وَاخْشَ الدَّسَائِسَ مِنْ جُوْعٍ وَّمِنْ شِبَعٍ          فَرُبَّ مَخْمَصَةٍ شَـــرٌّ مِنَ التُّـخَمِ

22/10. And fear the covert evil of (both) hunger and satiation (overeating), for sometimes hunger (poverty) is more evil (dangerous) than overeating.

What does hunger and overeating refer to?

1. Starving the nafs is sometimes more harmful than fulfilling every desire, as this can lead to pride, show, etc. This stanza is connected to the previous one. This does not mean that one should not adopt taqwa. What is meant is that those who become pious should make a greater effort to stay away from arrogance and vanity always fearing that their imaan can be snatched away. 

Ibn Mas’ood RadhiAllaahu Anhu  narrates that Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam, who is truthful and whose truthfulness is attested, related to us,

“The creation of each one of you remains in the womb of his mother for 40 days in the form of a sperm. It then becomes a clot of blood for an equal number of days (i.e. for another 40 days).
It then becomes a piece of flesh for an equal number of days. (After the passage of a total of 120 days), an angel is sent to him, which blows the soul into him. The angel is then commanded to record four things: his sustenance, his term of life, his deeds, and whether he will be fortunate or wretched.
I take an oath in the name of that Being apart from whom there is none worthy of worship, that one of you will carry out deeds of the people of Paradise. Till when Jannah is just one arm’s length from him, his destiny will prevail over him and he will commit a deed of the people of the Hell-fire. Consequently, he will enter the Hell-fire. One of you will carry out deeds of the people of the Hell-fire.
When Hell-fire is just one arm’s length from him, his destiny will prevail over him and he will commit a deed of the people of Paradise. Consequently, he will enter Paradise.” (Bukhaari no. 3208. Muslimno. 2643)

Incident: It is related that a group of people were once seated in the company of Hasan Basri Rahimahullaah, when some men passed by, dragging along with them a body of a dead man. When Hasan saw the dead man, a glint of instant recognition could be discerned in his eyes and he fell unconscious from the shock of some memory that had just been rekindled. When he regained consciousness, his companions asked him what was wrong with him.

He said, “This man – referring to the dead man being dragged along on the ground – used to be one of the best worshippers and one of the most renowned ascetics in the world (renouncing all the temporary pleasures of this world because he was so busy and devoted to worship). One day he left his home, intending to go to the masjid to pray; but on the way, he saw a beautiful young Christian women who became an immediate temptation to him.

When he proposed to her, she refused, saying, “I will not marry you until you become an adherent of my religion (Christianity).”

He went on his way, but as time went on, his yearning for her continued to increase. He then succumbed to her wish and exited from the fold of Islaam. After he became a Christian and some time passed, the woman came out to him from behind the curtain and said, “You are a man who is bereft of goodness. You have forsaken your religion, which was important to you for your entire life, simply for the sake of a lust that is of no value. Indeed, I too am forsaking my religion, but not for the same reason. I am doing so in order to achieve a blissful existence that never comes to an end, an eternal existence under the care of the One, the Self-Sufficient.”

She then recited the entire Surah Ikhlaas.

When the people had heard about what she had said, they approached her and asked, “All along, you had this surah memorized?”

“No,” she answered. “By Allaah, I had never known it before. But after this man continued to insist upon having me, I saw a dream; I saw Hellfire, and my place in it was shown to me. I became terrified and panic-stricken. Maalik – the gatekeeper of the Hellfire – said to me, ‘Do not be afraid or sad, for Allaah has ransomed (i.e. saved) you with this man (i.e., he will take the place in Hell-fire that you would have taken had not Allaah saved you).’

He then took me by the hand and admitted me into Paradise. Seeing a line written inside of it, I read it; among what was written were these words, “Allaah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the Book (Al-Lawhul-Mahfooz).” (Ra’d verse 39)

He then recited Surah Ikhlaas to me, and I began to repeat it. Then I woke up and had it (Surah Ikhlaas) memorized.” Hasan Basri Rahimahullaah then said, “The woman then embraced Islaam, and the man – whose corpse you just saw being dragged away – was killed for having apostatized. And I ask Allaah to make us firm and steadfast upon guidance and to grant us safety and success.” (Bahrud-Dumoo’ of Ibnul-Jawzi page 77)

2. The apparent meaning is taken here. If a person remains hungry, then eventually he becomes completely useless and cannot do anything. For this reason, Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam prohibited his followers from continuous fasting. Abu Hurayrah RadhiAllaahu Anhu and Aaishah RadhiAllaahu Anha narrate that Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam prohibited fasting for two days or more without eating or drinking anything in-between.
(Bukhaari no. 1965, Muslim no. 1103/1105, Musnad Ahmad no. 7548, 8902, 10433, 10694, etc.)

Ibn Umar RadhiAllaahu Anhu narrates, “Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam prohibited fasting for two days or more without eating or drinking anything in-between.
The Sahaabah RadhiAllaahu Anhum said to him, “You fast in this way.”
Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam replied, “I am not like you. I am provided with food and drink [from Allaah Jalla Jalaalahoo].”
(Bukhaari no. 1962, Muslim no. 1102, Abu Dawood no. 2360)

Keeping in mind this moderation, Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam advised Abdullah ibn Amr ibn Aas RadhiAllaahu Anhu to fast three days in a month as was explained above. In all actions, Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam taught moderation. The incident of Abu Dardaa RadhiAllaahu Anhu and Salmaan RadhiAllaahu Anhu has also been mentioned above.

