قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم‏:‏ إن الله ليرضى عن العبد أن يأكل الأكلة، فيحمده عليها، أو يشرب الشربة، فيحمده عليها‏

‏‏‏‏الأكلة بفتح الهمزة وهي المرة الواحدة من الأكل كالغدوة والعشوة، والله أعلم‏

Anas bin Malik RA reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, “Allah is pleased with His slave who eats a meal and praises Him for it; and takes a drink and praises Him for it”. [Muslim].

In this Hadith, we are encouraged to be grateful to Allah for His many bounties. It is Allah alone Who is worthy of praise. The Sunnah of praising Allah after a meal can be fulfilled by saying ‘Alhamdulillah’. Other duaaʼs mentioned in the reliable books of Hadith may also be recited and will carry extra rewards.

Ibn Malik RA said that it is also Sunnah not to raise one’s voice when praising Allah, so as not to disturb others who may still be eating.

Allah greatly rewards one who is grateful to Him. In another Hadith it is stated,

الطاعم الشاكر مثل الصائم الصابر

One who is grateful while eating is like one who fasts patiently. (Mustadrak)

We are indeed fortunate that Allah has made eating an act of obedience. When done with the correct intention and etiquette, we can enjoy a meal in this world and still acquire its reward in the Hereafter.

EASY GOOD DEED – Starting Your Work Early in the Morning

The Holy Prophet ﷺ prayed to Allah to grant abundance to the Ummah in their early mornings:

عَنْ صَخْرٍ الْغَامِدِيِّ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ “‏ اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ لأُمَّتِي فِي بُكُورِهَا‏”‏.‏ قَالَ وَكَانَ إِذَا بَعَثَ سَرِيَّةً أَوْ جَيْشًا بَعَثَهُمْ فِي أَوَّلِ النَّهَارِ ‏.‏ قَالَ وَكَانَ صَخْرٌ رَجُلاً تَاجِرًا فَكَانَ يَبْعَثُ تِجَارَتَهُ فِي أَوَّلِ النَّهَارِ فَأَثْرَى وَكَثُرَ مَالُ

It was narrated from Sakhr Al-Ghamidi RA that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:

“O Allah, bless my nation in their early mornings (i.e., what they do early in the morning).” (Hasan)He said: “When he sent out a raiding party or an army, he would send them at the beginning of the day.” He said: “Sakhr RA (the narrator) was a man engaged in trade, and he used to send his goods out at the beginning of the day, and his wealth grew and increased.” [Ibn Majah]

The blessings which most of us keep depriving ourselves of because we prefer to be in the bed for long after the sun has already risen up. To grab our share from these blessings it is imperative for us to wake up early. And the only way to achieve this is ‘To Sleep Early’.

If you do a little research, you will find that our grandparents and great grandparents used to live a healthy and active life. One of the recipes for this was sleeping early and waking up early. Allah has provided us the night for rest as has been mentioned in the Qur’an

وَجَعَلْنَا نَوْمَكُمْ سُبَاتًا

“And We have made your sleep as a rest.” [Quraan 78: 9]

But the invasion of the smart phones, televisions into our bedrooms and addiction to PC and cellular games keeps many of us awake for late hours in the night. Thus we have neglected a Sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ. He used to forbid his companions from sleeping before Isha prayers and indulging in conversations after that (except for seeking knowledge).

‏ قَالَ وَكَانَ يَكْرَهُ النَّوْمَ قَبْلَهَا وَالْحَدِيثَ بَعْدَهَا

Abu Barzah RA reported: “… He (Prophet ﷺ) would dislike sleeping before it (Isha prayers) or talking after it (Isha Prayers).” [Abu Dawud]

Wasn’t this to encourage sleeping early? If we start practicing this, we would be reviving a Sunnah. The Tahajjud (night) prayer is said to be the best prayer after obligatory prayers. If a person sleeps early, he has a fair chance of waking up for some time during the night to offer Tahajjud too.

Early morning comes to us with some obvious benefits – both spiritual and health.

Allah, Almighty says in the Qur’an:

أَقِمِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ لِدُلُوكِ ٱلشَّمْسِ إِلَىٰ غَسَقِ ٱلَّيْلِ وَقُرْءَانَ ٱلْفَجْرِ ۖ إِنَّ قُرْءَانَ ٱلْفَجْرِ كَانَ مَشْهُودًا

“Perform the Salaat (Prayer) from midday till the darkness of the night, and recite the Qur’an in the early dawn. Verily, the recitation of the Qur’an in the early dawn is ever witnessed (attended by the angels).” [Quraan 17: 78]