‫ بَرَكَۃ‬barakah – blessing (singular) ‫ بَرَكَات‬barakāt – blessings (plural)

Definition of Barakah

‫المنافعَالكثریۃَباالسبابَالقلیۃل‬
MAXIMUM BENEFIT WITH MINIMUM PROVISIONS

Importance of Barakah
Rasūlullāh has taught us many supplications wherein we beg Allah  for barakah:

1. The masnūn duʿāʾ to recite while making wuḍūʾ is:

‫اللمہَافررَیَذنیبَووسعَیَیفَداریَوباركَیَیفَرزقی‬
O Allah, forgive my sins, make my house spacious for me and grant me barakah in my sustenance.1

2. We make the following duʿāʾ for the bridegroom:

‫باركَاہللَلكَوَباركَعلیكَوَجمعَبینكماَیفَخری‬
May Allah bless you, surround you with blessings and join you both together in virtue and prosperity.

3. A masnūn duʿāʾ to make for the host is:

ْ ‫َارح ْم‬
َ‫مہ‬ ْ ‫مہَو‬ ْ
ْ ‫َافر ْرَل‬ ْ ْ ْ ْ ْ ‫ال ّٰلمہَب‬
ُ ُ ِ ‫اركَل ُمہَ ِفیماَرزقت ُمہَو‬
ِ ‫م ُ م‬
O Allah! Grant them blessings in what You have given them, forgive them and have mercy on them.2

4. Al-Salāt al-Ibrāhīmiyyah (Durūd Ibrāhīm) reads:

َ‫َاللمہَباركَعیَمحمدَو‬،َ‫اللمہَل َعیَمحمدَوَعیَآلَمحمدَكماَللیتَعیَإبراہیمَوَعیَآلَإبراہیمَإنكَحمیدَمجید‬

‫عیَآلَمحمدَكماَباركتَعیَإبراہیمَوَعیَآلَإبراہیمَإنكَحمیدَمجید‬

1
Sunan al-Kubrā by Nasaʾī; Muṣannaf ibn Abī Shaybah
2
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim vol. 2 pg. 180
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 O Allah send salutations upon Muḥammad and the family of Muḥammad as You have sent salutations
upon Ibrāhīm and the family of Ibrāhīm. Indeed You are praiseworthy, exalted. O Allah send blessings
upon Muḥammad and the family of Muḥammad as You have sent blessings upon Ibrāhīm and the family
of Ibrāhīm. Indeed You are praiseworthy, exalted.

Examples of Barakah
 Barakah in the wealth and children of Sayyidunā Anas ibn Mālik  because of the duʿāʾ of Rasūlullāh

Sayyidah Umm Sulaym  narrates that she requested, “O Rasūlullāh, Make duʿāʾ for Anas – your servant.”
Rasūlullāh  supplicated:

‫اللمہَأكثرَماہلَوودلہ وبارك ہلَفیماَأعطیتہ‬

O Allah, increase his wealth and offspring and bless him in whatever You give him.3

Sayyidunā Anas ibn Mālik  states: “There was no one from the Anṣār wealthier than me.”4

Abū al-ʿĀliyah  says regarding Sayyidunā Anas : “He had a garden which used to bear fruit twice a year.
There was a flower in that garden which used to give off the scent of musk.”5

His eldest daughter Amīnah reports that he buried more than 120 of his own children before the arrival of
al-Ḥajjāj.6

 Barakah in the water at Ḥudaybiyyah

Sayyidunā Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allah  reports that the Ṣaḥābah suffered a shortage of water during their stay
at Ḥudaybiyyah and only Rasūlullāh  had a leather bag of water with him from which he made wuḍūʾ. The
Ṣaḥābah  were close to tears when they came to Rasūlullāh  because of which he asked, “What is the
matter?” They replied, “We have no water with which to make wuḍūʾ or to drink. All the water there is, is
that which is before you.” Rasūlullāh  then placed his hand in the bag and water started to flow from
between his fingers like a spring. The Ṣaḥābah  then had enough water to make wuḍūʾ with and to drink.
When someone asked Sayyidunā Barāʾ  how many they were, he replied, “It would have been enough
even if we were a hundred thousand. We were fifteen hundred however.”7

