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Hadith · Forty Ḥadīth of an-Nawawī 15
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day speak good, or keep silent; and let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day be generous to his neighbour; and let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day be generous to his guest. [Al-Bukhari] [Muslim]
Forty Ḥadīth of an-Nawawī 15
The Prophet ﷺ linked believing in Allah and the Last Day to good speech and honoring neighbor and guest.
Agreed upon (Bukhari & Muslim)
Recorded by both al-Bukhari and Muslim (muttafaq 'alayh), the highest grade of authenticity a hadith can carry. Hadith scholars grade how reliably the words reach us from the Prophet ﷺ. This is a separate question from the ruling drawn from it.
Al-Bukhari's narrations say "let him not harm his neighbour" where this wording has "let him be generous to his neighbour"; Muslim records both wordings.
Hosting a guest for a day and a night is a binding duty.
How each of the four madhhabs treats the ruling drawn from this hadith.
| Madhhab | Position |
|---|---|
| HanafiQualifies | Reads the command as strong encouragement: hospitality is a sunnah and a noble trait, not a binding duty. |
| MalikiQualifies | Hospitality is recommended, not obligatory; Malik held that city dwellers owe no hospitality, since inns and markets serve the traveller there. |
| Shafi'iQualifies | Hospitality is a confirmed sunnah, not a binding duty. |
| HanbaliAgrees | Hosting a passing Muslim guest for a day and a night is obligatory, with three days as the full measure; the school applies it chiefly to villages and the countryside. |
These gradings summarise classical hadith scholarship and the positions of the four schools. They are pending review by a qualified scholar; for your own situation, ask one.
Explained for
Same text. The explanation below changes.
It gives faith an everyday, social shape.
What would 'honoring a neighbor' look like where you live?
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