The Grateful Eater
Submitted by Mohammed Gilani on
الطَّاعِمْ الشَّاكِرُ بِمَنْزِلَةِ الصَّائِمِ الصَّابِرِ."
- أخرجه الترمذي ، وقال: حديث حسن غريب
Rasulullah (Sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said: The one who eats and is grateful is like the one who fasts and is patient.
"The hadith encourages the believer to show gratitude and not to belittle the act of eating by forgetting the One who provided. Just as fasting elevates a servant by patience, eating elevates him when accompanied by gratitude". (Tibi)
"The believer lives between two stations: patience (sabr) during trials, and gratitude (shukr) during blessings. Whoever is grateful for the blessing of food, by acknowledging it from Allah, praising Him, and using it for obedience, is given a reward equal to the patient one who abstains (by fasting) for Allah's sake. Both are fulfilling a right of Allah: the grateful person fulfills the right of the blessing, and the patient person fulfills the right of the trial."
He adds:
"Some of the Salaf would say: 'Sabr is like the body, and shukr is its decoration. (Ibn Rajab Hambali)
"Because both the grateful eater and the patient fasting person are engaged in worship:
The eater is not heedless or extravagant, but remembers Allah and is grateful.
The fasting person is patient over hunger and thirst for Allah's sake. Allah rewards both because each is acting according to his circumstance-gratitude in ease, patience in difficulty."
"Both are equal in reward if the gratefulness is sincere, as the station of shukr is high in sight of Allah. (Faydhul Qadeer)