Section: There is no harm in travelers mixing their provisions (8) and eating together. If some eat more than others, there is no harm. The early generations (al-salaf) used to pool their resources (tanāhadūn) (9) while on expeditions and during the Hajj. This is distinct from nithār (scattering of food), for that involves taking by plunder, seizing, and pulling, unlike this.
Section: Concerning the etiquette of eating. It is recommended to wash the hands (10) before and after eating, even if one is in a state of wudu (ablution). [Al-Marwadhī said: I saw Abū ʿAbd Allāh wash his hands before and after eating, even if he was in a state of wudu] (11). It has been narrated from the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) that he said: "Whoever loves for Allah to increase the good of his house, let him perform wudu when his lunch is brought and when it is removed." Narrated by Ibn Mājah (13). Abū Bakr narrated with his chain of transmission from al-Ḥasan [ibn ʿAlī] (14) that (15) the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) (16) said: "Wudu before eating dispels poverty, and after it, it dispels minor sins (lamam)" (17). By this, he meant washing the hands. The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "Whoever sleeps while there is a scent of ghamar (18) on his hand, and something befalls him, let him blame no one but himself." Narrated by Abū Dāwūd (19). There is no harm in omitting wudu, based on what Abū Hurayrah narrated, that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) went out from the toilet, and food was brought to him, and a man said: O Messenger of Allah, shall I bring you water for wudu? He said (20): "Do I intend to pray?" Narrated by Ibn Mājah (21).
(8) In the original: "zādahum" (their provision). (9) In A, B, and M: "yataʿāhadūn". Tanāhud among companions on a journey means they bring out what they have of food. (10) In the original and A: "al-yad" (the hand). (11) Omitted from the original. A scholarly observation. (12) Completed from Sunan Ibn Mājah. (13) In: The Chapter on Wudu for Food, from the Book of Food. Sunan Ibn Mājah 2/1085. (14) Omitted from the original and A. (15) In the original and A: "ʿan" (from). (16) In the original and A, the addition: "annahu" (that he). (17) Cited by al-Shawkānī in: Book of Food and Drink. Al-Fawāʾid al-Majmūʿah fī al-Aḥādīth al-Mawḍūʿah 155. And by al-Ṣaghānī in his treatise on fabricated narrations 9. (18) Ghamar: Fat, dirt, or the pungent smell of meat. (19) Its classification (takhrij) preceded in: 1/253. It is corrected as: Sunan Abū Dāwūd 2/330. Added to it is: al-Dārimī, in: The Chapter on Wudu after Food, from the Book of Food. Sunan al-Dārimī 2/104.
