Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Emulating our Pious Predecessors in our Food

Bism Illah.
 
Okay, I'm a die hard extremist. A fundamentalist to the roots. But here it is, my "issue of the day" for all those who care to chew on it. (Pardon the pun, lol!)

Have you ever considered what the Prophet ﷺ and the Sahabah ate? Have you ever considered that emulating the life of the Prophet ﷺ should include food? For me, it is all part and parcel of my Islam, so here is what I have to put on the table. (Oh, I'm just too punny today!)

Did bleached sugar exist during the time of the Prophet ﷺ?
Did bleached rice exist during the time of the Prophet ﷺ?
Did bleached or white flour exist during the time of the Prophet ﷺ?
Come to think of it, did bleach exist during the time of the Prophet ﷺ?
Did they have freezers and cupboards full of canned goods?
Did they have out of season vegetables irradiated and flown across the world so that that they could enjoy blueberries in December?
Did they have hydrogenation plants at the time of the Prophet ﷺ to process our oil to within a molecule of plastic?
What about chemical pesticides? Chemical preservatives? Artificial coloring? Artificial flavoring? Artificial anything?

If you all are in the "know", and answered "no", then perhaps you are getting the drift... that foods during the time of the Prophet ﷺ were what we now term "organic". They were whole, unprocessed, natural.... and nutrient rich.

Why didn't issues about whether mono and di-glycerides being halal come up then? Because all that never existed! And where did all the disease of modern day come from... processed foods, chemicals, preservatives, pesticides.

What is the first thing the doctor tells you if you are diabetic? Eat whole grains, whole wheat bread and pasta, brown rice, cut out the refined sugars. Masha'Allah, the doctor is advising you to follow the Sunnah!

So to all who say they are striving to emulate the life and times of the Prophet ﷺ and the Sahabah, please think about the food.They were the Original Islamic Green Movement... self-sufficient, organic, natural, whole grain, with seasonal and locally grown foods. I see many of us eating highly processed foods. Does the Sunnah end where the stomach, and sadly our lust for food, begins?

Want to make some lifestyle changes to bring it closer to the Sunnah? Don't know where to start? Just ask! We can work on it together, insha'Allah.

1 comment:

  1. Another insightful post!! Baarak Allah feeki.. You know , sometimes we get so caught up in following this diet or that but as you've just pointed out , the best guidance in all arenas of life, including diet is found in the guidance of the Prophet salal lah aleyhi wa sallam. I love posts like this that teach us how incorporate the sunnah in every aspect. .

    Jazaak Allah khair.
    Umm Zakariya

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