Hazrat ʿAʾisha ﵂ watching the spear play

Question

It is stated in the Sihah Sitta (the six authentic hadith collections) that on the day of ʿId the Messenger of Allah ﷺ lifted Hazrat ʿAʾisha ﵂ up in his arms and showed her the play with arrows and spears. Was she of age at that time or a minor? It is found in books that it was a day of joy, so the Messenger of Allah ﷺ fulfilled her wish for joy; and in some books that she was young in age, that is, a minor.

Answer

There is no difficulty in showing joy and delight on the day of ʿId — you too may do so. It is written in Maraqi al-Falah that showing gladness and cheerfulness to those one meets is mustahabb. The second matter in this hadith is Hazrat ʿAʾisha ﵂ looking at these non-mahram men. Concerning this: in principle (bi’l-asala), looking at the face of an unrelated man (ajnabi)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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