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Chapter Six

Chapter Six


ON MENTIONING FOODS, FRUIT, AND OINTMENTS

103. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Meat is the master of the food of this world and the next. Water is the master of the drink of this world and the next. And I am the master of the children of Adam.
I am not proud (of anything), but poverty is my pride."
Meat is the master of foods, for it has some vitamins which are necessary for maintaining the body; likewise pure water is the master of drinks.

In this tradition the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, has shown that he is the master of the children of Adam, that poverty is his pride, for he, may Allah bless him and his family, died and left behind him nothing of worldly provisions.

104. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Meat and rice are the master of the food of this world and the next."
This tradition gives an account of the excellence of meat and rice, and that they are the best masters of foods, for they have advantages which make the body grow.

105. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "When you cook food, increase gourd, for it strengthens the heart of the sad."

106. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: ['Ali b. Abu` Ta`lib, peace be on him, related to me:] "Cling to (eating) gourd, for it strengthens the brain."
This tradition and that before it urge men to eat gourd, for it contains food advantages such as vitamin (A), iron, calcium, and in addition eating its seeds drives armed tapeworm away from the stomach.

107. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "When you eat porridge, eat from its sides, for blessing is in the top."
This tradition summon Muslims to conform to the manners of eating, for example, one who eats porridge should eat from the sides of the container not from its top.

108. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: ['Ali b. Abu` Ta`lib, peace be on him, related to me: He said: Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "He who wants to subsist, and there is no subsistence, should eat food early, wear the shoe well, wear light clothes, and decrease sleeping with women."
This tradition gives an account of some health pieces of advice:

A. Having food early.
B. Wearing shoe regularly.
C. Wearing light clothes.
D. Reducing sexual intercourse.

109. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [When Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, had food, he would say:] "O Allah, make it blessed for us, and bestow upon us something better than it." When he drank yogurt, he would say: "O Allah, make it blessed for us, and bestow upon us something better than it."
This tradition shows the supplication of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, when he had food and yogurt. Thus a supplication is among the religious manners which always connect man to his Almighty Creator.

110. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [When Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, had milk, he would rinse out his mouth and say:] "It has cream."

The Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, hated anything to stay in his holy mouth even the remainder of milk, for it harms health.

111. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: ['Ali b. Abu` Ta`lib, peace be on him, said: A food was brought for the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, and he entered his finger into the food which was hot, so he, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Leave it until it becomes cold, for it is greater in blessing, and for Allah does not feed us the hot."

The Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, hated to have hot food, for it severely harms health, especially the mouth and the teeth, and other parts of the digestive system.

112. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Cling to (eating) meat, for it makes flesh grow. He who leaves meat for forty days, his (physical) constitution is bad."

As for meat, it is the most useful food to the body, for it contains albuminous materials, mineral salts, calcium, protein, and other materials which are necessary for building and soundness of the body, especially when it is used along with vegetables, for it achieves perfect nutrition for man.

113. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Cling to lentils, for they are blessed and sacred; they soften the heart and increase tear; they were regarded as blessed by seventy prophets, the last of them was 'Isa b. Maryam, peace be on him."

As for lentils, they are among rich foods; they contain food materials such as calcium, iron, phosphorous, vitamin (B), and protein; so they are blessed. Lentils are equal to meat and their protein ratio surpasses that of the rest of vegetables. One of their advantages is that they soften the heart and increase tear.

114. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: "He who starts (his food) with salt, Allah takes away from him seventy diseases, the first of which is leprosy."
The need for salt differs from man to another according to the regions of their living, for example, the inhabitants of the tropics are in need of a lot of salt because they ooze abundant sweat which contains food salt. Perhaps the tradition concerns such a kind of people. As for the inhabitants of the frigid zones like Sepirya, they are in no need of salt; rather they spit it out.

115. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "There is nothing more hateful to Allah than a full stomach."

Fullness or eating much food brings about heavy harms to the body, of which are high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, diabetes, and others. For this reason the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, prevented men from eating much food.

116. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [My father 'Ali b. Abu` Ta`lib, peace be on him, related to me. He said: Abu` Juhayfa said:] "I went to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, and I was belching, so he said to me: 'O Abu` Juhayfa, stop your belching! Verily, the fullest of the people in this world will be the most hungry of them on the Day of Resurrection.'" He said: "So Abu` Juhayfa did not fill his stomach with food until he met Allah, the Exalted."