Channels of Barakah
1) The Blessed Name of Allah 
Allah Ta’ala says in the glorious Qurʾān:

3
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim
4
Musnad Aḥmad
5
Sunan al-Tirmidhī
6
Musnad Aḥmad
7
Extracted from Ḥayāt al-Ṣaḥābah vol. 3 pg. 617 referenced to Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim as quoted in al-Bidāyah wa
al-Nihāyah vol. 6 pg. 96. Abū Nuʿaym has reported a similar narration in his Dalāʾil pg. 144 and Ibn Saʿd in Ṭabaqāt vol. 2 pg. 98
2|Page
 ْ ‫ت ّٰٰبك‬
ََ‫َاسمَر ِبمك‬
ُ
Your Rabb’s name is filled with blessings.8

Incidents of deriving Barakah through the Name of Allah

 The well of the tribe of Ṣudāʿ

Sayyidunā Ziyād ibn Ḥārith Ṣudāʿī  reports that when a delegation from his tribe came to Rasūlullāh 
to announce that they had accepted Islam and were prepared to follow him, they also said, “O Rasūlullāh!
We have a well which provides adequately for us during winter and we settle around it. However, when
summer arrives, the water is not sufficient for us and we disperse in the vicinity to other watering places.
We are unfortunately unable to do this any longer because everyone around us has become our enemies
(because we are now Muslims). Do pray to Allah to make our water sufficient for us.” Rasūlullāh  sent for
seven stones and when these were brought, he scattered them in his hands and made a duʿāʾ. Thereafter,
Rasūlullāh  said, “When you reach your well, take the name of Allah  and throw these stones in one by
one.” After they did what Rasūlullāh  told them, they were unable to see the depth of the well (due to the
abundance of water).9

 The Mizwad of Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah 

Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah  reports, “Rasūlullāh  was on an expedition and there was a shortage of food.
He  said, ‘O Abū Hurayrah, do you have anything (to eat)?’ I replied that I had some dates in my mizwad
(provision bag). Rasūlullāh  told me to bring it and I complied. He then told me to bring a piece of leather
(which will serve as a table cloth). I brought the leather and spread it out. Rasūlullāh  inserted his hand
into the bag and took out the dates. There were 21 dates. Rasūlullāh  then began placing the dates (on the
leather table cloth) one by one and reciting bismillāh on each of them. He then gathered the dates and told
me, ‘Call so and so and his friends.’ They ate to their fill and left. He then said, ‘Call so and so and his friends.’
They ate to their fill and left. He then said, ‘Call so and so and his friends.’ They ate to their fill and left.
(Another narration clarifies that he called 10 persons each time until the entire army ate.) There were some
dates leftover. Rasūlullāh  then bade me to sit. I sat and we ate together. There were still some dates left
so I filled them in my mizwad. Rasūlullāh  advised me, ‘O Abū Hurayrah! When you desire (to eat), insert
your hand in the bag and take. But do not empty the contents or else it will get depleted.’”

Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah  narrates further: “I ate from it for the balance of the life of Rasūlullāh , the
entire khilāfah of Sayyidunā Abū Bakr , the entire khilāfah of Sayyidunā ʿUmar  and the entire khilāfah
of Sayyidunā ʿUthmān .”

