get a wide-eyed maiden for every single letter.” 

[Ref: Mu`jam Tabarani al-Awsat, Hadeeth 6805 or 6/361/hadeeth 6616 cairo edition]

Same report is also found in Kanzul Ummal, Hadeeth 2308, 2426 and has been quoted by Al-Suyuti in Al-Ittiqan 1/82, Durr Manthur 10/406 and Jami’ al-Saghir Narration 8563.

Status : Very Weak 

1) The Narrator Muhammad ibn ubayd bin adam bin abi ayas is weak and the narration is also deemed weak 

(1.1) Imam ad-dhahabi in meezan al-`Itidaal (7918 or 6/251) said he narrates false narrations - 

تفرد بخبر باطل.

ثم ساق الذهبي هذه الرواية الباطلة -

 and then himself deemed this narration to among the false ones 

(1.2) Imam as-suyuti  said likewise about him and mentioned what imam dhahabi said : 

 (2/456 or 1/82) قال السيوطي في الإتقان بعد ذِكْرِ الرواية :

{رجاله ثقات إلا شيخ الطبراني محمد بن عبيد بن آدم أبي إياس تكلم فيه الذهبي لهذا الحديث

(1.3) Ibn Hajar asqalani in Leesan al-Meezan (7/334) said likewise about him and put this narration under the suspicious ones 

{ تَفَرَّدَ بخبر باطل } وساق نفس الرواية محل الشبهة

(1.4) Shaykh al-Albaanee in Silsilah Ahadeeth ad-dha`eefah (71) also considered this to be apparently forged and unique (as in ghareeb) and quoted adh-dhahabi and ibn hajar's grading mentioned above 

{ قلت : لوائح الوضع على حديثه ظاهرة ، فمثله لا يحتاج إلى كلام ينقل في تجريحه بأكثر مما أشار إليه الحافظ الذهبي ثم العسقلاني ؛ من روايته لمثل هذا الحديث وتفرده به 

He also classed this as a fabrication in Dha`eef Jaami` as-sagheer (4133) 

2) this is solely coming from the 5th generation and not even before 

محمد بن عبيد بن آدم بن أبي إياس - Muhammad bin Ubaid bin Adam bin Abi Ayas (Asqalani) [5th generation because his father Adam bin abi ayas asqalani was not even a taba` taba`een i.e found in the 4th generation and thus his son (the narrator in discussion) has to be from the fifth generation and he is here reporting . Also adam bin abi ayas was in the 11th tabaqat (death 258 AH) 

In tareekh al-islaam (entry 337) imam dhahabi quotes his death as 251-260 AH : 

- عُبَيْد بْن آدم بْن أَبِي إياس العسْقلَانيّ. [الوفاة: 251 - 260 ه]

And abu haatim said about his father  : قلت: مات فِي شَعْبان سنة ثمانٍ وخمسين.

3)  He is alone in narrating this riwayat 

(3.1) Imam tabraani himself said after narrating this narration 

 : لا يُروى هذا الحديث عن عمر رضي الله عنه إلا بهذا الإسناد 

his narration is not reported from Umar radhiallahu `anhu except through this chain.”

(3.2) وقال المتقي الهندي:

{ قال أبو نصر: غريب الإسناد والمتن وفيه زيادة على ما بين اللوحين ويمكن حمله على ما نسخ منه تلاوة مع المثبت بين اللوحين اليوم

Shaykh Ali Muttaqi al-Hindi in his Kanzul Ummal (Hadeeth 2426) after quoting this narration says: “Abu Nasr said this is a narration strange [both] in chain and the report.....

4) If this narration was true it would fall under the chapters of nask wal-Mansookh and these additional letters or verses would be considered those that were abrogated and their kinds. 

وقد نَبَّهَ على ذلك الحافظ السيوطي في الإتقان(2/457) فقال:

{ وقد حُمِلَ ذلك على ما نُسِخَ رَسْمُهُ من القرآن أيضاً 

And as shaykh ali muttaqi said above : 

وقال المتقي الهندي:

{ ويمكن حمله على ما نسخ منه تلاوة مع المثبت بين اللوحين اليوم

5) Can such a report even be true? 

The exact numbering of the qur`anic verses or letters per say had to be carried out in the open during the khilafa of umar radhiallahu anhu then why is it that we don't have any other report from any other sahaabi on this ? 

Also, the only time letters were counted as such was during the time of hajjaj bin yusuf by the scholars of that time using their own methodology of including vowels or other parameters they had set which allah knows best. 

Finally, the shi`as are the ones who are known to have such tahreef filled narrations about the qur`an. They are many and this is not the place to quote them, however one such narration would be : 

the kaafir al-Kulaini has again narrated on the authority of Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Nasr who said: "Abu al-Hasan gave me a manuscript and told me to see what was written therein. I opened it, and under the verse "Those who disbelieve will not??.." were written the names of seventy Quraishes along with the names of their father." (Usul al-Kafi, Indian edition, pge 680) 

also, 

Imam Abu Abdullah said: Present Quran have 6666 verses whereas the Quran of ahlul-bayt had 17000 verses. 

Usool-e-kafi vol.5 Kitab-Fazulul Quran page-290 hadees: 3 and declared authentic by baqir al-majlisi