Food Fight

Aisha, the Prophet's wife, says, "I brought some soup which I had cooked, and told Sawdah, with the Prophet sitting between her and me, 'Have some!' but she declined. I said, 'You either eat or I smear your face! She would not eat, so I took some soup from the bowl and smeared her face. Allah's Messenger laughed and lifted his feet off the floor. He said, 'Smear her face! so she took some from the bowl and smeared my face, and Allah's messenger kept laughing." (Abu Yala al Haithami vol. 5 pg 316


I love this story because it shows how lighthearted and fun the Prophet peace be upon him was, as muslim we are not permitted to be wasteful especially with food but in certain situations with close family members a little dab may bring a little closeness.

Love what you eat

I was just reflecting on the fact that the first temptation for man and act of disobedience was because of food. The desire we all have for food is so overwhelming it is definitely a reason why we fast during Ramadan or whenever lusts overcome us. If we are hungry all other desires seem less important. Most of our lives revolve around food and yet we never give thought about what we put in our bodies how a simple diet could make us healthier, all we can think about how we want more ingredients, different types of food it reminds me of ayah in the Quran And [recall] when you said, "O Moses, we can never endure one [kind of] food. So call upon your Lord to bring forth for us from the earth its green herbs and its cucumbers and its garlic and its lentils and its onions." [Moses] said, "Would you exchange what is better for what is less? Go into [any] settlement and indeed, you will have what you have asked." And they were covered with humiliation and poverty and returned with anger from Allah [upon them]. That was because they [repeatedly] disbelieved in the signs of Allah and killed the prophets without right. That was because they disobeyed and were [habitually] transgressing.(Quran 2.61)

Jealousy

This Story teaches us how great the Prophet peace be upon him was as a husband and that we must remember to be humble with the gifts Allah has given us.

Aisha said: "Safiyya, the wife of the Prophet, sent a dish she had made for him when he was with me. When I saw the maidservant, I trembled with rage and fury, and I took the bowl and hurled it away. The Prophet of Allah then looked at me; I saw the anger in his face and I said to him: 'I seek refuge from Allah's Apostle cursing me today.' The Prophet said: 'Undo it'. I said: 'What is its compensation, O Prophet of Allah?' He said: 'The food like her food, and a bowl like her bowl.'"(Musnad, by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v6, p227) (Sahih al-Nisa'i, v2, p148)

Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith: 7.152 (The Chapter of Envy)
Narrated Anas:

While the Prophet was in the house of one of his wives, one of the mothers of the believers sent a meal in a dish. The wife at whose house the Prophet was, struck the hand of the servant, causing the dish to fall and break. The Prophet gathered the broken pieces of the dish and then started collecting on them the food which had been in the dish and said, "Your mother (my wife) felt jealous." Then he detained the servant till a (sound) dish was brought from the wife at whose house he was. He gave the sound dish to the wife whose dish had been broken and kept the broken one at the house where it had been broken

In times of grief

Aisha (may Allaah be pleased with her) used to recommend Talbina for the sick and for one who is grieving over a dead person. She (may Allaah be pleased with her) used to say, "I heard the Messenger (Sallallaahu Álayhi Wasallam) saying, 'The Talbina gives rest to the heart of the patient and makes it active and relieves some of his sorrow and grief.' " [Saheeh al-Bukhaaree].

Aisha (may Allaah be pleased with her) said that whenever one of her relatives died, the women assembled and then dispersed (returned to their homes) except her relatives and close friends. She (may Allaah be pleased with her) would order that a pot of Talbina be cooked. Then Tharid (a dish prepared from meat and bread) would be prepared and the Talbina would be poured on it. Aisha (may Allaah be pleased with her) would say (to the women), "Eat of it, for I heard the Messenger (Sallallaahu Álayhi Wasallam) saying, 'The Talbina soothes the heart of the patient and relieves him from some of his sadness.' " [Saheeh al-Bukhaaree ].

Talbina is made by adding 1-2 tablespoon of barley flour (must be 100% wholegrain barley flour) to one and a half cups of water. Place on low heat for 10-15 minutes (optional: add milk or yoghurt and sweeten with honey). Drink at least 1 cup daily. This may also be added to soup or any dish for flavour and as a thickener.

