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728/1 - ‘Umar ibn Abi Salamah (may Allah be pleased with him) 0reported: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: “Mention Allah’s name, eat with your right hand, and eat from what is nearer to you.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim]
679/2 - ‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When one of you eats, let him mention the name of Allah, the Exalted. If he forgets to mention His name at the beginning, let him say: ‘Bimillāhi awwalahu wa ākhirah (In the name of Allah, for its beginning and its end)’.” [Narrated by Abu Dāwūd and Al-Tirmidhi, who classified it as Hasan Sahīh (sound and authentic)]
1) It is part of the Prophet’s guidance that we teach our children the etiquettes of eating and drinking.
2) It is incumbent upon a Muslim to mention the name of Allah before eating, and if he fails to do this intentionally, he incurs a sin and Satan shares the food with him.
3) Eating from the food near someone else is impolite, except if there are various types of food, in which case there is nothing wrong with doing so.
730/3 - Jābir (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) say: “When a man mentions Allah’s name upon entering his house and when eating, the devil says (to his companions): ‘There is no night shelter nor supper here for you.’ But when a man does not mention Allah’s name upon entering his house, the devil says: ‘You have found for yourselves a night shelter.’ If he does not mention Allah’s name when starting to eat, the devil says: ‘You have found for yourselves both a night shelter and supper.’” [Narrated by Muslim]
1) It is a merciful aspect of the Shariah that it endears to people all the things that guard them against Satan.
2) Satan observes all actions and behaviors of the children of Adam. Whenever a person falls into heedlessness, this helps Satan achieve his purpose. So, a fortunate person is the one who protects himself by adhering to the Sunnah.
731/4 - Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: “When we attended a meal with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him), we would not stretch our hands until the Messenger would start and stretch his hand. Once we attended a meal with him and a little girl came in rushing as if she was being pushed forward. She was about to put her hand into the food when the Messenger caught her hand. Then a Bedouin came in rushing as if he was being pushed forward. He caught his hand too, and then said: ‘Verily, the devil can eat from any food upon which the name of Allah is not mentioned. He brought this little girl to be able to eat, but I caught her hand. Then he brought this Bedouin to be able to eat, but I caught his hand too. By the One in Whose hand my soul is, his hand is in my grasp along with their hands.” Then he mentioned the name of Allah and ate. [Narrated by Muslim]
1) It shows how the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) respected the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) and observed proper etiquette with him.
2) Part of the etiquette of eating is letting the elderly eat first, as it is impolite to extend one’s hand in front of an older person and eat ahead of him.
3) It is a duty to change what is wrong upon the person who has proper knowledge of it. The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) held their hands and taught them how to observe the etiquette of eating.
732/5 - Umayyah ibn Makhshi, a Companion, (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) was sitting while a man was eating. He did not mention Allah’s name until there remained the last morsel. When he raised it to his mouth, he said: “In the name of Allah at the beginning and at the end of it.” Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) laughed and said: “Alhamdulillāh hamdan kathīran tayyiban mubārakan feeh, ghayra mukfiy wa la muwadda‘ wa la mustaghnan ‘anhu rabbana (Praise be to Allah, abundant, good, and blessed praise. He is in no need to any of His creation and His alone is a never-ending praise, a praise that we will never bid farewell to and an indispensable praise, O our Lord).” [Narrated by Abu Dāwūd and Al-Nasā’i] [2]
733/6 - ‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: While the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) was eating some food with six of his Companions, a Bedouin came and ate it up in two morsels. Thereupon, the Messenger said: “If only he had mentioned the name of Allah, it would have been enough for all of you.” [Al-Tirmidhi; and he classified it as Hasan Sahīh (sound and authentic)]
1) Mentioning the name of Allah brings blessing. When a person mentions the name of his Lord in anything he does, it becomes blessed.
2) Satan is close to heedless people who are away from the remembrance of their Lord. So, the believer should be keen to constantly remember Allah Almighty.
3) Gathering around food is desirable, even if it is little.
734/7 - Abu Umāmah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to say upon finishing his meal: “Alhamdulillāh hamdan kathīran tayyiban mubārakan feeh, ghayra mukfiy wa la muwadda‘ wa la mustaghnan ‘anhu rabbana (Praise be to Allah, abundant, good, and blessed praise. He is in no need to any of His creation and His alone is a never-ending praise, a praise that we will never bid farewell to and an indispensable praise, O our Lord).” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri]
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1) After a person eats food, he should praise his Lord, for He alone deserves praise and He alone is the Bestower of favors.
2) All servants stand in need of their Lord in terms of their sustenance and very existence, whereas He does not need them and He bestows favors upon them.
735/8 - Mu‘ādh ibn Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever eats food and says, ‘Alhamdulillāh alladhi at‘amani hadha al-ta‘ām wa razaqanīh min ghayri hawlin minni wa la quwwah (Praise be to Allah Who fed me and provided me with this food through no might or power on my part)’, his past sins will be forgiven.” [Narrated by Abu Dāwūd and Al-Tirmidhi who classified it as Hasan Sahīh (sound and authentic)]
1) It highlights the greatness of Allah’s grace towards His servants. Indeed, everything possessed by people comes from their Creator, and not through any power or strength on their part.
2) Glad tidings are given to the believers that their sins will be forgiven and their blessings increased, if they give thanks to their Lord for His favors, which include food and drink.