Monday, July 5, 2010

Prophet (saw) loves cat.



Bismillaah

As Salaamu 'alaykum and peace to all,

Today, Allah (swt) has given me a new friend. I crosspath with a new sister online, which i have never met before. Pretty great gal. I got to know she is in sadness for her pet just died. Yeah, you can smile. A pet? A cat actually. Honestly, I am not so fond of cats. I am actually quite terrified by cats. It is just my thing. Something, until today is still a mystery to me. This is my fear factor. Cats.

But I know how much Rasullullah SAW loves cat. We all have heard of stories about it. Also, the name of Abu Hurayrah, a major authority on hadith, literally translates to "cat man" or "father of cats". Both Abu Hurayrah and the Prophet enjoyed the presence of cats. So, maybe i should try to overcome this 'little' problem of mine. After all, it is just in the brain. I also found one nice story about Prophet SAW and his love for animals, in particular, cats...


Feeding a dumb animal is also full of virtue

The Prophet of Islam was once performing ablution (Wudhu) for prayers from a pot of water. A cat passed there and turned its eyes at the pot of water with a thirsty look. The Prophet realised at once that the cat was very thirsty, so he stopped the ablution (Wudhu) and placed the pot before the cat. Only after the cat had fully quenched its thirst, did the Prophet resume the ablution (Wudhu).

Subhanallaah.. Can you see how great the character of Prophet is?

1602. Anas said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, forbade tying up animals so that they could be shot at and killed." [Agreed upon]Riyad as-Salihin (The Meadows of the Righteous)

Islam taught us to be merciful to all creatures, and that includes animals.

"Those who are kind and considerate to Allah's creatures, Allah bestows His kindness and affection on them. Show kindness to the creatures on the earth so that Allah may be kind to you." Hadith - Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi

Failure to do so may result in us being burn in the Hellfire, na'uzubillaah.

Allah's Apostle said, "A woman was tortured and was put in Hell because of a cat which she had kept locked till it died of hunger." Allah's Apostle further said, "(Allah knows better) Allah said (to the woman), 'You neither fed it nor watered when you locked it up, nor did you set it free to eat the insects of the earth.' " Hadith - Bukhari 3:553, Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Umar [Also in Muslim, Narrated Abu Huraira]

Therefore, my friends, let us always remember that loving all creatures of Allaah is a duty for us if we want to receive His Kindness and Affections. And for me, that includes ...cats.... :)))

*I would like to dedicate this piece to a cat living with a voyager and a cat named cheeky
Sis Zabrina 2006-Malaysia
More Beautiful Reading

Cats in Islamic Culture
When Cats Reigned Like Kings
Cats and Islam

2 comments:

  1. MashAllah. Did he really like cats that much? I just thought he cared for all animals, but I didn't know of his affection for cats.

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  2. Yes MashaAllah, have you heard the story of ABu Hurayrah (ra) how he gets his nickname? Abu Hurayra was very poor and modest. One day God’s Messenger saw him with a cat in his arms and nicknamed him Abu Hirr, meaning the father or owner of a cat, and people began to call him Abu Hurayra. However, he liked to be called Abu Hirr, since this title was given to him by God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings.159(I.Hajar)

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