923 – Muslim relates from ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that she said, “Whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had performed the ʿAṣr prayer, he would go round to his wives and then draw near to them …” — the remainder of the ḥadīth. (1)

Vocabulary of the ḥadīth:
– dāra: that is, he made a circuit among them in their homes.
– yadnū: an affectionate, playful nearness and caressing, without intercourse.

Points derived from the two ḥadīths:
1 – They show the Prophet’s ﷺ justice in apportioning his time among his wives, even though Allah had not obligated him to do so, for He allowed him to postpone whomever he wished and to draw close to whomever he wished. Their eyes were content with that because it was Allah’s decree: “It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, to have any choice about their affair; and whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has clearly gone far astray.” ⦗Al-Aḥzāb 33:36⦘.
2 – Each day he would visit every one of his wives, showing them kindness, joking with them, and playing with them, without intercourse. He did so to reassure their hearts and to perfect his good companionship with them, especially since, because of their number, his absence from any one of them would otherwise have been lengthy.
3 – He spent the night with the wife whose turn it was. In Muslim’s wording, his round among them took place after the ʿAṣr prayer.
4 – The ḥadīth indicates that it is permissible for a man to enter upon a wife whose day or night it is not, contrary to the well-known view of the Ḥanbalī school.