Islam gives precise guidance to Muslims about all
aspects of life and this includes food and eating habits and manners. Food is
not only essential for itself or for the
sake of enjoyment but to endure life so that one may enjoy health and physical
strength required to undertake one’s duties and responsibilities in this life .
Few eating disciplines to be maintained according to Islam which are as follows:
Halal food
"O ye people! eat of what is on earth lawful and good; and do not follow
the
footsteps of the evil one for he is to you an avowed enemy. Q: 2:168
Praise Allah
The Apostle of Allah, peace and blessings be
upon him, then said: "When
one of you eats food, he should say: O Allah, bless us in it, and give us food
(or nourishment) better than it."
[Hadith-Abu
Dawud, Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas]
Cleanliness and hygiene
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is reported by Ibn Hayyan to have
said: "Cleanse
yourself, for Islam is cleanliness”
Cleanliness in food handling, cooking, preserving, processing,
etc. is highly recommended and emphasized besides an overall cleanliness of
body, clothing, home, and surroundings.
Blessings
are for those who share their food with others
The Companions of the Messenger (may Allah
be pleased with them) complained:
'O Messenger of Allah, we
eat but are not satiated.' The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon
him) said: 'Perhaps you eat separately?' They replied that they did. He said:
'Eat your food together and say Bismillah before you start, that will bring
blessings into your food." (Hadith-Abu Dawud)
Washing before eating
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings
be upon him) said: "The blessings in the meal is by washing before and after
it."(Hadith- Abu Dawud)
Use
the right hand to eat
It is obligatory for the Muslim to eat with
his right hand; he should not eat with his left hand.
It was narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be
pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
said: “No one among you should eat with his left hand, or drink with it, for
the Satan eats with his left hand and drinks with it.”
(Narrated by Muslim, 2020).
Eating
less:
"O
children of Adam! Look to your adornment at every place of worship, and eat and
drink, but be not prodigals. Lo! He loveth not the prodigals." (Quran
7:31)
Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) is reported to have said:
"Eat less you will be healthier."
(Hadith)
"A
plate for one is enough for two, and a plate for two is enough for four.”
(Hadith)
Note: Prodigal means wasteful
or unnecessarily extravagant or uncontrolled.
Eating slowly:
Eating slowly is recommended for good health as it facilitates the
food being thoroughly chewed and hence easier to digest.
Do not
criticize the food
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) never criticized any food. If he
liked it he would eat it and if he did not like it he would leave it. (Narrated by al-Bukhari, 3370; Muslim, 2046)
Do not
waste food
Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him)
reported: Messenger of
Allah (peace be upon him) said
"Satan appears at
everything done by you; he appears even at one's dinner. When a morsel of any
of you falls, he should pick it up and remove any dirt on it, and then eat it.
He should not leave it for Satan, nor should he wipe his hand with the towel
until he has licked his fingers, for he does not know in what portion of the
food the blessing lies.'' [Hadith- Muslim]
Table Etiquettes
1)
Sitting down while eating
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2)
Eating together and sharing of food
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3)
Serving others first, especially guests.
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4)
Host is the first to start eating and the last to finish. (This is the
opposite of Western table manners.)
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5)
Taking food in smaller portions than needed.
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6)
Finishing (cleaning) the plate without leftovers (this too is different from
Western tradition where we are taught to always leave a small bit on the
plate.)
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7)
Waiting for everyone to finish before finally leaving the table or floor
cloth.
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8)
Eat from the corner of the plate from your side (for one dish communal
eating), don't eat from the middle or the other side of the dish.
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9)
As an invited guest it is permissible to ask your host for water or salt.
Accept what is offered and don't request additional items your host may not
have available.
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10)
When eating in a group, if quantities are limited, share from your plate with
the others.
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Thank
ALLAH after eating or drinking
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings
be upon him) said:
"Verily, Allah is
pleased with His servant when he eats a morsel and praises him, and when he
takes a drink and then praises him (Al-Hamdulillah)." (Hadith- Abu Dawud)
Washing
the hands after eating
The Sunnah may be done by washing with water
only. Ibn Raslaan said: But it is better to wash the hands with potash or soap
or something similar.
(Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi, 5/485)
Rinsing
the mouth after eating
It is mustahabb to rinse the
mouth after eating, because Basheer ibn Yassaar narrated that Suwayd ibn
al-Nu’maan told him that they were with the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) in al-Sahba’ – which is some distance from Khaybar – and
the time for prayer came. He called for food, but he did not find anything but
some saweeq (barley mush). So he ate some and we all ate with him. Then he
called for water and rinsed out his mouth, and then he prayed, and we prayed,
and he did not do wudoo’.
(Narrated by al-Bukhari, 5390).
Note 1: (wudu/ noun (Islam) 1. the
practice of ritual washing before daily prayer)
Note 2 :Mustaḥabb/, literally "recommended") is an
Islamic term referring to recommended, favored.
Keeping the lid on utensils after
eating
Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) said, “Cover up the utensils and tie the mouth of the water
skins.” (Bukhari,
Muslim)
This
prevents contamination from passing insects and lizards and in houses with open
kitchens keeps stray animals away from the food.
Eating a healthful diet is considered
substantial aspect of Islamic life and may help you to reach and maintain
balance in health and spirituality through proper guidance of Allah and Prophet
Muhammad (Pbuh). Ameen
Hazz is one of the five "pillars" of Islam. Muslims should make
the pilgrimage, if they are physically and financially able to make the journey
to Mecca.
