A Superior Dhikr
Question

                It was narrated that Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:  
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw me moving my lips and he said to me: “What are you saying, O Abu Umamah?” I said: I am remembering Allah, O Messenger of Allah. He said: “Shall I not tell you of something better or greater than your dhikr of night and day or of day and night? You should say: Subhan Allah ‘adad ma khalaqa, subhan Allah mil’a ma khalaqa, subhan Allah ‘adad ma fi’l-ard wa’l-sama, subhan Allah mil’a ma fi’l-samai wa’l-ard, subhan Allah mil’a ma khalaqa, subhan Allah ‘adad ma ahsa kitabuhu, subhan Allah mil’a kulli shay’in (Glory be to Allah the number of what He has created, glory be to Allah filling what He has created, glory be to Allah the number of what is in earth and heaven, glory be to Allah filling what is in heaven and earth, glory be to Allah filling what He has created, glory be to Allah the number of what is written in His book, glory be to Allah filling all things); and say Al-hamdu Lillah likewise.”

Is this hadeeth (narration) saheeh (authentic) or fabricated?.
Praise be to Allah.
    
    Firstly: 

    
    This hadeeth has been narrated via a number of isnads (chains of narration) 
    from the great Sahabi (Companion) Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with 
    him), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) 
    passed by him when he was moving his lips and he said: 

    
    “What are you saying, O Abu Umamah?” 

    
    He said: I am remembering my Lord. 

    
    He said: “Shall I not tell you…” and he quoted the hadeeth (narration). 

    
    Al-Shaykh al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

    
    This hadeeth is narrated by Abu Umamah al-Bahili: Suday ibn ‘Ajlan, and 
    attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and 
    there are a number of chains of transmission from him. 

    
    Then he listed the chains of transmission and said concerning al-Hakim’s 
    narration of some of its isnads: al-Hakim said: It is saheeh according to 
    the conditions of the two shaykhs (al-Bukhari and Muslim), and al-Dhahabi 
    agreed with him, and it is as they said. 

    
    See: al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, no. 2578. He also stated that the 
    hadeeth is saheeh in Saheeh al-Targheeb wa’l-Tarheeb, no. 1575 

    
    The hadeeth was classed as hasan (sound) by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar in Nataij 
    al-Afkar, 1/84. al-Haytham said in al-Majma’ 10/110: It was 
    narrated by Ahmad and its men are the men of saheeh. It was classed as 
    saheeh by the editors of Musnad Ahmad in the edition published by 
    Muasasat al-Risalah, 36/459-460, where they discussed its isnads in detail. 

    
    Secondly: 

    
    As for what may be understood from the hadeeth, the most important of it is 
    the virtue of this dhikr (words of remembrance) in particular, as the 
    Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said that the one who 
    recites it attains a great reward that is superior to most adhkar. 

    
    Hence al-Hafiz Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him) included it in a 
    chapter in his Saheeh (1/307) that he entitled Bab Fadl al-Tahmeed 
    wa’l-Tasbeeh wa’l-Takbeer bi wasf al-‘Adad al-Katheer min khalq Allah aw 
    ghayri khalqihi. End quote. 

    
    Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

    
    Saying: Subhan Allah wa bi hamdih, ‘adada khalqihi, wa rida nafsihi, 
    wazinata ‘arshihi, wa midaada kalimatihi (Glory and praise be to Allah, 
    as much as the number of His creation, as much as pleases Him, as much as 
    the weight of His Throne and as much as the ink of His words) is many times 
    better than merely saying Subhan Allah (Glory be to Allah). What the 
    one who says “Subhan Allah wa bi hamdih, ‘adada khalqihi…” achieves 
    of knowing Allah, exalting Him and glorifying Him, when his dhikr is 
    connected to the huge numbers mentioned, is far greater than what is 
    achieved by the one who merely says Subhan Allah. This is called multiplied 
    dhikr and it is greater glorification and praise than regular dhikr, hence 
    it is better than it. 

    
    This is manifested when we understand what this dhikr means: 

    
    When the worshipper says Subhan Allah wa bi hamdihi, ‘adada khalqihi, 
    it is like a statement and explanation of what the Lord deserves of 
    glorification the number of every created being, what has been and what will 
    be, for eternity. It includes an affirmation that Allah is above all things, 
    and glorifying and praising Him this huge number cannot be comprehended by 
    anyone who counts; the end of it can never be reached. It includes the 
    person's aspiration to do such endless tasbeeh (glorification of Allah). 
    What the person says is not intended to limit the glorification to that 
    number or level; rather he is saying that what Allah deserves of 
    glorification is glorification which reaches that number even if it has no 
    limit, because the creation of Allah will always be ongoing and will never 
    be limited by a number or figure. 

    
    What is meant is that this tasbeeh has reached a level of perfection and 
    majesty that indicates that it should be better than others and if something 
    else were weighed against it, it would outweigh it. This is what some of 
    these words refer to of the perfect qualities of Allah and praising Him by 
    declaring Him to be above all things, in addition to praising Allah which 
    implies the following: 

    
    i.        Affirmation of His attributes of perfection

    
    ii.       Loving Him and being pleased with Him.

    
    iii.      If one adds to these praises, glorification and exaltation in the 
    most perfect and sublime manner, the highest number of times, and the 
    worshipper focuses on this glorification and contemplates its meaning, then 
    this dhikr will have great virtue and advantages that are not shared by 
    others. And Allah is the Source of strength. 

    
    Al-Manar al-Muneef, 
    34-38 

    
    And Allah knows best.