A man ate with his left hand in the presence of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), whereupon he said: "Eat with your right hand." The man said: I cannot do that. Thereupon, he said: "May you not be able to do that
Authenticعَنْ سَلَمَةَ بْنِ الْأَكْوَعِ رضي الله عنه: أَنَّ رَجُلًا أَكَلَ عِنْدَ رَسُولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ بِشِمَالِهِ، فَقَالَ: «كُلْ بِيَمِينِكَ»، قَالَ: لَا أَسْتَطِيعُ، قَالَ: «لَا اسْتَطَعْتَ»، مَا مَنَعَهُ إِلَّا الْكِبْرُ، قَالَ: فَمَا رَفَعَهَا إِلَى فِيهِ.
Salamah ibn al-Akwa‘ (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man ate with his left hand in the presence of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), whereupon he said: "Eat with your right hand." The man said: I cannot do that. Thereupon, he said: "May you not be able to do that." It was only arrogance that prevented him. He said: He could not raise it up to his mouth afterward.
Explanation
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) saw a man eating with his left hand, so, he ordered him to eat with his right hand. The man lied and said, out of arrogance, that he could not do this. So, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) supplicated against him to be deprived of the ability to eat with his right hand. Allah fulfilled His Prophet's supplication and the man's right hand was paralyzed and he could not raise it to his mouth after that with any food or drink.
Benefits
- It is obligatory to eat with the right hand and it is prohibited to eat with the left hand.
- Disdaining to apply the Shariah rulings makes one worthy of punishment.
- Allah Almighty honored His Prophet Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) by answering his supplication.
- The legitimacy of enjoining good and forbidding evil in all situations even while eating.
Source · Narrated by Muslim
From the Hadith Encyclopedia (hadeethenc.com).