Eating with thankfulness equals fasting with patience

📖Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2486
Abu Huraira reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, The one who eats gratefully has the status of one who fasts patiently.

This hadith shows that both gratitude (shukr) and patience (sabr) are beloved to Allah. A person who eats gratefully recognizes every meal, big or small, as a blessing. They are content, satisfied, and do not complain. Just as fasting requires patience to endure hunger, eating with gratitude requires humility and thankfulness to Allah. Both are rewarded similarly because both qualities reflect a sincere heart.

How to eat gratefully:

• Saying “Bismillah” before eating and “Alhamdulillah” after finishing.
• Being satisfied with whatever food is available.
• Avoiding wastefulness and extravagance.
• Remembering the poor and sharing food with others.
• Recognizing food as a direct provision from Allah, not self-earned alone.

Quranic Context:

📖Quran 2:172
O you who have believed, eat from the good things which We have provided for you and be grateful to Allah if it is [indeed] Him that you worship.

📖Quran 16:114
So eat of what Allah has provided for you, lawful and good. And be grateful for the favor of Allah, if it is Him you worship.”

📖Quran 7:31
“O children of Adam, take your adornment at every masjid, and eat and drink, but do not waste. Indeed, He does not like those who waste.”
This verse directly warns against wasting food – showing that gratitude is not only thanking Allah but also respecting His blessings by using them wisely.

Lesson for Today:
Being grateful when eating means eating with humility, avoiding complaints, and not wasting. Modern times show massive food wastage while millions go hungry – exactly what the Qur’an warns against. Gratitude turns eating into worship, while waste and ingratitude remove blessings.