Seadet-i Ebediyye - Endless Bliss Sixth Fascicle

dying of cold or hot or hunger. It is obvious that these things are
isrâf.
It is stated as follows in Hadîqa, in the chapter dealing with
tragedies incurred by one’s speech: “It is cruelty to destroy others’
property. It necessitates payment. It is isrâf to destroy one’s own
property. Also property or money spent for committing a sin or
sins or for having a sin or sins committed is an isrâf.”
There are also other kinds of isrâf that are not known by
everybody and which require tip-offs. For instance, if the gruit
gathered and the crop harvested are not kept under good
conditions, so that they decay of themselves or by absorbing
moisture, or if they are eaten by worms, maggots, mice, rats, ants
and/or the like; all these things are kinds of isrâf. In other oft-seen
instances of isrâf victuals such as bread, meat, meat-broth, cheese;
fruits like dates, watermelons, onions; desiccated fruit such as figs,
raisins, wild apricots; cereals like wheat, barley, lentils; and goods
such as clothes, fabrics, and books are being wasted as a result of
similar negligence.
It is isrâf to pour food remnants down the sink or to wash and
clean the forks, spoons, dishes, bowls used before wiping them
with a piece of bread or with your fingers and thereby eating the
food remnants or to wash and clean your fingers before licking the
last of the food on them. It isrâf, also, to throw away the crumbs of
bread and other food that fell on the tablecloth or the meal-table,
while you might as well glean them. It will not be isrâf, however, to
(gather the remnants and) glean the crumbs and utilize them
feeding pets such as cats and dogs or livestock such as sheep and
cows or birds, domestic fows, or ants. Jâbir bin ’Abdullah ‘radiy-
Allâhu ’anh’, (martyred in 74 [693 A.D.],) [1]
is quoted to have
stated as follows, in the book (Sahîh-i-) Muslim: Rasûlullah ‘sall-
Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam’ stated: “Wipe your dishes, (after having
eaten the food in it,) with your finger; and then wipe your finger
with your mouth.” At another occasion the Best of Creation
stated: “The devil keeps company with you throughout your daily
occupations. Even as you eat. If one of you drops a piece of food
he is to put into his mouth, let him pick it up, wipe the dust off, and
eat it. Let him not leave that morsel to the devil! And let him lick
[1] This blessed person, one of the Ashâb-i-kirâm (or the Sahâba), is
believed to be at Koca Mustafâ pasha, Istanbul, although it is written
in books that he passed away in the blessed city of Medîna.
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