What is implied by the “vast deserts” between al-Ḥajjāj and the Prophet ﷺ?

Isnād as Part of Religion: Transmitter Competence, Fitnah, and Connected Transmission

• There is a substantial gap that the named reliable transmitters do not bridge
• Al-Ḥajjāj b. Dīnār was personally declared unreliable
• Travel replaces documented hearing as evidence
• The last transmitter’s city was misnamed