He expounds, “My mizwad would be attached to my belt. When Sayyidunā ʿUthmān  was martyred, it fell
from my belt (and was lost forever).” He then asked, “Should I not tell you how much I ate from it? I ate
more than 200 wasaq (more than 26 tons of dates).”10

 Universal duʿāʾs:
 Before commencing anything, recite Bismillāh (With the name of Allah)
 After completing everything, recite Alḥamdulillāh (All praise belongs solely to Allah)

8
Sūrah al-Raḥmān: 78
9
Extracted from Ḥayāt al-Ṣaḥābah vol. 3 pg. 620 referenced to Abū Nuʿaym in his Dalāʾil. Bayhaqī, Aḥmad, Abū Dāwūd, Tirmidhī
and Ibn Mājah have all reported similar narrations as quoted in al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah.
10
Composite: Musnad Aḥmad, Sunan al-Tirmidhī and al-Bayhaqī
3|Page
 Take the name of Allah  when awakening, eating, drinking, sleeping, boarding a vehicle, travelling,
dressing, working, etc. Take the Name of Allah  when doing anything and everything
 The complete masnūn duʿāʾs should also be learnt and recited.

2) Reciting the Glorious Qurʾān

Allah  declares:

ٌ ْ ۡ ٌ
َ‫بَانزل ّٰن ُہََم ّٰٰبك‬ ‫ك ّٰت‬ ّٰ ‫و‬
ِ َ‫َہذا‬
ُ
This book that we have revealed is filled with blessings.11

ْ ۡ ٌ ْ
َ‫َم ّٰٰبكَانزل ّٰن ُہ‬ ٌ ّٰ
ُ ‫وَہذاَ ِذكر م‬
This is a blessed dhikr which We have revealed.12

In fact, the Qurʾān is so blessed, that everything associated with it is also blessed. The Qurʾān announces
regarding Laylat al-Qadr (the Night of Power) on which the Qurʾān was revealed:

َ‫ََم ّٰٰبك ٍۃ‬ ۡ ۡ ‫اِناََانۡزلْ ّٰنہ‬

ُ ‫ََیفََلیۃلٍ م‬
ِ ُ ‫م‬
Indeed, We revealed it (the glorious Qurʾān) on a blessed night.13

This night is so blessed, that Allah  says:

ۡ ْ ْ ٌ ۡ ْ ْ ۡ
َ‫ر‬
ٍ ‫َمنََال ِفَشہ‬
‫لیۃلََُالقد ِرََ۬ۙخری ِم‬
The Night of Power is superior to a thousand months.14

 Sūrah al-Baqarah

Rasūlullāh  said regarding Sūrah al-Baqarah:

َ‫اقرأواَسورۃَالبقرۃَفانَاخذہاَبركۃَوَتركہاَحسرۃَوَالَتستطیعہاَالبطۃل‬
Recite Sūrah Baqarah for indeed preserving it (by learning, reciting, teaching it etc.) will attract blessings
and discarding it will lead to remorse and regret. And the sorcerers cannot overpower it. (i.e. After a
person has recited Sūrah Baqarah, sorcery and black magic can never affect him.)

3) Spreading Salām

‫السالمَعلیكمَوَرحمۃَاہللَوَبركاتہ‬
May peace be upon you with the mercy or Allah  and His blessings

Allah  commands:

11
Sūrah al-Anʿām: 92, 155; Sūrah Ṣād: 29
12
Sūrah al-Ambiyāʾ: 50
13
Sūrah al-Dukhān: 3
14
Sūrah al-Qadr: 3
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 ۡ ْ ً ۡ ‫ی‬ ْ
َؕ‫َعن ِدَاہللَِم ّٰٰبك ًۃََط مِیب ًۃ‬
ِ ‫َمن‬
‫م‬ ِ ‫ك ْمَت ِح میۃ‬
ُ ‫یَان ُر ِس‬‫ف ِاذاَدخلت ۡمَبی ۡوتًاَفس ِ مل ُم ۡواَع‬
ُ ُُ ُ
When you enter any house, then make salām upon yourselves – a greeting from the side of Allah which is
filled with blessings and pure.15

When the angels came to the house of Sayyidunā Ibrāhīm , they greeted:

ۡ ْ ۡ ۡ ٗ ّٰ ْ
ِ ‫ك ْمَاہ َالبی‬
َ‫ت‬ ُ ‫تَاہللَِوبرك ُتہَعلی‬
ُ ‫ر حم‬
May the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you, O people of the house.16

Ibn al-Qayyim comments, “This pure and blessed house is the noblest house of the world without question.
Every Nabī that came after Sayyidunā Ibrāhīm  was from his household.”17

Sayyidunā Anas ibn Mālik  relates that Rasūlullāh  told him:

‫یاَبینَاذاَدخلتَعیَاہلكَفسلمَیكنَبركۃَعلیكَوَعیَاہ َبیتك‬
O my beloved lad, when you enter your home, then make salām, it will be blessings for you and for your
family.

Rasūlullāh  has mentioned:

ٌ ‫المَفہوَضام‬ ٌ ٌ ْ
َ. ‫َاہلل‬
َ ‫نَعَل م‬ ِ ٍ ‫ج َدخ َبیتہَبِس‬ ‫َاہللََور‬
‫ۃَك ملُمہَضا ِمنَعَل م‬
ُ ‫ثالث‬
ُ
Three persons are in the protection of Allah  … (3.) a man who enters his house with salaam is in the
protective care of Allah .

4) Maintaining family ties

Sayyidunā Anas ibn Mālik  narrates that Rasūlullāh  has mentioned:

‫منَاحبَانَیبسطَہلَیفَرزقہَوَینسأَہلَیفَاثرہَفلیص َرحمہ‬
The person who desires that his sustenance be increased and his lifespan be prolonged should maintain
his family ties.18

Explanation: A person’s sustenance and lifespan have already been decreed. No one will get more than their
allotted share. So the meaning of this ḥadīth is that a person’s sustenance and lifespan will be blessed by
Allah . He will derive great benefit from his sustenance and will be able to accomplish more achievements
in his lifetime.

5) Being honest in Business

Rasūlullāh  has stated:

15
Sūrah al-Nūr: 61
16
Sūrah Hūd: 73
17
Al-Khutab al-Mimbariyyah pg. 135 of ʿAbd al-Muḥsin al-Qāsim – Imām and Khatīb of al-Masjid al-Nabawī al-Sharīf
18
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim and Sunan Abī Dāwūd; narrator
5|Page
 ‫البیعانَبالخیارَماَلمَیتررقاَفإنَلدقاَوبیناَبوركَلہماَیفَبیعہماَوإنَكذباَوكتماَمحقتَبركۃَبیعہما‬
The buyer and seller are at liberty (to accept and reject) as long as they are negotiating and have not yet
separated. If they speak the truth and reveal (the defects of the item if any), their transaction will be
blessed. Adversely, if they lie and conceal (the defects of the item), the blessings of their transaction will
be eliminated.19

We have to be truthful and honest in our business deals and we will be blessed. Rasūlullāh  conveyed glad
tidings to the honest businessman:

َ‫الشہدا ِء‬
ُ ‫الص م ِدی ِقنیَو م‬
ِ‫َالن ِبینیَو م‬
‫نیَمع م‬
ُ ‫وقَاأل ِم‬
ُ ‫َالص ُد‬
‫اج ُر م‬
ِ ‫الت‬
‫م‬
The trustworthy and honest businessman will be in the company of the Ambiyāʾ , Ṣiddīqīn (righteous)
and Shuhadāʾ (martyrs) [on the Day of Qiyāmah].20

 Sayyidunā ʿUrwah ibn Abī al-Jaʿd al-Bāriqī’s  Barakah

Sayyidunā ʿUrwah ibn Abī al-Jaʿd al-Bāriqī  reports: “A caravan of traders bringing merchandise arrived
[in Madīnah]. Rasūlullāh  gave me a gold coin and told me, ‘ʿUrwah, go to the traders and purchase a sheep
for me.’ I acted accordingly; negotiated with the seller and managed to buy 2 sheep in lieu of the gold coin.
I began herding them when a man met me and haggled with me. So I sold him 1 sheep for 1 gold coin. I thus
returned with 1 gold coin and 1 sheep and said, ‘O Rasūlullāh! Here is your gold coin and here is your sheep.’
Rasūlullāh  asked me, ‘How did you pull that off?’ I explained to him what happened. Rasūlullāh 
supplicated, ‘O Allah , bless him in his transactions.’”

He goes on to say: “I remember myself trading at the market of Kūfah. I would make 40 000 silver coins of
profit before returning home (daily).”21

[1 silver coin equals to approximately R25. So that works out to R1 000 000 net profit daily. Plus no income
tax! Allāhu Akbar!]

We will also be the recipients of a special duʿāʾ of Rasūlullāh  when we observe leniency in our
transactions. Rasūlullāh  supplicated:

‫رحمَاہللَرجالَسمحاَإذاَباع وإذاَاشرتیَوإذاَاقتضی‬
May Allah  shower His mercy upon the man who is lenient when he sells, purchases and requests
payment.22

6) Giving Charity
Allah  announces:
َ‫ت‬ ّٰ ْ
ِ ‫َالصد َق‬
‫و َی ُر ِِب م‬
And He (Allah ) increases charity.23

19
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī ḥadīth no. 2110; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim ḥadīth no. 1532
20
Sunan al-Tirmidhī ḥadīth no. 1209
21
Musnad Aḥmad
22
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī ḥadīth no. 1970
23
Sūrah al-Baqarah: 276
6|Page
 ‫ہ‬
ٌَ ۡ ‫ر َی‬
﴾۱۱﴿َ َ‫م‬ ٌ ْ َٗ ‫ہلََو‬ ٗ
َٗ ََ‫ض ِعر َہ‬ ً ‫یَ َی ْقرضَاہللَََق ْر‬
َ ّٰ ‫ضاَحس ًناَف َی‬ ۡ ‫نََذ م‬
َۡ ‫م‬
ِ ‫ہلََاَجرَك‬ ُ ُ ِ ُ َ ‫اَاّل‬
ِ
Who will loan Allah  a beautiful loan (i.e. give charity in His path), then He will increase it manifold for
him and he will have a noble reward.24

7) Eating in accordance with the Sunnah

 Eating collectively and reciting bismillāh before eating

َ‫ یاَرسولَاہللَ!َإناَنأك َوالَنشبع‬: ‫وعن وحشیَبنَحربَعنَأبیہَعنَجدہ أنَألحابَرسولَاہللَلیَاہللَعلیہَوسلمَقالوا‬

‫َواذكرواَاسمَاہللَیباركَلكمَفیہ‬،َ‫قالَفلعلكمَتررتقون ؟َقالواَنعمَقالَفاجتمعواَعیَطعامكم‬

Sayyidunā Waḥshī ibn Ḥarb  narrates from his father who in turn narrates from his grandfather that
the Ṣaḥābah  complained to Rasūlullāh , “O Rasūlullāh! We are eating but we are not getting
satisfied.” Rasūlullāh  divined, “It looks like you are eating separately?” They replied in the affirmative.
Rasūlullāh  directed them, “Eat collectively and take the name of Allah, Allah  will bless it for you.”25

We should bring this Sunnah alive of eating collectively i.e. we should eat from one plate. If we sit on the
floor when eating as is the Sunnah, it will be easier for a few people to eat from one plate. However, when
we sit at the table and eat, it becomes difficult for few people to eat from one plate. Thus, by sitting on the
table we are deprived of 2 Sunnah acts.

The following hadith elucidates this point of eating collectively:

‫أحبَالطعامَإیَاہللَماَكثرتَعلیہَاألیدی‬
The most beloved food in the sight of Allah  is whence the most amount of people eat.26

 Eating from the sides of the plate, not from the middle

Rasūlullāh  states:

‫الٰبكۃَتنزلَوسطَالطعامَفكلواَمنَحافتیہَوالَتأكلواَمنَوسطہ‬
Barakah descends in the middle of the food [plate]. So eat from the sides and do not eat from the middle.

