Islamic Eating and Drinking

Eating is a chore in Islam. Islamic eating is not as simple as sitting on a dining chair and eating
on a table, the way you want to do. Firstly, in Islam, eating on a dining table is discouraged.
Muhammad never ate on a dining table. Devout Muslims eat sitting on floor, and with their
hands, making sure the plate of food is resting on the floor. That is why you will notice most
jihadists (including Osama b. Ladin, Ayman al Zawahiri) eating with their comrades squatting on
floor, and lifting their food from the plate. The sitting posture is also important. Next time you
watch an Islamist jihadist’s eating ritual, observe carefully; you will be amazed at the Islamic
regimentation, even for such a simple function of filling your stomach. Islam has strict rules for
everything, even for eating. That is why the Islamists say, ‘Islam is a complete code of life’.
The first important rule of Islamic dining is that you must eat with your own hand, or in case you
have no hand, let someone feed you with his/her hand.
The second important rule is that you must eat with your right hand or let someone feed you with
his/her right hand. You must not eat with your left hand, for Satan eats with left hand. A hadis in
Sahih Bukhari (7.65.288, 290) says that you must eat with the right hand and eat of the dish that
is nearer to you.
The third important rule is that, having eaten your food; you must lick your fingers. Sahih
Bukhari (7.65.366) writes that do not wipe your hand after eating food until you have licked your
fingers well. You may choose to lick the fingers by yourself or let someone else lick them. Sahih
Muslim (23.5037, 5038) and Sunaan ibn Majah (4.3270) repeat similar ahadith.
The fourth important rule is that having licked your finger (or having someone licked for you),
you must lick the bowl, either by holding the dish near your mouth or by bending your mouth to
the dish.
Here are the reasons why you must lick the food bowl:
After eating lick the bowl; the bowl will seek forgiveness for you…(Sunaan ibn Majah, 4.3271)
After eating lick the dish; the dish will ask Allah for your forgiveness…(Sunaan Tirmidhi, 1121)
A hadis in Sahih Muslim (23.5029, 2030) says that when you drink, you must drink in three
gulps. A Muslim must not drink from silver or gold vessels. Sahih Muslim (24.5126, 5128) says
if you drink from a silver or gold vessel you drink fire in your belly.
Here are a few more rules on Islamic water drinking:
If a dog licks a vessel, wash it seven times…(Sunaan Nasai, 1.64, 65, 66)
If a cat drinks from a vessel, the water remains clean…(Sunaan Nasai, 1.69, 343)
If a dog licks a utensil throw away the food and wash the utensil seven times…(Sunaan Nasai,
1.338)