‘Eed in the House of the Prophet - I

‘Eed in the House of the Prophet - I

On a joyful day in Al-Madeenah An-Nabawiyyah, and on the morning of a happy ‘Eed, the house of the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), witnessed the scenes of the celebration of ‘Eed under the supervision of the best of human beings: Muhammad,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ). Everyone joined in to celebrate the occasion of ‘Eed and all were keen to let the noble Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), witness their celebrations because they loved him the most and held him the utmost esteem.

Concerning the house of the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), it was narrated that ‘Aa’ishah, the Mother of the Believers  may  Allah  be  pleased  with  her said,
“The Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) came to my house while two girls were singing beside me the songs of Bu‘aath. He lay down and turned his face to the other side. Then Abu Bakr came and spoke to me harshly saying, ‘Musical instruments of the devil (referring to the tambourine) in the house of the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention )?’ The Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) turned his face towards him and said: ‘Leave them.’ When Abu Bakr became inattentive, I signaled to those girls to go out and they left.”
Moreover, there is another example of celebration of the ‘Eed near the honorable room, let our Mother, ‘Aa’ishah  may  Allah  be  pleased  with  her tell us about it to complete the context of her previous speech. She narrated,
“It was the Day of ‘Eed, and the Abyssinians were playing with shields and spears; so either I requested the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) or he asked me saying: ‘Would you like to see the display?’ I replied in the affirmative. Then the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) let me stand behind him and my cheek was on his cheek and he was saying: ‘Carry on! O Banu Arfidah (title given to Abyssinians),until I got tired. The Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) asked me: ‘Are you satisfied (Is that sufficient for you)?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ Then he said to me: ‘So leave.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim in the Chapter of Al-’Eedayn and the wording is that of Al-Bukhari]
In another place next to the room of the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), there was another joyful celebration of ‘Eed performed by some children singing melodious Nasheeds (verses) praising the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ).
‘Aa’ishah  may  Allah  be  pleased  with  her said,
"Once the Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) was sitting. Then we heard confused sounds and boys' voices, so he got up (to investigate the matter). He saw an Abyssinian woman dancing with the boys around her.  He said: ‘O ‘Aa’ishah! Come and look,’ So I went and placed my chin on the shoulder of the Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) and began to watch her over his shoulder. He then said to me: ‘Have you not had enough?  Have you not had enough?’ I began to say, ‘No,’ in order that I might look where I was with him. ‘Umar then came along, and when the people ran away from her, the Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) said:‘I am looking at the devils of the jinn and humans fleeing from ‘Umar.’ Then she said, “I went back.” (At-Tirmithi)
If we would like to know some such Nasheeds and their words, they are in their language and even the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), used to ask about their meanings. It was narrated in Al-Musnad and Saheeh Ibn Hibbaan that Anas ibn Maalik  may  Allah  be  pleased  with  him said, “The Abyssinians used to come before the Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) dance and speak words that he did not understand. Then the Messenger of Allah  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ) said: ‘What are they saying?’ They said that they are saying, ‘Muhammad is a righteous slave (of Allah).”
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Lessons scholars deduced from the Hadeeths mentioned above:
·        It is permissible to be generous to your dependants during the days of ‘Eeds in a manner that pleases them and give them rest. In case a person does not like to have rest or amusement due to his old age, his status and prestige – although that may really befit him – others, especially his family and children and those who are still young love amusement, so he should give them the chance to satisfy these natural desires in accordance with the rules and limits of Sharee’ah (Islamic legislation). [Fat-h Al-Baari]
·        It also indicates that showing happiness during the days of ‘Eeds is among the main principles and rituals of our religion. That is because when the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), witnessed the singing of the two little girls, he did not stop them; rather, he approved of that. Moreover, when the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), heard Abu Bakr  may  Allah  be  pleased  with  him wanting to stop them, he said to him: “Leave them," and in another narration he said: “O Abu Bakr! There is a festival for every nation and this is our festival", and in the narration reported in Al-Musnad, the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), said: “Let the Jews know that our religion is full of ease and that I was sent with a tolerant religion of true monotheism."
·        It also indicates that one should treat women gently and seek closeness to them because women have a natural love for kind feelings and gentle emotions.  Such intimacy can be attained by satisfying her natural desires and fulfilling her usual needs as long as they are lawful. In fact, the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), gave us the best example in this regard. His houses were full of kindness and gentleness with the Mothers of the Believers. The affectionate scene, in which the Mother of the Believers said, “My cheek was on his cheek” and the harmonious emotions and spiritual contact that it includes, clearly proves that ‘Eed is a chance to heal any rift that may afflict the beautiful picture of marital life.
·        In fact, what the Prophet,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allah exalt his mention ), did with ‘Aa’ishah, in spite of his noble status and great burdens, is a precious lesson for parents, brothers, and husbands. Hence, ‘Aa’ishah  may  Allah  be  pleased  with  her used to say, “You should understand the fact that young girls like to have fun.”That is to say, we should understand our desires for such things until we have had enough of it. After investigating the matter, it was concluded that denying children and wives their share of amusement and entertainment has adverse effects on their psychological and social lives.
(To be continued)

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