5/17. Chapter:
Sahih Muslim 564b — Garlic, Onion, and Staying Home
Prohibiting one who has eaten garlic, onions, or leeks, and other things that have an offensive odor from coming to the masjid, until that smell has gone away, and such a person should be expelled from the masjid
Garlic or Onion Before Mosque: When Staying Home Shows Respect
Sahih Muslim : 564b
Sahih MuslimHadith Number 564b
وَحَدَّثَنِي أَبُو الطَّاهِرِ، وَحَرْمَلَةُ، قَالاَ أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ وَهْبٍ، أَخْبَرَنِي يُونُسُ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عَطَاءُ بْنُ أَبِي رَبَاحٍ، أَنَّ جَابِرَ بْنَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ - وَفِي رِوَايَةِ حَرْمَلَةَ وَزَعَمَ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " مَنْ أَكَلَ ثُومًا أَوْ بَصَلاً فَلْيَعْتَزِلْنَا أَوْ لِيَعْتَزِلْ مَسْجِدَنَا وَلْيَقْعُدْ فِي بَيْتِهِ " . وَأَنَّهُ أُتِيَ بِقِدْرٍ فِيهِ خَضِرَاتٌ مِنْ بُقُولٍ فَوَجَدَ لَهَا رِيحًا فَسَأَلَ فَأُخْبِرَ بِمَا فِيهَا مِنَ الْبُقُولِ فَقَالَ " قَرِّبُوهَا " . إِلَى بَعْضِ أَصْحَابِهِ فَلَمَّا رَآهُ كَرِهَ أَكْلَهَا قَالَ " كُلْ فَإِنِّي أُنَاجِي مَنْ لاَ تُنَاجِي " .
Jabir reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: He who eats garlic or onion should remain away from us or from our mosque and stay in his house. A kettle was brought to him which had (cooked) vegetables in it, He smelt (offensive) odour in it. On asking he was informed of the vegetables (cooked in it). He said: Take it to such and such Companion. When he saw it, he also disliked eating it. (Upon this). he (the Holy Prophet) said: You may eat it, for I converse wkh one with whom you do not converse.
[1] Qidr , in Sahih Al-Bukhari and others it is Badr , a platter made of palm leaves.Reference : Sahih Muslim 564bIn-book reference : Book 5, Hadith 91USC-MSA web (English) reference : Book 4, Hadith 1146
Summary of Sahih Muslim Hadith 564b
This hadith about garlic or onion before coming to the mosque gives both a rule and an example. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said that whoever eats garlic or onion should stay away from them or from the mosque and remain in his house. Then a pot with cooked vegetables was brought. He noticed its smell, asked about it, and was told what was inside. He had it taken to one of his Companions. When that Companion disliked eating it, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said he could eat it, because the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم conversed with one whom the Companion did not converse with. The explanation should stay close to the text: the food itself was not treated as something everyone must avoid, but its smell mattered in the setting of the mosque and the Prophet’s own state.
What we learn from this hadith
- After eating garlic or onion, a person should stay away from the mosque while the smell remains.
- The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم noticed odor and asked about the cooked vegetables.
- The Companion was told he could eat, showing the text does not make the food itself forbidden for everyone.
- The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم mentioned his special conversation with one the Companion did not converse with.
