From the Reasons Why Blessings from Provisions like Salaries & Food are Taken Away
by Muhaddith, Shaykh, Allamaa’ Muhammad Nasiruddeen al-Albaani
Translated by Abbas Abu Yahya
Abu az-Zubayr said I heard Jabir bin Abdullaah saying that he heard the Prophet –sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam– saying:
“ إذا طعم أحدكم فسقطت لقمته من يده فليمط ما رابه منها و ليطعمها , و لا يدعها للشيطان و لا يمسح يده بالمنديل حتى يلعق يده , فإن الرجل لا يدري في أي طعامه يبارك الله , فإن الشيطان يرصد الناس ـ أو الإنسان ـ على كل شيء حتى عند مطعمه أو طعامه و لا يرفع الصحفة حتى يلعقها أو يلعقها , فإن في آخر الطعام البركة “ .
‘If one of you eats and a morsel of food falls from his hand then he should wipe off what he sees from it and eat it.
He should not leave it for the Shaytaan and he should not wipe his hand with a napkin until he licks his hand, since a person does not know which part of the food that Allaah has blessed. The Shaytaan lies in wait for the people -or for a person- for everything even upon the place at which he eats or his food.
The dish should not be taken away until he licks it or has it licked, since indeed in the last part of the food there is blessings.’
[Collected by Ibn Hibban and al-Bayhaqi & Albaani graded it as Hasan in Saheehah no. 1404]
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PDF Download: From the Reasons Why Blessings from Provisions like Salaries and Food are Taken Away
From the Reasons Why Blessings from Provisions like Salaries & Food are Taken Away
by Muhaddith, Shaykh, Allamaa’ Muhammad Nasiruddeen al-Albaani
Translated by Abbas Abu Yahya
Abu az-Zubayr said I heard Jabir bin Abdullaah saying that he heard the Prophet –sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam– saying:
“ إذا طعم أحدكم فسقطت لقمته من يده فليمط ما رابه منها و ليطعمها , و لا يدعها للشيطان و لا يمسح يده بالمنديل حتى يلعق يده , فإن الرجل لا يدري في أي طعامه يبارك الله , فإن الشيطان يرصد الناس ـ أو الإنسان ـ على كل شيء حتى عند مطعمه أو طعامه و لا يرفع الصحفة حتى يلعقها أو يلعقها , فإن في آخر الطعام البركة “ .
‘If one of you eats and a morsel of food falls from his hand then he should wipe off what he sees from it and eat it.
He should not leave it for the Shaytaan and he should not wipe his hand with a napkin until he licks his hand, since a person does not know which part of the food that Allaah has blessed. The Shaytaan lies in wait for the people -or for a person- for everything even upon the place at which he eats or his food.
The dish should not be taken away until he licks it or has it licked, since indeed in the last part of the food there is blessings.’
[Collected by Ibn Hibban and al-Bayhaqi & Albaani graded it as Hasan in Saheehah no. 1404]
Shaykh Albaani commented on this hadeeth saying:
‘It is truly regretful to see that many of the Muslims nowadays especially those who have been affected by western habits and European traditions.
The Shaytaan has become strengthened in usurping a portion from their wealth, not with hatred but purely due to their own choice, and that is only due to their ignorance of the Sunnah or being neglectful of it. Do you not see them being separated whilst eating their food upon their dining tables and every single one of them eats by himself -without any need to- in their own plate. No one shares in that food, not even the person sitting next to him.
Likewise, if a morsel of food was to fall down from one of them, then they see themselves above picking it up, removing the dirt from it and eating it.
There is perhaps among them so-called educated ones and philosophers who do not allow this with the claim that it has become
polluted with germs and microbes striking against the heart of the hadeeth where the Messenger –sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam– said:
‘فليمط ما رابه منها وليطعمها ولا يدعها للشيطان “.
‘Then wipe off what attaches itself to [from dust etc] the morsel of food that is dropped and eat it and do not leave it for the Shaytaan.’
Also they do not lick their fingers rather many of them regard that as not having taste and not having eating/table manners. This is why they use napkins made of a thin drying material well known as Kleenex at their dining tables.
So you will not find except that one of them has a little smell of food on his fingers and even if there was some food on their lips except that they would hasten to wipe it with a napkin in contrast to the hadeeth.
As for licking the plate, then this means licking what is upon it from food using ones fingers, then they see that as improper and completely wrong, they attribute to the person who does this as being miserly or greedy for food, this is not surprising about those who did not hear of this hadeeth so they are ignorant of it.
Indeed what is surprising is those who follow them and flatter them, and they [the non-Muslims] know about those who do this.
Then you find all of them have agreed upon complaining about the decrease of blessings from their salaries and their provisions no matter how large they were, they do not know that the reason for this is indeed them turning away from following the Sunnah of their Prophet and blindly following the enemies of their religion in how they live their lives and their livelihoods.
فالسنة السنة أيها المسلمون
O Muslims hold on to the Sunnah, the Sunnah.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ ۖ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَحُولُ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَقَلْبِهِ وَأَنَّهُ إِلَيْهِ تُحْشَرُونَ
<<O you who believe! Answer Allaah (by obeying Him) and (His) Messenger when he calls you to that which will give you life, and know that Allaah comes in between a person and his heart (i.e. He prevents an evil person to decide anything). And verily to Him you shall (all) be gathered.>>
[Silsilah Saheehah no. 1404]
In another wording:
Abu az-Zubayr said I heard Jabir saying that the Messenger of Allaah –sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam– said:
“ إذا أكل أحدكم الطعام فلا يمسح يده حتى يلعقها أو يلعقها و لا يرفع صحفة حتى يلعقها أو يلعقها , فإن آخر الطعام فيه بركة “ .
‘If one of you eats food then he should not wipe his hand until he licks his hand, or has it licked, the dish should not be taken away until he licks it or has it licked, since indeed in the last part of the food there is blessings.’
[Collected by Nisa’ee and Albaani graded it Saheeh in Saheehah no. 391]
Shaykh Albaani commented on this hadeeth saying:
‘In this hadeeth is a beautiful behaviour from the obligatory manners of eating food, which is licking the fingers and wiping the dish clean with the fingers.
Many of the Muslims nowadays are free of this behaviour, due to being affected by the practises of the European non-Muslims, and their behaviour which is established on reliance upon materialism and not acknowledgement of its creator and being grateful to Him for His blessings.
So I Muslim needs to be cautious of blindly following them in this so he ends up being from them due to the saying of the Messenger –sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam:
“و من تشبه بقوم فهو منهم “ .
‘…Whoever resembles a people is from them.’
Indeed I said: ‘… obligatory…’ due to the command of the Messenger–sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam– with that and his prohibition of not having done it.
So be a believer and fulfill the Prophet’s command –sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam– and prohibit that which he prohibited from and do not give any consideration to those who mock, those who block the path of Allaah knowingly or unknowingly.’
[Silsilah Saheehah no. 391]
All Praise belongs to Allaah, may His peace and blessings be upon our final Prophet Muhammad, his family, his companions and all those who follow his guidance.