 Licking the fingers and cleaning the plate after eating

‫َإنكمَالَتدرونَیفَأیہَالٰبكۃ‬:َ‫أنَالنیبَلیَاہللَعلیہَوسلمَأمرَبلعقَاأللابعَوالصحرۃَوقال‬
Rasūlullāh  commanded the licking of the fingers and the cleaning of the plate (after eating) and
commented, “You do not know in which morsel or particle of food lies the barakah.”27

 Barakah in a kid goat and some barley – The Battle of Khandaq

24
Sūrah al-Ḥadīd: 11
25
Sunan Abī Dāwūd ḥadīth no. 4252
26
Musnad Abī Yaʿlā; Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān; al-Bayhaqī from Jābir h
27
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Musnad Aḥmad, Sunan Ibn Mājah
7|Page
Sayyidunā Jābir  narrates, “As we were busy digging the trench for the Battle of Khandaq, an extremely
hard and huge boulder became an obstacle. When the Ṣaḥābah  reported to Rasūlullāh  that the
boulder posed an obstacle in the digging, he said that he will be coming down there. Rasūlullāh  then
stood up with a stone tied to his belly (to suppress his hunger) after we had already gone three days without
even tasting any food. Rasūlullāh  then took a pickaxe and with one strike, reduced it to a heap of dust.
[Other narrations mention 3 blows.] I then asked permission from Rasūlullāh  to go home and (when I
reached home) I said to my wife, ‘I have seen such hunger on Rasūlullāh  that I am unable to bear. Do you
have anything?’ She replied, ‘I have some barley and a kid goat.’ I slaughtered the kid and she ground the
barley. We placed the meat in a pot to cook and when I went to call Rasūlullāh , the dough had already
risen and the pot was on the fire with the food almost cooked. I said, ‘O Rasūlullāh! I have a little food, so
why don’t you and one or two persons come?’ When Rasūlullāh  asked me how much food there was, I
informed him. He said, ‘That is plenty and most excellent. Tell your wife not to take the pot off the fire and
not to take the bread out of the oven until I arrive.’ He then told the Ṣaḥābah  to stand up (to join in the
meal) and the Muhājirīn and Anṣār and all with them stood up. Such extreme embarrassment overcame me
that Allah  alone knows. When I returned home, I told my wife, ‘O dear! Rasūlullāh  has come with the
Muhājirīn, the Anṣār and everyone else!’ She asked surprisingly, ‘Did Rasūlullāh  ask you about this?’ Jābir
 confirmed that Rasūlullāh  did. Upon this she remarked, ‘Then Allah  and His Rasūl know better!’

When Rasūlullāh  arrived, she gave him the dough. He mixed some of his blessed saliva in it and made
duʿāʾ for blessings.

Rasūlullāh  said to the Ṣaḥābah , ‘Enter the house but do not crowd it.’ [The Ṣaḥābah  entered the
house few at a time, ate and left.]

Rasūlullāh  broke the bread into the food and served the meat. As he did this, he kept covering the bread
and the meat. In this manner, he continued serving food to the Ṣaḥābah  until they all were satiated and
both the pot and the oven were as full as they had ever been. Thereafter Rasūlullāh  said (to the lady),
‘Eat and give others because hunger has afflicted everyone.’ She continued eating and giving others from
there the entire day.” A narration states that the Ṣaḥābah  numbered eight hundred on that occasion.28

 The Expedition of Sīf al-Baḥr and al-ʿAmbar (The Whale)

Sayyidunā Jābir  narrates that Rasūlullāh  despatched them – a regiment of 300 men – under the
command of Sayyidunā Abū ʿUbaydah ibn Jarrāḥ  to intercept a caravan belonging to the Quraysh. They
were sent to a coastal area. They were still travelling when their provisions were exhausted. Sayyidunā Abū
ʿUbaydah  instructed them to gather together all that was left of the provisions and when it was done, it
amounted to only two satchels of dates. He rationed it to them little by little until it was almost finished.
They then received only a single date each (for the day). When someone asked Sayyidunā Jābir  how they
managed with one date, he replied, “We would suck on it like a child does and then drink water. It would
suffice us throughout the day and night. We also used our staffs to knock leaves off the trees which we
would wet and eat.” He says in another narration, “When the rations were finished, we missed even that
single date.” When they arrived at the sea shore, they saw something resembling a gigantic dune. As they
observed closely, they realised that it was actually a fish called al-ʿAmbar (whale). Sayyidunā Abū ʿUbaydah’s
 initial reaction was to say that it was carrion, but he later changed his mind and said, “No. We are the
envoys of Rasūlullāh  and we are out in the path of Allah  and have reached the point of desperation.

