Hadith
Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) said, ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: ‘Whenever a person enters his home and eats food, saying Bismillah, the devils to whom he belongs say, ‘We cannot enter or eat with this person.’ But if he does not say Bismillah when entering his home, they say, ‘You have found a place to spend the night.’ And if he does not say Bismillah when eating food, his devils say, ‘You have found both a place to stay and food to eat.”
Muslim, Eşribe 103. Also see Abu Dawud, Et’ime 15; Ibn Majah,
Narrator
Duâ 19
What We Learn
- 1Satan likes to stay in a house entered without Bismillah and to eat a meal begun without Bismillah. He even considers this a right.
- 2A person should enter his home saying “Bismillah” so as not to give Satan an opportunity to stay there.
- 3One should begin a meal saying “Bismillah” so that Satan is not given the opportunity to join that meal or take away its blessing.
- 4Every action that pleases Satan is against man. Therefore, at every opportunity, Allah Almighty should be remembered so that Satan’s hopes are dashed.
- 5The companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) would not begin eating before him out of deep respect for him. Therefore, one should not start eating before the elders and virtuous people at the table.