Benefits of the Hadith: (… He said: “O Messenger of Allah, I have married a woman for a dowry of the weight of a date pit in gold.” He said: “May Allah bless you. Give a wedding feast, even if it is only a sheep.”)

The Shaykh : This is also evidence that it is permissible for the bridal gift to be gold, and it is permissible for it to be silver, and it is permissible for it to be two sandals, and it is permissible for it to be a ring, and it is permissible for it to be benefits as well. Whatever is valid as a sale contract is valid as a bridal gift. So whatever is valid as a price or a wage is valid as a bridal gift. And his saying “for the weight of a date pit in gold”—the date pit referred to here is the date pit, because that is what is known when the term is used without qualification. This indicates that they used to weigh gold by date pits at that time, just as we weigh it by mithqals. And his saying is a command, and its apparent meaning is that the wedding feast is obligatory for the husband. Most scholars hold that it is not obligatory, meaning the feast, but rather a recommended practice (sunnah). They interpret his saying “give a feast” as indicating recommendation. The apparent view is that this varies: if one is wealthy, the wedding feast is obligatory for him, and if one is poor, it is not obligatory. The effect of this is apparent: if he was poor and then Allah made him wealthy, we do not say that you must give a feast now. Among the benefits of this hadith is that the wedding feast is the responsibility of the husband, based on his saying “give a feast.” This entails that if the woman’s people give a feast and invite you, you are not obligated to accept, because the wedding feast is prescribed for whom? For the husband. But customs differ among us now. In the past, the wedding feast was the husband’s responsibility, and the woman’s people did not prepare food; they only made tea and coffee and that was it. Now, whose responsibility is the wedding feast? It appears to be shared, because it takes place in wedding halls and the cost is divided between the husband and the wife’s people. And his saying “a sheep” means one sheep, i.e., even with this small amount. This is the apparent meaning of the wording, but the jurists (may Allah have mercy on them) said that the “even if” (law) here is for emphasis, and the most the wedding feast amounts to is one sheep. But the apparent meaning of the hadith is contrary to that. Therefore, we say that the wedding feast is according to the husband’s circumstances. This falls under the saying of Allah the Exalted: .