Alternatively you may add 1-2 tablespoon of barley flour (must be 100% wholegrain barley flour) to one and a half cups of milk. Place on low heat for 10-15 minutes. You may sweeten with honey. Drink at least 1 cup daily.

Halal Honey

There are so many benefits of honey, we can use it as a cold medicine or as an ointment for skin care, The Prophet(pbuh) prescribe its a medicine and not only that he(pbuh) love to eat it, which led his wives to jealousy, this is how the story goes, His wife Zainab bint Jahash(ra) used to get this type of honey he really enjoyed so it would delay him in visiting his other wives, this upset Aishah so she, Hafsah and Saudah concocted a plan to tell the messenger that he had bad breath, after hearing 3 of his wives tell him this he swore off honey but Allah(swt) knows best and said O Prophet, why do you prohibit [yourself from] what Allah has made lawful for you, seeking the approval of your wives? And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. Alhamdulillah for this ayat or we all may not have been able to have the benefits of honey.

Struggles

Recently this verse spoke to me I think mostly cause sometimes I struggle with changing/ opening my mind to what Allah wants and not what I selfishly want, whether its eating out at non halal restaurants, listening to music or simply not realizing small sunnahs make a big impact on my life. It is He who has sent down to you, [O Muْammad], the Book; in it are verses [that are] precise - they are the foundation of the Book - and others unspecific. As for those in whose hearts is deviation [from truth], they will follow that of it which is unspecific, seeking discord and seeking an interpretation [suitable to them]. And no one knows its [true] interpretation except Allah . But those firm in knowledge say, "We believe in it. All [of it] is from our Lord." And no one will be reminded except those of understanding.

Subhanallah, no detail is left out of this way of life.

Honoured Guests

The Honoured Guests were angels in the human form sent to Ibrahim(pbuh) to inform him about becoming a father to a son but what I love about this story is how we treat unexpected guests or whenever hosting in general. First he greeted them with a stronger greeting then they him then he discretely but quickly went inside and picked his best food and roasted them a calf. He then placed the food close to them encouraging them to eat making them feel comfortable to eat. sometimes when you to to someones house they want your to help yourself , which can make the guest uncomfortable or it may seem like its a burden for you to have them over. Ibrahim(pbuh) never told them let me go cook you something he just did it, he gave them the best he had placing it closed to them and encouraged them to eat.

Allah(swt) says;
Has there reached you the story of the honored guests of Abraham?
When they entered upon him and said, "[We greet you with] peace." He answered, "[And upon you] peace, [you are] a people unknown.
Then he went to his family and came with a fat [roasted] calf
And placed it near them; he said, "Will you not eat?"
And he felt from them apprehension. They said, "Fear not," and gave him good tidings of a learned boy.(51.24-28)

Food Spotlight Dates

Dates, the fruit of the date palm phoenix dactylifera with a yellow skin and brown sweet flesh enclosing a single elongated stone, which grow in clusters arranged in two rows along a central stalk. Usually traded in dried form which is sticky and sweet. Date sales go through the roof during Ramadan as it is sunnah to break your fast with dates because they are high in water and sugar which brings you out of your sluggish state, are easily digested, high in vitamins and minerals and during pregnancy strengthen the muscles of the uterus which must be one of the reasons Allah (swt) told Mary, mother of Isa to eat dates. (Quran 19.23-26)

The prophet(pbuh) ate dates regularly and encouraged us to do the same so when you are eating dates you not only get the physical benefits which are still being discovered but the spiritual benefits of becoming closer to the Messenger (pbuh) by following his tradition.

Abu Muhammad always likes to have dates on hand for guests that we were once asked if it's always Ramadan at our house:P, after reading the hadith reported by Aisha (ra) that a home that has dates will not be hungry it's not a bad idea to have few around.

