Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This chapter is dedicated to describing the guidance of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in respect to perfume.
Ibn al-Qayyim said,
The Prophet (peace be upon him) liked applying perfume and he always wore it. His scent was the best and the scent of his perspiration was even better than that of perfume.
Al-Bajūrī said,
It is more emphasised for men to wear perfume on Fridays, days of Eid, when entering the state of ihram, when intending to pray in congregation, when attending gatherings, reciting the Qur’ān, learning and teaching knowledge, remembrance of Allāh. It is also recommended for the husband and wife to perfume themselves before being intimate.
216. Anas ibn Mālik narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) had a container that he would apply perfume from.” [247]
Al-Bajūrī said,
Sukkah refers here to the perfume bottle based on the context of the hadīth though one of its meanings is a perfume that is made of a mixture of elements.
217. Thumāmah ibn ‘Abdullāh narrated: “Anas ibn Mālik never refused accepting perfume whenever it was offered and he narrated that, ‘The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) never refused perfume whenever it was offered to him.’” [248]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
Anas ibn Mālik never rejected perfume to follow the example of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him).
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalānī said,
The reason why he (peace be upon him) never rejected an offering of perfume was because it is light in weight and has a good smell.
Abū Bakr ibn al-‘Arabī said,
The reason why he (peace be upon him) never rejected an offering of perfume was because he liked it and needed it more than anyone else as he was always receiving revelation from his Lord.
218. ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Umar narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, ‘Three things should not be refused: cushions (pillows), incense and milk.’” [249]
Al-Bajūrī said,
This hadīth can be understood in two ways: that these gifts are not refused to avoid the gift giver feeling hurt by the rejection and this is the apparent meaning, or that the guest should not refuse any of these three things when the host offers them.
This applies to all that which people do not consider a favour conferred upon others i.e. it applies to all items and gifts that do not cause the recipient to feel like he will owe a favour to the individual who gifted him.
Al-Suyūtī said,
The Sunnah is to accept and not to refuse seven things when they are offered: sweets, milk, incense, cushions, provision given to a person in need, perfume and basil.
219. Abū Hurairah narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said: ‘The perfume of men is that which possesses a fragrance that spreads yet is colourless, and the perfume of women is that which has a colour yet its fragrance does not spread.’” [250]
Alī al-Qārī said,
Qatādah said that scholars understood the perfume prescribed for women in this hadīth as that which she wears when she wants to go outside her house, and she can wear any type of perfume she wants when she is with her husband. It was reported that Abū Musah narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The eye is liable to commit adultery; and the woman who wears perfume and then passes by people, she is considered an adulteress.”[251]
Al-Bajūrī said,
The perfume of men is of types such as musk, rosewater and camphor and the perfume of women is of types such as sandalwood.
220. Abū Hurairah narrated a similar report. [252]
221. Abū Uthmān al-Nahdī narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, ‘If one is given fragrance of basil, he should not refuse it, because it originated from Paradise.’” [253]
Al-Qadī ‘Iyyād said,
I find it possible to interpret the use of basil here in this context to refer to all types of perfume.
Al-Nawawī said,
This hadīth shows that it is disliked to refuse fragrance of basil unless there is a reason to reject it (i.e. a person cannot handle its smell etc.).
Alī al-Qārī said,
The original seed of basil is from Paradise. Allāh has created the good scents in this worldly life to remind His creation of the scents of the Hereafter. This is to make them want to enter Paradise and thus increase in good deeds.
222. Jarīr ibn ‘Abdullāh related that he was presented to ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb and then he threw off his top cloak and walked in his izār only. ‘Umar told him to take his top and put it back on and then addressed the people saying, “I have not seen anyone more handsome than Jarīr except what has been reported to us about Yūsuf.” [254]
Al-Bajūrī said,
The reason Jarīr was presented to ‘Umar and was asked to take his top off was so ‘Umar could check if he was physically fit to join the army.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
Jarīr was known for his inability to remain on the back of the horse until the Prophet (peace be upon him) hit him on his chest and asked Allāh to rid him of this fault. This incident happened forty nights before the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him). He took off his upper garment to show his strength and skills.
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The reason why this hadīth was included in this chapter though it does not mention anything regarding perfume was to hint that being good looking necessitates smelling good as well.
It is known that there is no one more handsome than the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the statement of ‘Umar was said in respect to the physical build of Jarīr, since he made that statement after Jarīr took off his top cloak.