Forgotten Sunnahs You May Not Have Known About

Imagine you had the chance to influence people and be rewarded for the things they do. Well, you do have that chance!  Are you ready to get influential?

Here are some beautiful Sunnahs of the Prophet which many of us have forgotten or may not know about:

1. Dust off That Bed!       

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: When any one of you goes to bed, let him clear his bed by hitting it with his garment, for he does not know what may have come onto it. Then let him lie down on his right side… (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

This means you dust off the bed with one hand covered by the edge of your lower garment or something else, as long as you cover your hand lest there be something harmful to your hand (as explained by Imam An-Nawawi). Don’t forget to teach this to your children!

2. I Go Shopping and I Say…    

(There is none worthy of worship in truth except Allah alone, He has no partners, He has the dominion and for him is all the praise, He gives life and he takes life and he is the ever living and does not die, in his hand is goodness and he is capable of all things) Allah will write for him thousand thousand reward and erase from him thousand thousand sin and raise him thousand thousand and build for him a house in Jannah!  (An-Nasa’i, At-Tirmidhi)

You can find this dua in the well-known pocket supplication book Hisn-ul Muslim, take this with you, or write it down on a paper and take it out each time you go to a place where there’s people and trade (yes, even a supermarket as it all falls under the ruling of ‘market’) and watch how soon you will memorize it insha’Allah!

3. Had Milk? Pass Me Some Water, Please!     

The Prophet drank some milk then called for some water. Once he got the water he rinsed his mouth then said: It has fat. (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

Imam An-Nawawi said in Sharh Saheeh Muslim:  This hadith confirms it’s recommended to rinse the mouth after drinking milk.

4. Undressing? Say Bismillah!     

Mentioning the name of Allah before entering the toilet or taking off your clothes will prevent the jinn from seeing your ‘awrah or harming you. The Prophet said: To put a barrier that will prevent the jinn from seeing the ‘awrah of the sons of Aadam, let any one of you say ‘Bismillah’ when entering the toilet. (At-Tirmidhi)

Teach this to your children as well!

5. Hearing Whispers in Prayer? Fight Back!    

Uthman ibn Abi’l-‘Aas came to the Prophet and said: O Messenger of Allah, the Satan interferes between me and my prayer and my recitation, and he makes me confused. The Messenger of Allah said: That is a devil called Khinzab. If you feel that, then seek refuge with Allah from him (e.g ‘Audhu Billahi min-as-shaytaanir rajeem) and spit dryly to your left three times.  He said: I did that and Allah took him away from me. (Muslim)

6. Just Woke up? Clear that Nose!    

The Prophet said: When one of you wakes up from his sleep, he must blow of his nose three times, for the shaytan spends the night inside one’s nostrils (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

7. Take a Break in Salah!     

Anas said: I pray as I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessing be upon him) leading us.

Thaabit said: Anas used to do something which I do not see you doing; when he lifted his head from bowing (ruku’) he stood up (so long) that one would say: He has forgotten (to bow down in prostration/sujud). And when he lifted his head from prostration (sujud), he stayed in that position, till someone would say: He has forgotten (to bow down in prostration for the second Sajdah).’ (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

8. Put that Barrier Down!    

The Prophet said: If any of you places something in front of him, [at least] equal [in height] to the back of a saddle, he should pray without caring who passes [in front of him] on the other (opposite) side of it. (Muslim)

Note: This barrier is called a sutrah and it can be anything a person puts in front of himself while he is praying, such as a wall, or a long stick, and the such. The back of a saddle is approximately two thirds of a cubit in height [so the sutrah should be at least the same length]. It can even be a handbag or any other object with this length.

9. Putting Your Shoes on? To the Right!    

The Prophet said: If one of you puts on shoes, let him begin with the right. And when he takes it off, let him begin with the left. And let him put them both on or let him take them off both. (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

You might have known to start with the right, but do you always take your shoes off starting with the left?

10. Don’t Say “Yuk!”    

How many times do we say, “I don’t like that, that’s horrible!” It is narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that he said the Messenger of Allah did not ever criticize food. If he liked it, he ate it and if he disliked it, he left it. (Agreed upon)