Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Sir,

Bohras before starting a meal taste a pinch of SALT.

What is the religious significance of this act. Is there any Hadith on this tasting of salt before meals or it is just a tradition.

Thanking you,

Brother Burhan,

As salaamu alaikum wa rahmatullah. May Allah bless you for the service you are doing and help you show the right path to all the believers that have gone astray.

I have come across the following in a mailing list and would like you to confirm the authenticity of the same:

"Why Taste Salt before Meals?

Our Holy Prophet (P) has said: "One who eats a pinch a salt before and after a thing (food) Allah will protect him from 360 types of hardship, of which the easiest is leprosy". Imam Baqir (a.s.) has said: "Salt is a cure for 70 diseases and if people will come to know the advantages of salt they will not use any other cure except salt."

Jazak-allah khair

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Salt before food?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your Question: Bohras, before starting a meal, taste a pinch of SALT.

What is the religious significance of this act. Is there any Hadith on this tasting of salt before meals or it is just a tradition.

Salt is one like the other innumerable blessings or ‘nehmah’ of Allah Subhanah, and can be consumed as required or as one wishes.

To the best of our knowledge there is absolutely no hadith or religious significance to this custom of tasting a pinch of salt before starting one’s meals. If one wishes one may take a pinch of salt before one starts a meal; but to give it a religious flavor, or assume that it is a Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws) without any authentic ‘daleel’ or proof, or assume that one will get a reward for doing this custom, etc. will make an innovation or ‘bidah’. There is absolutely no evidence in the authentic hadiths that the Messenger of Allah (saws) ever practiced the tasting of a pinch of salt before and after his meals, nor is there is any evidence that the noble companions or the noble members of his family ever practiced this custom.

Your Statement: Our Holy Prophet (P) has said: "One who eats a pinch a salt before and after a thing (food) Allah will protect him from 360 types of hardship, of which the easiest is leprosy". Imam Baqir (a.s.) has said: "Salt is a cure for 70 diseases and if people will come to know the advantages of salt they will not use any other cure except salt."

To the best of our knowledge, there is absolutely no evidence in any of the authentic books of hadith of the above quotation attributed to the Messenger of Allah (saws).

One should be careful when quoting from the Messenger of Allah (saws) and make sure that only that which is authentically related from him (saws) should be quoted; as the Messenger of Allah (saws) was sent as a guide for all mankind until the end of time. If everyone started to invent his own rites and rituals and customs, and tried to legalize them Islamically by attributing a false statement or deed to the Messenger of Allah (saws), Islam would soon lose its purity! It is considered a grave sin in Islam to attribute any saying or deed to the Messenger of Allah (saws) which he (saws) has not said or done.

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 1.106 Narrated by Hadrat Ali ibn Abi Taalib (r.a.)

The Prophet (saws) said, "Do not tell a lie against me; for whoever tells a lie against me (intentionally) then he will surely enter the Hell-fire."

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 4.712 Narrated by Wathila bin Al Asqa

The Messenger of Allah (saws), "Verily, one of the worst lies is to claim falsely to be the son of someone other than one's real father, or to claim to have had a dream one has not had, or to attribute to me what I have not said."

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan