197. ‘Abdullāh ibn Ja’far narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) ate qithā’ with ripe dates (rutab).” [228]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
Qithā’ is a type of cucumber that is larger than the normal cucumber.
Al-Bajūrī said,
He (peace be upon him) combined between dates and cucumber to attain the benefits and avert the harms of each. This is because the hotness of dates neutralises the coolness of cucumber i.e. dates neutralise the negative effects of cucumber and the latter neutralises the negative effects of dates.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
You should know that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) used to eat from the fruits grown in his town and never refrained from it. This is a means of maintaining one’s health.
This hadīth teaches us that it is allowed to combine between two types of idām and the hadīth does not state that both are chewed at once. Rather, it means that both are eaten one after another so they are both in the digestive tract.
198. Aisha narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) ate watermelon with ripe dates (rutab).” [229]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
All the hadīths about the virtue of watermelon are fabricated or very weak except this hadīth.
Al-Bajūrī said,
The combination of fruits that he (peace be upon him) used to eat shows that he followed the logic of medicine i.e. he ate that which would neutralise the bad effects of the other food.
199. Anas ibn Mālik reported: “I saw the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) eating muskmelon together with ripe dates (rutab).” [230]
200. Aisha narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) ate watermelon with ripe dates (rutab).” [231]
201. Abū Hurairah narrated: “People used to pick their new fruit, and then present it to the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him). He then would take it and supplicate, ‘O Allāh! Bless us in our fruits. Bless our city. Bless us in our sā’, and bless us in our mudd (these are two units of measurement used to measure dates). O Allāh! Ibrahīm is Your slave, close friend, and Prophet, and I am Your slave and Prophet. And, he supplicated to You for Makkah and I supplicate to You for Madīnah for the like of what He prayed to You for Makkah.’ Then, he would call the youngest child he could see and give him that fruit.” [232]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This hadīth shows an allowed type of intercession - that is intercession through one’s state as a slave of Allāh and humility before Him.
It was his perfect manners, kindness and mercy that made him give the fruit to the youngest child present because children long the most for fruits.
Al-Bajūrī said,
The Prophet (peace be upon him) is also the khalīl of Allāh (i.e. close friend of Allāh) but he did not mention it either out of reverence for Ibrahīm or because he was granted a higher level of love and closeness to Allāh.
The fact that the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not eat the fruit brought to him and instead gave it to children demonstrates that noble people with pure souls and high manners do not long to eat something until after everyone else can have it.
The scholars are in agreement that Makkah and Madīnah are the best places on earth, and the three imāms hold the view that Makkah is better than Madīnah whereas Imām Mālik stated otherwise. However, the dispute is not over the noble area where he (peace be upon him) is buried for it is indeed better than the heavens and the earth.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
The people brought the fruits to the Prophet (peace be upon him) because they favoured him over themselves and to seek his blessings.
202. Al-Rubayyi’ bint Mu’awwidh ibn ‘Afrā narrated: “Mu’ādh ibn Afrā sent me with a plate of ripe dates (rutab), which had small cucumbers upon it, to the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him). He (peace be upon him) liked cucumbers. I took the plate to him and when I entered on him, I saw jewellery that was sent to him from Bahrain. He took hold of a handful from it and gave it to me.” [233]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
He (peace be upon him) gave her from the jewellery because it was suitable for women.
Al-Bajūrī said,
Mu’ādh ibn ‘Afrā was the uncle of al-Rubayyi’ and he and his brother were the ones who killed Abū Jahl in the battle of Badr.
The jewellery refers to money and pieces of jewellery.
203. Al-Rubayyi’ bint Mu’awwidh ibn ‘Afrā narrated: “I took a plate of ripe dates (rutab) and small cucumbers to the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him). He gifted me with a handful of jewellery, or a handful of gold.” [234]