Chapter I: Etiquette of Eating
spends for food of his Muslim brethren as God will feel shame in taking its accounts. There are many traditions to this effects. The Prophet said : Angels like one till there is food before him. He said.: When your Muslim brethren lift up their hands after they finish eating, no account will be taken of one who eats the, remaining food. He said : No account will be taken for the food which he gives to his brother Muslim. He also said : No account will be taken for three things — (1) pre- drawn tiffin for fasting, (2)
what is eaten for breaking fast and (3) what is eaten with a brother Muslim. Hazrat Ibn Omar said : To take good food in journey and to give it to the companions appertain to generosity.
Some companions said : To eat together is the sign of good cond' ! ^t. There is in one Hadis : God will say to a man : O son of Adam, I was hungry and you did not give Me food. He will reply:
How could I have given Thee food while thou art the Lord of the universe ? God will say : Your certain brother Muslim was hungry, but you did not give him food. If you had given him food, it would have reached Me. The Prophet also said : Honour one who comes to see you. He said : There are high places in Paradise, the outer sides of which are visible from the inner sides . These are for those who are modest in treatment, give food and pray at night when the people remain asleep. The Prophet said :
He who gives food is best of you. He said : If a man gives food to his brother Muslim to his satisfaction and gives him drink till his thirst is appeased, God will keep him away up to seven ditches from Hell, the distance of every two ditches is the path of five hundred years.
RULES OF EATING
(1) When enter the house of your friend to take your meal, don't enter it suddenly as it is prohibited. God says : Don't enter the house of the Prophet at the time of meal without permission and don't look at the dish of food. The Prophet said : He who joins a feast without invitation is a transgressor. (2) If a man goes to the house of another man for a necessity and if then the time of meal comes, he should not take meal without being requested.
When the host says : Take meal, he should see whether it has been said willingly or out of shame. If it is said out of shame, he should not join it. (3) It is sunnat to demand food from the house of a bosom friend. The Holy Prophet, Hazrat Abu Bakr and Omar used to go to the house of Abul Haisam and Abu Ayub Ansari for
12 The Book of Wordly Usages Vol-II
taking meal. They used to take meal in the houses of Ansars in the beginning. God said : There is not fault in taking meal in the houses of your friends. Once the Prophet took meal in the house of Barirah without her permission. When questioned about friends, Hasan Basri said : He is friend to whom mind finds peace and is pleased with.