Soul Food

Al jumuah, a day of reflection, unity, celebration and worship. The Prophet(pbuh) said, "if is Friday, and a man performs the ritual ablution, puts oil in his hair, wears the most pleasant of his perfume, pus on his best clothes, and then goes out to pray, and does not separate two people sitting together in the masjid, then listens to the Imam delivering the sermon, his sins will be forgiven between the present Friday and the previous Friday and three days more."(Ibn Khuzaimah). Allah(swt) has chosen this special day for us so lets pull out all the stops for this recurring holiday of reward and merriment maybe have friends over, make an extra special dinner, have the kids do a Quran challenge anything that is halal with the remembrance of Allah(swt).

Ladies even though it is not compulsory for us to attend Jumuah we should make every effort especially in the west because we do not have the opportunity as other women to view the Khutbah on t.v and our ummah is much smaller in the west that this really may be the only opportunity for us to come together and meet which would benefit us but reverts that may only have this opportunity to link with other muslims.

table manners

"Eat with your right hand and eat from what is nearest to you" Using the right hand for eating is what the Prophet(pbuh) advised us not only is this a sanitary because we use the left to clean ourselves . I know you may be thinking today we have soap and water readily available but still some places in the world are still lacking these facilities and if we are out isn't it great we have this to rely on if a catastrophe may occur. We also know in many families people eat from one plate (saves on washing dishes:)) and I know I hate it when someone touches my food Abu Muhammad did this alot to me when we first married as a way of encouraging me to eat that's another story but after learning about this hadith of not letting your hand roam all over the plate and eating whats closest to you so that all can get the blessings that are in the middle of the plate I quickly let him know. Here are some table manners we should try to incorporate

*sit down while eating

*eat together and share with relatives, friends, neighbors and the needy

*serve others first

*host should begin eating and be the last to eat

*take a smaller portion than what is needed

*no wasting eat your plate clean

*wait for everyone to finish eating before leaving the eating spread
*wash and brush teeth before eating and after

*mention and praise Allah(swt) before and after eating

5 second rule

If you have ever worked in a kitchen you may have heard about the 5 second rule, a piece of food falls to the floor and if under 5 seconds its ok to serve, now I know most of you are probably disgusted to learn this but the Prophet(pbuh) said " if a morsel belonging to one of you falls down, then let him take it remove any filth that is on it and eat it and let him not leave it for the shaitann..." (muslim)

We must remember that shaitaan is always with us, we should understand how unacceptable wasting food is and realize the blessing that may be in the food we were about to throw away. Common sense must apply to this rule if it falls in something we cannot identify just let it go.

Soul Food

Eat less you will be healthier, the prophet advised us when eating to save 1/3 room for liquids, foods and our breaths, overeating is discouraged if we remembered this hadith "one person's food is enough for two, two persons' food is enough for four, and four person's food is enough for eight"(muslim) we all would be a lot healthier, we would have a lot more energy for acts of worship. We have conditioned our stomach to eat more than we need. Maybe next time you fix yourself a plate of food slide half of it off and save it for your next meal not only will you be saving on groceries but also your waistline:)

What is Mashbooh?

Mashbooh is an Arabic word which means suspected, if you can not decide if a food item is halal or haram than it is mashbooh an example of this is you buy some vegetable oil but it does not say 100% so maybe 10% is made from some other animal or plant but you can't find out for sure, this would be suspect.

"Halal is clear and Haram is clear; in between these two are certain things that are suspected. Many people may not know whether those items are Halal or Haram. Whosoever leaves them, he is innocent towards his religion and his conscience. He is , therefore, safe. Anyone who gets involved in any of these suspected items, he may fall into the unlawful and the prohibition. This case is similar to the one who wishes to raise his animals next to a restricted area, he may step into in. Indeed for every landlord there is a restricted area. Indeed the restrictions of Allah are the unlawful." (reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

Soul Food

Bismillah (In the name of Allah)

Allah(swt) commands us to utter his name before slaughtering an animal, now there was a study that shows how just uttering this pronouncement relaxes the animal lessons the blood pressure and sterilized the meat, as opposed to animals that did not have the pronouncement. Subhanallah.

It is also a sunnah for one to say "Bismillah" before eating and drinking which benefits both body and soul giving you another moment to remember Allah(swt) and to reflect on what you are eating.

If one forgets to say Bismillah before eating she should say Bismillahi awwalahu wa aakhirahu( In the Name of Allah in its beginning and end)