28
Extracted from Ḥayāt al-Ṣaḥābah vol. 2 pg. 220, 221; Composite: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī; Dalāʾil al-Nubuwwah; Muslim and Ibn Abī
Shaybah – as quoted in al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah
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You may therefore eat.” Although they numbered three hundred, they lived off the fish for a month until
they even started to put on weight. They used large containers to scoop up oil from its eye sockets and
would cut off from it chunks of meat as large as bulls. Sayyidunā Abū ʿUbaydah  once took 13 men and
seated them in the eye socket. He also took one of its ribs, stood it upright and passed beneath it the tallest
man, seated on a carriage on the largest camel. They took large chunks of meat with them as provisions for
their journey and when they arrived at Madīnah, they reported the incident to Rasūlullāh  who observed,
“It was your sustenance that Allah  had taken out for you (from the ocean). Do you have any of it with
you to give us to eat?” They sent some for Rasūlullāh  and he ate.”29

8) Observing Taqwā – fulfilling the commands of Allah  and staying away from
His prohibitions
Rasūlullāh  warned:

‫وإنَالعبدَلیحرمَالرزقَباّلنبَیصیبہ‬
And certainly a person is deprived of (the blessings30) of sustenance because of the sin he commits.31

 Do not sell ḥarām items and do not deal with any ḥarām merchandise because they are devoid of
blessings.

 Do not deal with interest. Allah  announces:

ْ
‫الر َّٰبوا‬
ِ ‫َاہلل َُ م‬
َ ‫یَمح ُق‬
Allah  destroys interest.32

 There should be no music in our houses and businesses

 There should be no pictures of animate objects in our houses and businesses. Rasūlullāh  alerts us:

‫الَتدخ َالملئكۃَبیتاَفیہَكلبَوَالَلورۃ‬
The angles (of mercy) do not enter a home where there are dogs or pictures (of animate objects).

 Abandon all sins

 In essence, the more we fulfil the commands of Allah and stay away from His prohibitions, the more
we attract divine blessings. Allah  promises:

ۡ
َ‫َالسمٓا ِءَواال ْر ِض‬ ‫ن‬ ‫َم‬ ‫ت‬
ّٰ ۡ ۡ
‫ك‬ ‫ر‬‫َب‬ ‫مہ‬
ِ ‫ی‬‫ل‬ ‫ع‬ َ‫ا‬ ‫ن‬‫ح‬
ْ
‫ت‬‫ر‬ ‫اَل‬ ‫و‬ ّٰ ‫ول ْوَانََا ۡہ َالْقری‬
ۡ ‫یَامن ۡواََواتق‬
‫م‬ ‫م‬ ِ ٍ ‫م‬ ُ ُ ‫م‬
If only the people of the towns had to believe and adopt taqwā, We would shower upon them blessings
from the sky and earth.33
29
Extracted from Ḥayāt al-Ṣaḥābah vol. 3 pg. 634 – 636 composite: Muʾaṭṭaʾ Mālik pg. 371; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim,
Bayhaqī – as quoted in al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah vol. 4 pg. 276; Sunan Abī Dāwūd, Ṭabaranī; Kanz al-ʿUmmāl
30
Since a person’s sustenance has already been decreed, he will not receive anything less than his apportioned amount.
However, the blessings of his sustenance will be removed due to his sins.
31
Musnad Aḥmad; Ibn Mājah; Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān
32
Sūrah al-Baqarah: 276
33
Sūrah al-Aʿrāf: 96
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