Fass al-Khawatim fima qila fi al-Walaim
- Author died
- 953 AH
- Editions
- Fass al-Khawatim fima qila fi al-Walaim
Fass al-Khawatim fima qila fi al-Walaim (The Bezel of Signets on What Has Been Said Regarding Feasts) is a specialized jurisprudential and linguistic treatise by the Damascene Hanafi scholar Ibn Tulun (c. 880–953 AH / 1475–1546 CE) concerning the various types of banquets, food invitations, and hospitality customs in Islamic practice .
Structure and Classification of Banquets
Ibn Tulun organizes his commentary around didactic verses by the Hanafi chief judge Sadr al-Din Ibn al-'Izz, who listed twelve specific categories of meals and banquets in Arab and Islamic custom :
- Walīmat al-'urs: The wedding banquet, held upon the consummation or celebration of marriage .
- Khurs (or khursah): The meal prepared to celebrate the safe delivery of a mother in childbirth .
- 'Aqīqah: The sacrifice and meal offered on the seventh day following the birth of a child .
- Wakīrah: The housewarming feast prepared upon completing the construction of a residence .
- Waḍīmah: The meal prepared during a calamity or bereavement, typically made by neighbors and relatives for the grieving family .
- Naqī'ah: The celebratory feast hosted upon the return of a traveler from a journey .
- 'Adhīr (or i'dhār): The celebration held for a circumcision .
- Ma'dubah: A general feast prepared for friends and acquaintances without any specific occasion, categorized as jafalā when open to the public and nuqarā when restricted to specific invitees .
- Hidhāqah (or hidhāq): The meal offered when a child completes memorizing the Quran or portions thereof, locally referred to in the author's day as tahlīyah .
- Tuhfat al-zā'ir: The food presented to a visiting guest .
- Qirā al-ḍayf: Formal hospitality provided to guests .
- Nuzul: Food provided to someone taking shelter or lodging out of necessity .
In the latter part of the book, Ibn Tulun notes that Ibn al-'Izz omitted several other traditional feasts, including the brotherhood banquet (walīmat al-ukhuwwah), the pre-Islamic firstborn livestock offering (fara'), and the sacrifice in the month of Rajab ('atīrah) . He also records alternative versified enumerations by scholars such as Sadr al-Din al-'Uthmani al-Safadi and Burhan al-Din Ibrahim ibn Ahmad al-Ba'uni .
Legal Rulings and Etiquette
Ibn Tulun discusses the juristic opinions across the four legal schools regarding each feast's status, the minimum recommended sacrificial animal, and the timing of wedding celebrations . He explores the conditions under which accepting an invitation (ijābat al-da'wah) becomes obligatory or recommended, citing sixteen specific conditions, such as:
- The invitation must not be exclusive to the rich while neglecting the poor .
- The host must invite the guest specifically rather than extending a broad announcement .
- The gathering must be free of unlawful elements (munkarāt), such as wine, unlawful musical instruments, prohibited silk furnishings, or images of living beings on walls and ceilings .
- The food and funds must not originate from illicit sources, tyrannical authorities, or misallocated endowments (awqāf) .
The text also details dining etiquette (ādāb al-ṭa'ām), including washing hands before and after meals, invoking the name of God (tasmiyah), eating with three fingers, offering prayers for the host, avoiding gluttony, and the proper handling of water and vessels . Additionally, Ibn Tulun examines social phenomena related to banquets, addressing the prohibition of gatecrashing (tatafful) and tracing the eponym of the uninvited guest to Tufayl ibn Dallal of Kufa (Tufayl al-A'rās) . He also analyzes the legal rulings regarding scattering sweets and nuts (nithār) and playing the tambourine (duff) at weddings and circumcisions .
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