06/08/2026
THE ADAB OF HOSTING GUESTS IN ISLAM
Long before hotels and the conveniences of modern travel, a traveller depended greatly upon the hospitality of the people he encountered along his journey. In rural communities, hosting a traveller was often a personal undertaking; a stranger could be welcomed into someone’s home. Along busy trade routes and in major towns and cities in the old Muslim world, this tradition of hospitality took on an institutional form through hans or caravanserais established by rulers, benefactors (waqifs) and charitable endowments (awqaf).
Underlying this culture of hospitality is a beautiful teaching of our Beloved Prophet ﷺ.
Abu Shuraih Khuwailid ibn ‘Amr al-Khuza‘i r.a. narrated that he heard the Messenger of Allah s.a.w. say:
> مَنْ كَانَ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ فَلْيُكْرِمْ ضَيْفَهُ جَائِزَتَهُ. قَالُوا: وَمَا جَائِزَتُهُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ؟ قَالَ: يَوْمُهُ وَلَيْلَتُهُ، وَالضِّيَافَةُ ثَلَاثَةُ أَيَّامٍ، فَمَا كَانَ وَرَاءَ ذَلِكَ فَهُوَ صَدَقَةٌ عَلَيْهِ
“I heard the Messenger of Allah s.a.w. say: ‘Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should honour his guest with his due.’ They asked, ‘What is his due, O Messenger of Allah?’ He replied, ‘A day and a night; and hospitality is for three days. Whatever is beyond that is charity.’”
And in a narration of Imam Muslim:
> لَا يَحِلُّ لِمُسْلِمٍ أَنْ يُقِيمَ عِنْدَ أَخِيهِ حَتَّى يُؤْثِمَهُ. قَالُوا: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، وَكَيْفَ يُؤْثِمُهُ؟ قَالَ: يُقِيمُ عِنْدَهُ وَلَا شَيْءَ لَهُ يَقْرِيهِ بِهِ
“It is not permissible for a Muslim to remain with his brother until he causes him to fall into sin.” They asked, “O Messenger of Allah, how would he cause him to fall into sin?” He replied, “By remaining with him when he has nothing left with which to entertain him.”
From narrations such as these, we understand that beautiful adab is sought from both sides: the host is encouraged to honour and generously receive his guest, whilst guests are taught not to overstay or impose hardship upon his host.
As Muslim civilisation expanded across vast trade and pilgrimage routes, this spirit of hospitality could also be seen in the institutions built to receive travellers. The Ottoman caravanserai is one particularly beautiful example: a place where travellers, merchants, their animals and their goods could find shelter, security and rest before continuing their journeys. Some of these caravanserai were known to offer 3 days of free stay to travellers in fulfilling the adab sought in the above-mentioned hadith of the Prophet s.a.w.
On my recent travels, I had the opportunity to visit three surviving Ottoman examples: Koza Han in Bursa, Türkiye, completed in 1491; Büyük Han in Nicosia, Cyprus, built in 1572; and Morića Han in Sarajevo, Bosnia, dating to 1551 and associated with the waqf of Gazi Husrev Beg.
All three are built around courtyards with rooms and facilities for travellers. Koza Han and Büyük Han are especially striking for their small elevated masjid in the centre of the courtyard—at Büyük Han, together with a fountain for wudhu’. They are beautiful remnants of an age when caring for the traveller was woven into the religious, social and architectural fabric of Muslim society.
Perhaps one of the lessons these old buildings whisper to us today is that hospitality in Islam was never merely about providing a place to sleep rather, it was about honouring guests to perfect one's faith. WaAllahu'alam.
