household that has a greater claim upon him for their counsel and guidance. For this reason Allah the Exalted says, “And warn your nearest kinsfolk” (Qur’an 26:214), so He began with one’s closest relatives before anyone else.

As for the person who goes out to invite people to Allah for a day or two—or something similar—and then soon returns to his family, that does him no harm; indeed, he is upon goodness. Our words concern those who stay away for four months, five months, or an entire year, abandoning their families and leaving them to the whims and storms that batter them. Such conduct is indisputably a sign of their deficient understanding of Allah’s religion.

The Prophet ﷺ said, “When Allah intends good for someone, He grants him understanding of the religion.” A jurist of the faith, therefore, is the one who grasps matters, weighs their consequences, and knows how to approach homes through their proper doors, so that he fulfills what is required of him.

7/266 — Abu Hurayrah narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: “The worst food is the food of the walimah (wedding banquet): those who wish to attend are prevented, while those who refuse to attend are invited. Whoever does not answer the invitation has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger.” Muslim related it.

In another wording found in both Ṣaḥīḥs, Abu Hurayrah himself said: “How wretched is the food of a wedding banquet: the wealthy are invited, and the poor are left out.”