MERIT OF SHARING FOOD

MERIT OF SHARING FOOD

ALLAH the Exalted says:

"And they give food, in spite of their love for it (or for the love of Him), to the poor, the orphan, and the captive.''(Al-'Insān 76:8)

"And eat of the things which ALLAH has provided for you, lawful and good, and fear ALLAH in Whom you believe". [Al-Maeda: 88]

Ahadith:

1.Abu Hurairah (May ALLAH be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of ALLAH (peace and blessings be upon him) said,"The food of two persons suffices for three persons, and the food of three persons suffices for four persons.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

2. Jabir bin `Abdullah (May ALLAH be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of ALLAH (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "The food of one person suffices for two, the food of two persons suffices for four persons, and the food of four persons suffices for eight persons.'' [Muslim].

Commentary: This Hadith indicates that if a few persons share the same dinner-table, a small quantity of food will be enough for many persons. Moreover, this increases mutual love and fellow-feeling.

3. Abu Hurairah (May ALLAH be pleased with him) reported: A man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said; "I am hard pressed by hunger.'' He (peace and blessings be upon him) sent a word to one of his wives who replied: "By Him Who has sent you with the Truth, I have nothing except water.''

Then he (peace and blessings be upon him)  sent the same message to another (wife) and received the same reply. He (peace and blessings be upon him) sent this message to all of them (i.e., his wives) and received the same reply.

Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Who will entertain this (man) as guest?'' One of the Ansar said: "O Messenger of ALLAH, I will.'' So he took him home and said to his wife: "Serve the guest of Messenger of ALLAH (peace and blessings be upon him).''

Another narration is: The Ansari asked his wife: "Have you got anything?'' She answered: "Nothing, except a little food for the children.'' He said: "Keep them busy with something, and when they ask for food put them to sleep. When the guest enters, extinguish the light and give him the impression that we are also eating.'' So they sat down and the guest ate and they passed the night hungry.

When he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the morning, he said to him, "ALLAH admired what you did with your guest last night.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Commentary: This Hadith describes a unique example of hospitality and kindness liked by Allah. It imparts to man the sense of self-sacrifice and a feeling of fellowship.

SHARING FOOD IS A GLOBAL LANGUAGE

We at Taher have known this for years. Our Chief Operating Officer, Shawn Taher, has given speeches on the subject at the United Nations! It is one of the reasons we visit international locations on our Chef Council trips.

Food is a connection. Think of your grandmother’s recipes. It’s a connection to somewhere else. Where they came from. Why they sought a new opportunity. But still that connection to the old country. Sharing food begins that bond of family. Not just caring about one another, but the heritage shared between people with a common ancestor.

Here are some of the reasons to get the people together and share a meal.

1. It promotes productivity.

   Eating together builds trust, even subconsciously. A recent case study from Entrepreneur showed the company Impraise boosted morale and productivity among members of its team just by the simple act of sitting down together and having lunch. It helps people from across the company learn about each other and make them feel welcome.

2. It boosts morale.

   It is difficult to build morale in high-stress environs, like a hectic classroom. If you can slow down the environment, introduce a level of calm, and bring in something that even reminds people of home, it can be a great way to bond with people you work with every day. There’s even a great book about Leaders Eating Last. 

3. Eating the same food builds trust.

Seriously, it does. It’s not enough to just have everyone bring a lunch and sit down. Sharing the same food sends the subconscious signal that “this food is safe and I will eat it with you.” Not super important now, but sitting around a fire in 20,000 BCE it becomes much more important. We’ve kept that Cro-Magnon part of our brain and relied upon it to build relationships and trust in our tribes.

We have tons of stories from our Chef Council trips about sharing food. It builds team camaraderie and builds relationships with the locals. Chef Chris Murray will never forget the meals he shared with people in Morocco and Vietnam. He even mentions the Vietnam story in his Chef Spotlight!

Now that you know the benefits of sharing food and meals, what are some action items you can implement to make your school or district a more welcoming place, especially for new faculty?