Khajoor khana Sunnat NAHI hai

Khajoor khana Sunnat NAHI hai! 

What? Wait? But this is what we have been told all along - that khajoor khana Sunnat hai. Even I felt so until I attended a lecture by Maulana Dr. Athar Habib Nadvi sahab some time back who explained to us that apne ilaqe ka sabse sasta khana khana Sunnat hai, na ki khajoor khana, per se. 7th Century Arabia me gareeb se gareeb aadmi bhi khajoor afford kar sakta tha. Gharo me kuch na hota tab bhi khajoor aur pani hota. Isiliye Huzoor ﷺ khajoor khana pasand karte the, because that was something even the poorest could afford. Aap ne kabhi zaitoon/olives import kar ke nahi khaye. Aap India me hote to khajoor bhi import kar ke na khate; yahañ ka staple diet pasand karte jo yahañ ka har aadmi afford kar sakta hai (daal, roti, chawal). This is because Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was a mass leader. He had once famously told a poor host that vinegar is the best food (because that is all he had in his house at that time to serve him with bread), even though it is established that vinegar and bread is certainly not the best of meals.

We have always been told that we should break our fasts with dates. This is because the poorest of Arabs could do that. So it became the Prophet's practice to use dates for iftar. The other two things are salt and water. You might note that all these three things - salt, water and dates are something that everyone in Arabia could afford. 

So although dates might be very rich in nutrients and taste, there is nothing great about the humble date per se. No special fazeelat, sorry. The greatness, instead, lies in the lifestyle (Sunnah) of the Prophet ﷺ who led such a simple and dignified life that even the poorest could connect with him.

To understand the holistic concept of Sunnah better, kindly go through my blog on how using a toothbrush is Sunnah (and not necessarily the wooden twig):

https://drparvezsm.blogspot.com/2022/02/using-toothbrush-is-sunnah.html

- Dr. Parvez Mandviwala

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