1217 - Issue: He said: (It is recommended for one who has married to provide a wedding banquet, even if with a sheep.)
There is no disagreement among the people of knowledge that the Walima is an established Sunnah for a wedding, due to what has been narrated that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) commanded it and performed it. He said to Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, when he said: "I have married": "Provide a wedding banquet, even if with a sheep." Anas said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not provide a banquet for any of his wives as he did for Zaynab; he would send me to invite the people to him, and he fed them bread and meat until they were full. Anas also said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) chose Safiyya for himself, and he went out with her until he reached Thaniyyat al-Sahba', where he consummated the marriage with her, then he made Hais (a dish) in a small skin, and then said: "Invite those who are around you." This was the wedding banquet of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) for Safiyya. These are agreed upon. It is recommended to provide a banquet with a sheep, if one is able to do so, because of the saying of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to Abd al-Rahman: "Provide a banquet, even if with a sheep." Anas said: The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not provide a banquet for any of his wives as he did for Zaynab; he provided a banquet with a sheep. This is the wording of al-Bukhari. If he provides a banquet with something other than this, it is permissible, for the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) provided a banquet for Safiyya with Hais, and provided a banquet for some of his wives with two Mudds of barley. Narrated by al-Bukhari.
Section: It is not obligatory according to the opinion of the majority of the people of knowledge. Some of the companions of al-Shafi'i said: It is obligatory, because the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) commanded Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf to do it; and because responding to it is obligatory, thus it is obligatory. Our argument is that it is food for an occurring joy, so it is like other foods; the command is understood as being for recommendation based on the evidence we mentioned, and his command to use a sheep is not disputed as being not obligatory; and what they mentioned regarding the meaning has no foundation, and then it is invalidated by [the rule of] the greeting (Salam), for it is not obligatory [to initiate it], while responding to the person greeting is obligatory.
1218 - Issue: He said: (And whoever is invited must respond.)
Ibn Abd al-Barr said: There is no disagreement regarding the obligation of responding to the Walima for one who is invited to it, provided there is no vain amusement therein. This is the opinion of Malik, al-Thawri, al-Shafi'i, al-'Anbari, Abu Hanifah, and his companions. Among the companions of al-Shafi'i, some have said: It is a communal obligation (Fard Kifayah), because responding is a form of honoring and cementing ties, so it is like returning the greeting. Our argument is what Ibn Umar narrated, that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "If one of you is invited to a Walima, let him attend it." In another narration he said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "Respond to this invitation if you are invited to it." Abu Hurayrah said: The worst of food is the food of the Walima; the wealthy are invited to it and the poor are left out, and whoever does not respond has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger. These were narrated by al-Bukhari. This is general, and the meaning of his saying, "The worst of food is the food of the Walima"—and Allah knows best—is that it is the food of the Walima to which one is invited.
(1) Al-Sahba': The name of a place, between which and Khaybar is the distance of a Rawhah. Mu'jam al-Buldan 3/437. (2) Al-Hais: Food made from dates, dried curd (Aqt), and ghee. Sometimes flour and crumbs are used instead of the dried curd. Al-Nit' is a container made of leather. (3) The first [hadith] was previously cited in: 9/470. As for the second, it was recorded by al-Bukhari in: The Chapter: {Do not enter the houses of the Prophet except when permission is given to you...}, from the Book of Tafsir, Surah al-Ahzab, and in the Chapter: Providing a wedding banquet even if with a sheep, and the Chapter: Whoever provides a banquet for some of his wives more than others, from the Book of Marriage. Sahih al-Bukhari 6/148, 149, 7/31. And [by] Muslim in: The Chapter: The virtue of freeing his slave girl and then marrying her, and the Chapter: The marriage of Zaynab bint Jahsh..., from the Book of Marriage. Sahih Muslim 2/1046, 1049. It was also recorded by Abu Dawud in: The Chapter: On the recommendation of the Walima at the time of marriage, from the Book of Food. Sunan Abi Dawud 2/307. And [by] Ibn Majah in: The Chapter of the Walima, from the Book of Marriage. Sunan Ibn Majah 1/615. And [by] Imam Ahmad in: Al-Musnad 3/172, 227. As for the third [hadith], it was recorded by al-Bukhari in: The Chapter: Should a slave girl be traveled with before she is declared free of pregnancy, from the Book of Sales, and in: The Chapter: Whoever goes on a campaign with a boy for service, from the Book of Jihad, and in: The Chapter: The campaign of Khaybar, from the Book of Maghazi, and in: The Chapter: Thin bread..., and the Chapter: Aqt and the Chapter: Hais, from the Book of Food. Sahih al-Bukhari 3/110, 4/43, 5/171, 172, 7/91, 94, 99. And [by] Muslim in: The Chapter: The virtue of Medina..., from the Book of Hajj. Sahih Muslim 2/993. (4) Omitted from: Original, A.
