It is narrated from the Mother of the Believers, Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her), that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to call dates and milk "al-atyaban" (the two best and purest things). This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Salman al-Farisi (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I read in the Torah that performing wudu (that is, washing the hands) before eating is a source of blessing in food. I mentioned this to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Performing wudu (that is, washing the hands) before eating and after eating is the blessing of food." Qays bin al-Rabi' is alone in narrating this from Abu Hashim, and his scholarly rank and standing are so high that including his solitary narrations in this book is necessary.

It is narrated from Abdullah bin Salimah that he said: I and two other men, one of them from among us and one from Banu Asad, I think, came into the presence of Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him). He sent the two of them on some mission and said: You are both strong men, so strive hard in the matter of your religion. Then he went to relieve himself, and when he came out he took a little water in his cupped hand and wiped (his hands and face) with it, and then began reciting the Qur'an. He sensed that we were surprised at this, so Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would go to the toilet and relieve himself, then come out and eat bread and meat with us and recite the Qur'an, and nothing kept him (peace and blessings be upon him) from reciting the Qur'an except janabah (major ritual impurity). This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), Sayyiduna Abu Bakr and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) came to the house of Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him). When they had all eaten and were full, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Bread, meat, dry dates, half-ripe dates and fresh dates! When such blessings come to you and you stretch out your hands to them, eat taking the name of Allah (saying Bismillah) and seek the blessing of Allah." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Busr (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: My father said to my mother: If only you would prepare some food for the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) (that would be good). So she prepared tharid (and the narrator indicated with his hand that it was little). My father went and invited him (peace and blessings be upon him). He (peace and blessings be upon him) placed his hand (on the food) and said: "Eat with the name of Allah (saying Bismillah)." So they all began eating from its sides. When they had finished eating, he (peace and blessings be upon him) supplicated for them: 'Allahumma-ghfir lahum warhamhum wa barik lahum warzuqhum' (O Allah, forgive them, have mercy on them, bless them (in their provision) and grant them provision). This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Salman al-Farisi (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I prepared some food and brought it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was sitting, and I placed it before him. He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "What is this?" I said: It is a gift. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) placed his blessed hand (on it) and said to his Companions: "Eat with the name of Allah (saying Bismillah)." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from the Mother of the Believers, Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When one of you eats food, let him take the name of Allah (say Bismillah); and if he forgets at the beginning, then (when he remembers) let him say: 'Bismillahi fi awwalihi wa akhirihi' (In the name of Allah at its beginning and its end)." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) that food was brought to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Then a Bedouin came rushing in as if he were being pushed from behind, and he stretched out his hand to the food, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) took hold of his hand. Then a young girl came rushing in the same way, as if she were being pushed, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) took hold of her hand too. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When Satan was unable (to eat the food) because of you, he brought this Bedouin and this girl so that through them he could make lawful (for himself) the food over which the name of Allah has not been mentioned. Eat with the name of Allah." This Abu Hudhayfah's name is Salamah bin Suhaybah, and he has narrated from Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her). This hadith is sahih (authentic), but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

Jabir bin Subh said: Al-Muthanna bin Abd al-Rahman al-Khuza'i narrated to me, and I accompanied him to Wasit. He used to mention the name of Allah at the beginning and at the end of his meal, so I asked him: What about your saying at the last morsel, "Allah, at its beginning and its end"? He said: I will tell you about that. My grandfather Umayyah bin Makhshi (may Allah be pleased with him), who was one of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), I heard him say: A man was eating while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was watching him. He did not mention the name of Allah until he was at the end of his meal (with one morsel left), and then he said: 'Bismillahi awwalahu wa akhirahu' (In the name of Allah, at its beginning and its end). At that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Satan kept eating with him until he mentioned the name of Allah; then Satan vomited up everything that was in his belly." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that a Jewish woman gave the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) a roasted goat as a gift. When the people stretched out their hands to it, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: "Hold back your hands, for one of its limbs is telling me that it is poisoned." The narrator says: He (peace and blessings be upon him) sent for the woman and asked: "Did you put poison in this food?" She said: Yes. I thought that if you are (Allah forbid) not a true prophet, I would relieve the people of you, and if you are true, I was certain that Allah Almighty would inform you of it. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Mention the name of Allah and eat." So we ate, and it did not harm any of us at all. This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.