In this tradition there is a warning against fullness, which is a destructive blight.

117. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Do not ask a foolish or blear-eyed woman to nurse (your babies), for milk conveys disease."

Certainly, milk has bad or good effects on the natures of a baby. So the baby which feeds on the milk of a foolish or blear-eyed woman is infected by foolishness or bleariness in his future life, and this has been emphasized by modern medical studies. I (i.e. the author) have mentioned this matter in detail in my book Niza`m al-Usra fi al-Islam (the Organization of the Family in Islam).

118. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "The baby has no milk better than that of its mother."

Certainly, the baby which feeds on its mother's milk is safe from diseases and enjoys good health, for its mother's milk is supplied with all necessary food materials. As for the milk other than that of its mother, it is liable to various kinds of diseases because it is either not pasteurized or is not suitable for its body.

119. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "He who spends (his own money) well will have a good deed."

In this tradition there is a creative summons to an Islamic economy, of which is that there must be a balance between spending and miserliness, and which protects man from choking economic crises.

120. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Vinegar is the best food; the house which has vinegar does not become poor."
Vinegar has many advantages, of which is that it helps the stomach in digesting food. It is the best of drinks, and in the past times it was the famous drink among the people.

121. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Eat dates before breakfast, for they kill the worms in the stomach."

Dates are rich in vitamins, for example, they have a high ratio of vitamin (A). It is worth mentioning that this vitamin helps children grow, that it keeps the moisture and brilliance of the eye, the protrusion of the eyeball, and that it plays an important role in forming the retinal purple, so doctors call it 'Factor of Growth'.

Moreover dates strengthen the auditory nerves, and they have other benefits mentioned by doctors. Islam has emphasized eating dates, for they have great advantages.

122. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: ['Ali b. Abu` Ta`lib, peace be on him, said:] "Gabriel, peace be on him, came to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, and said: 'Cling to al-Barni dates, for it is the best kind of your dates; it brings (men) nigh to Allah and send (them) away from the Fire.'"

Perhaps the reason for urging (men) to eat dates is that it makes mind grow and purifies the soul. It is normal that when the soul is free from imaginations, it heads for its Almighty Creator and does all that which brings it nigh to Him. Hence the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, urged (men) to eat al-Barni dates, which is the best kind of all dates.

123. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [My father al-Husayn b. 'Ali, peace be on them, said:] "(Ima`m 'Ali) the Commander of the faithful, peace be on him, ordered us to rinse out mouth three times after we had eaten (food)."
This traditions gives an account of the summons to cleaning teeth after having food, for it has an important effect on health.

124. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: ['Ali b. Abu` Ta`lib said:] "Eat pomegranate along with its flesh, for it is tanning for the stomach."
As for pomegranate, it is among the fruit rich in vitamins, for example, it contains lemon, sugar, vitamin (C). Among the characteristics of its flesh is that it puts right the digestive system.

125. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Eat grapes one by one, for it is more wholesome and easier."

As for grapes, they are among the richest fruit, for they contain vitamins A, B, C, and play an important role in building the body and strengthening its tissues. They are a delicious food and they are quickly digested. They are necessary for the states of indigestion, renal and urinary calculus, poisoning, anemia, and reduction of calcium. Dr. Carlia said: "It is necessary to give grapes to those who suffer from anemia and on whom surgical operations are performed." Medical books have mentioned other benefits of grapes.

126. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Cling to raisins, for they remove bitterness, take away phlegm, strengthen nerves, improve nature, make soul good, and remove worries."
As for raisins, dried grapes, they have most characteristics of fresh grapes, of which are vitamins. We previously talked about the benefits and characteristics of grapes, of which are those mentioned in this tradition.

127. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "If there is a cure in something, then it is in the slash made by a cupper or in a drink of honey."
In the previous researches, we mentioned the great benefits of cupping and honey.

128. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Do not reject him who brings you a drink of honey."

129. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Apostle, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Perfume is ease; honey is ease; looking at greens is ease; and riding is ease."
These things create cheerfulness and happiness.

130. Through his chain of authorities, he, peace be on him, said: [Allah's Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family, said:] "Rub with violet, for it is cold in summer and hot in winter."

Violet is one of the beautiful, sweet-smelling plants. The tradition contains some characteristics of its ointment, which is cold in summer and hot in winter.

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