Selections from Muḥammadan Traditions/Chapter 20
XX
THE BOOK OF FOODS
It is related from Ibn ʿOmar that, 'The Apostle of God said, "When anyone of you eats, then let him eat with his right hand; and when he drinks let him drink with his right hand."'—Muslim.
It is related from Jábir that he said, 'I heard the Apostle of God say, "Verily Satan is present at everything which anyone of yon does, even to being present at his taking food. Then when a morsel falls from anyone of you, let him wipe off anything that may be on it, and afterwards let him eat it; and let him not leave it for Satan; and when he has finished eating, then let him lick his ringers, for verily he does not know in what part of his food lies a blessing."'—Muslim.
It is related from ʿAmru bin Umayah that he saw the Prophet carving a shoulder of mutton which was in his hand, and he was called to prayers; and he threw it down together with the knife with which he was carving it. Then he stood up and said the prayers; but he did not perform the ablutions.'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from ʿÁyesha that she said, ' The Apostle of God used to like sweetmeats and honey.'—Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Saʿíd bin Zaid that, 'The Prophet said, "Mushrooms are of the manna, and their juice is medicine for the eyes."'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí. And in another tradition from Muslim it runs, 'Mushrooms are of the manna which God Most High sent down on Moses.'
It is related from Saʿd that he said, 'I heard the Apostle of God say, "Whoever begins the morning with seven ajwah dates, neither poison nor magic will hurt him for that day."'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from ʿÁyesha that she said, 'A whole month used to pass with us in which we did not light a fire. There were only dates and water (for our food), unless we were given some meat.'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Jábir that, 'The Prophet said, " Whoever has eaten garlic or onions, let him keep himself away from us" or he said, "Let him keep himself away from our mosque," or "Let him sit in his own house." And a cooking-pot was brought to the Prophet in which were green herbs; and he perceived that they had a smell. And he told them to take them to some of his companions, and said, "Eat; for I have secret communications with one with whom ye do not hold secret communications."'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Umámah bin Makhshi that he said, 'A man was eating; and he did not mention the name of God until there remained of his food but a mouthful. Then when he raised it to his mouth he said, "In the name of God, the first of it and the last of it." And the Prophet laughed and then said, "Satan continued eating with him; and when he mentioned the name of God, he (that is, Satan) vomited up what was in his belly."'—Abú Dáud.
It is related from Abú Saʿíduʾl-Khudri that he said, 'When the Apostle of God finished his meals he used to say, "Praise be to God who has given us food and drink, and made us Muslims."'—At Tirmidhí, Abú Dáud, Ibn Májah.
It is related from Salmán that he said, 'I read in the Taurát that the blessing of food is the ablution after it. And I repeated this to the Prophet. The Apostle of God said, "The blessing of food is in the ablution before it and the ablution after it."'—At Tirmidhí, Abú Dáud.
It is related from ʿÁyesha that she said, 'The Apostle of God said, "Do not cut meat with a knife, for that is what is done by foreigners; but tear it with the teeth, for that is pleasanter and healthier."'—Abú Dáud.
It is related from Nubaishah that, 'The Apostle of God said, "Whoever eats from a large dish and then licks it; the dish asks pardon for him."'—Aḥmad, At Tirmidhí, Ibn Májah.
It is related from Abú Ziyyád that he said, 'ʿÁyesha was asked about (the lawfulness of) onions. She replied, "Verily the last meal which the Apostle of God took was of food which had onions in it."'—Abú Dáud.
It is related from Nubaishah that, 'The Apostle of God said, "Whoever eats from a large dish, and then licks it, the dish says to him, 'May God free thee from the fire as thou hast freed me from Satan.'"'—Razín.
Concerning Hospitality
It is related from Abú Shuraihuʾl-Kaʿbi that 'The Apostle of God said, "Whoever believes in God and the last day, let him honour his guest. His right of courteous entertainment is one day and one night, and his right to hospitality extends to three days. And what is given after that is alms. And it is not right for (the guest) to take shelter with him so long that he put him into difficulties."'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Al Miqdám bin Maʿdíkarib that he heard the Prophet say, 'Whatever Muslim becomes the guest of a tribe, and he rises in the morning having been refused (food), it is the duty of every Muslim to help him to take for himself his entertainment from the money and grain of the host.'—Abú Dáud, Al Dárimi. And in another tradition from Al Miqdám it runs, 'Whatever man becomes the guest of a tribe, and they do not entertain him; he has the right to take from them an amount equal to his entertainment.'
It is related from Abuʾl-Ahwasuʾl-Jushami from his father, that he said, 'I said, "O Apostle of God, inform me, if I pass by a man, and he does not put food before me and does not extend hospitality to me, and afterwards he passes by me, shall I place food before him or requite him (as he treated me)?" He replied, "Rather entertain him with food."'—Al Tirmidhí.
Concerning Drinks
It is related from Anas that, 'The Prophet forbade a man to drink in a standing attitude.'—Muslim.
It is related from Ibn ʿAbbás that he said, 'I brought a bucket of Zemzem water to the Prophet, and he drank from it standing.'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Ḥudhaifah that he said, 'I heard the Apostle of God say, "Do not dress in silk or brocade, and do not drink from vessels of gold or silver, and do not eat from large plates of gold or silver; for verily these are for them (the unbelievers) in this world, and for you in the next."'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Ibn ʿAbbás that, 'The Apostle of God said, "When anyone of you eats food, then let him say, 'O God, bless us by this food, and give us food better than it.' And when he is given milk to drink, then let him say, 'O God, bless us by this milk, and give us more than it,' for verily there is nothing which suffices in place of both food and drink except milk."'—At Tirmidhí, Abú Dáud.
Concerning Infusion of Grapes and Dates
It is related from ʿÁyesha that she said, 'We used to make an infusion of grapes for the Apostle of God in a leathern bag, which was tied at the top and had a hole at the bottom. And we made the infusion of grapes in the morning, and he used to drink it in the evening. And we used to make the infusion in the evening, and he would drink it in the morning.'—Muslim.
It is related from Abú Málikuʾl-Ashʿari that he heard the Apostle of God say, 'Some people of my followers will certainly drink wine, calling it by a name not its own.'—Abú Dáud, Ibn Májah.
On Covering Vessels and Other Things
It is related from Jábir that, 'The Apostle of God said, "When night falls, or ye reach the evening, then prevent your children (from going out); for verily Satan at that time spreads himself about. And when one hour of the night has passed, then let them go. And shut the doors, and mention the name of God, for verily Satan does not open a door which is shut (in the name of God). And tie the mouths of your leathern bags, and mention the name of God; and cover over your vessels, and mention the name of God, even though ye put something upon them; and extinguish your lamps."'—Muslim, Al Bukhárí.
It is related from Jábir that he said, 'I heard the Prophet say, "When ye hear the bark of dogs, or the braying of asses at night, then take refuge with God from Satan the stoned; for verily they see what ye do not see. Therefore go out little when ye have to go on foot, for verily God the Exalted and Magnified spreads abroad certain of His creation at night such as He wishes. Therefore shut the doors, and mention the name of God over them; for verily Satan does not open a door when it is shut and the name of God has been mentioned over it. And immerse your water-jars in water, and turn your vessels upside down and tie the mouths of your leathern bags."'—Sharḥu's-Sunnah.