Chapter on the recommendation of eating with three fingers and the recommendation of licking the fingers
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The reader: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "The chapter on the recommendation of eating with three fingers, the recommendation of licking the fingers, the dislike of wiping them before licking them, and the recommendation of licking the bowl. Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Riyad as-Salihin 747 Agreed upon by al-Bukhari and Muslim. Ka'b ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: 'I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) eating with three fingers, and when he finished, he licked them.' Narrated by Muslim. Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded the licking of the fingers and the bowl and said: Sahih Muslim 2034 Narrated by Muslim. He also reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 2033b Narrated by Muslim. He also reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Riyad as-Salihin 751 Narrated by Muslim. Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: 'When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ate food, he would lick his three fingers and said: Riyad as-Salihin 752 And he commanded us to scrape the bowl and said: Sahih Muslim 2034 Narrated by Muslim. Sa'id ibn al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that he asked Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) about performing ablution for what has been touched by fire, and he said: 'No, in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), we did not find such food except in small amounts, and when we did find it, we had no napkins except our palms, forearms, and feet, and then we would pray without performing ablution.' Narrated by al-Bukhari".
The Shaykh : These hadiths that the author (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned in his book *Riyad al-Saliheen* regarding the etiquettes of food contain multiple issues. The first is that a person should eat with three fingers: the middle finger, the index finger, and the thumb, because this is more indicative of not being greedy and more indicative of humility. However, this applies to food where three fingers are sufficient. As for food where three fingers are not sufficient, such as rice, there is no harm in eating with more than three.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "The chapter on the recommendation of eating with three fingers, the recommendation of licking the fingers, the dislike of wiping them before licking them, and the recommendation of licking the bowl. Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
When one of you finishes eating, he should not wipe his fingers until he has licked them himself or has given them to someone else to lick for him.
إذا أكل أحدكم طعامًا فلا يمسح أصابعه حتى يلعقها أو يلعقهاYou do not know in what portion of your food the blessing lies.
إنكم لا تدرون في أي طعامكم البركةWhen any one of you drops a mouthful he should pick it up and remove any of the filth on it, and then eat it, and should not leave it for the Satan, and should not wipe his hand with towel until he has licked his fingers, for he does not know in what portion of the food the blessing lies.
إذا وقعت لقمة أحدكم فليأخذها فليمط ما كان بها من أذى وليأكلها ولا يدعها للشيطان ،ولا يمسح يده بالمنديل حتى يلعق أصابعه فإنه لا يدري في أي طعامه البركةSatan appears at every thing done by you; he appears even at one's dinner. When a morsel of any of you falls, he should pick it up and remove any dirt on it, and then eat it. He should not leave it for Satan, nor should he wipe his hand with the towel until he has licked his fingers, for he does not know in what portion of the food the blessing lies.
إن الشيطان يحضر أحدكم عند كل شيء من شأنه حتى يحضره عند طعامه فإذا سقطت لقمة أحدكم فليأخذها فليمط ما كان بها من أذى ثم ليأكلها ولا يدعها للشيطان، فإذا فرغ فليلعق أصابعه فإنه لا يدري في أي طعامه البركةIf anyone of you drops a morsel of food, he should remove any dirt that may have stuck on it and then eat it, and should not leave it for Satan.
إذا سقطت لقمة أحدكم فليأخذها وليمط عنها الأذى وليأكلها ولا يدعها للشيطانYou do not know in what portion of your food the blessing lies.
إنكم لا تدرون في أي طعامكم البركةThe Shaykh : These hadiths that the author (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned in his book *Riyad al-Saliheen* regarding the etiquettes of food contain multiple issues. The first is that a person should eat with three fingers: the middle finger, the index finger, and the thumb, because this is more indicative of not being greedy and more indicative of humility. However, this applies to food where three fingers are sufficient. As for food where three fingers are not sufficient, such as rice, there is no harm in eating with more than three.