Having stated the conditions explicitly, the author, may Allah have mercy on him, then mentioned what is understood by their implication, saying:
“If he invites him by a general invitation, or on the third day, or if a dhimmi invites him, accepting the invitation is disliked, …”
“If he invites him by a general invitation”: this is an open invitation, as when one says, “Come, O people!” It was something in which the Arabs took pride, as one of their poets said:
In times of famine, we invite all and sundry;
among us, you will not see the host select individuals.
A selective invitation means naming particular people, whereas a general invitation means inviting everyone. The host is the one who gives the banquet.
Thus, if he extends a general invitation, the author says, “Accepting it is disliked.” The reasoning given is that it entails a loss of dignity for the invitee and boasting and showing off on the part of the host. But this reasoning is unsound. The correct view is that accepting such an invitation is not disliked; rather, it is permissible. It is authentically established that the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, sent Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, and said to him: “Invite so-and-so and so-and-so, and whomever you meet” (1). Thus, he named particular people at first, then made the invitation general.
The correct view, then, is that accepting the invitation is not disliked. Indeed, in my view, failing to accept is closer to being disliked, because if you invite all the people and one person stays away, people will say, “He is acting aloof and arrogantly.” It is true that accepting is not obligatory upon every individual, because the invitation is general; it resembles a collective obligation. Yet we do not say that it is disliked. Rather, the sound view is that it is neither disliked nor obligatory. However, if one of those invited knows that the host would be pleased by his attendance, then he should accept.
His statement, “or on the third day,” means: if he invites him on the third day, then