Anas RadhiAllaahu Anhu narrates, “Three people came to the houses of Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam’s wives, inquiring about his worship (in his house). When they were informed (about his worship at home) they considered it little (i.e. it was less than what they expected).
They then said to themselves, ‘We can never compare with Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam. All his past and future sins are forgiven.’
One of them said, ‘I will forever remain awake at night in order to perform the tahajjud salaah.’
The second person said, ‘I will keep fasting forever.’
The third person said, ‘I will remain aloof from women and I will never marry.’
Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam came to them and asked, ‘Are you the ones who made such and such statements?! By Allaah, I fear Allaah Jalla Jalaalahoo more than you and I am more conscious of Him than you. Yet, I keep fast, and sometimes I do not. I offer salaah at night and I also lie down. And I marry women as well. Therefore, whoever is disinclined from my Sunnah is not of me.’”
(Bukhaari no. 5063, Muslim no. 1401)

In short, there must be moderation. Wherever there are excesses or deficiencies, there will be harm.
Allaah Jalla Jalaalahoo states, “Eat and drink and do not exceed the bounds. Verily Allaah does not love those who exceed the bounds.” (A’raaf verse 31)

If a person eats in moderation, and he still feels some hunger, he will gain the following benefits:

1. Hunger cleanses and enlightens the heart.
2. The heart becomes soft, causing one to enjoy his dhikr, etc.
3. A person becomes punctual with his acts of worship.
4. A person remains healthy. He is saved from many sicknesses.
5. There is less expenses for food.
6. A person can give more charity.

The harms of remaining very hungry are:

1. Harshness and severity is created in the nature.
2. A person becomes tired.
3. The body becomes withered and emaciated.
4. A person will not be able to fulfil the rights of Allaah Jalla Jalaalahoo and the rights of fellow human beings.
5. A person will become very weak.

The harms of eating too much are:

1. The heart becomes hard.
2. A person sleeps more.
3. Unmindfulness increases     
4. Long hopes are created.
5. Desires are increased.
6. Sicknesses are increased.
7. A person becomes lazy to do righteous actions.

Maalik ibn Anas RadhiAllaahu Anhu said, “I was informed that a group of the Bani Israaeel used to fast in the day. When the evening came, and the food was placed before them, one amongst them, taking turns, used to stand up and say, “Do not eat much, then you will drink much and you will rest much.”
(Zuhd of Ahmad ibn Hambal page 86 no. 528)

In Kitaabul-Ju’ of Ibnu Abid Dunyaa, the narration reads, “If you eat a lot, you will sleep a lot and you will perform very little salaah.” (Ju’ no. 306)

Abu Kareemah al-Miqdaam ibn Ma‘dikariba RadhiAllaahu Anh narrates, I heard Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam saying,
“Man has not filled a vessel worse than the stomach. A few morsels of food which would keep him upright are sufficient for man. But if there is an absolute need to eat more, one third of the stomach should be for food, one third for drink, and one third to breathe.” (Tirmidhi no.2380)

Note: In the books of Ahaadeeth, the virtues of poverty and abstinence as well as the austere lifestyles of Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam and the Sahaabah RadhiAllaahu Anhum are mentioned in detail. Remember well that they lived a life of sacrifice, but they never deviated from their objective (of obedience). There were no shortcomings in their acts of worship. Today, there is weakness in all aspects: spiritually, physically and mentally.
Therefore, if a person tries to imitate them, he might destroy himself. A person should adopt moderation and simplicity, keeping in mind the strength of his body and mind.

The poet has mentioned the importance of abstaining from both hunger and overeating, but at the end of the stanza states that more often, hunger is more perilous than overeating. The reason is twofold:

a. Majority of people are aware of the harms of overeating, whilst very few are aware of the harms of extreme hunger.
b. A person is able to perform acts of worship with a full stomach, even though lazily, but in extreme hunger, a person may not be able to do so.

3. Hunger refers to poverty, and overeating refers to excess wealth. The harms of poverty are greed, begging, jealousy, etc. Rasulullaah SalAllaahu Alayhi Wasallam said,

كَادَ الْفَقْرُ أَنْ يَكُونَ كُفْرًا

Poverty can lead a person to disbelief.
 (Shuabul-Imaan of Bayhaqi no. 6188)

The harms of excessive wealth are vanity, pride, increase in love for this world, greed, long hopes, etc.

4. Hunger refers to ignorance and overeating refers to knowledge.

Ignorance results in people performing actions incorrectly and is a cause of innovations and misguidance spreading.

The harm of knowledge is that it creates pride and arrogance in a person. If a person does not reform himself, he will regard himself as superior to others and look with contempt at those who are less knowledgeable than him. Another harm of a person who acquires great knowledge, but is not reformed is that he will utilize the knowledge for his own personal benefits.

5. Hunger refers to keeping quiet, and overeating refers to speaking too much. The harms of keeping quiet are that a person will not speak the truth in the face of evil and wrongdoings. A person can also easily fall into vanity, regarding himself as pious for keeping quiet.

6. Hunger refers to staying awake at night, whilst overeating refers to sleeping the whole night. Moderation should be adopted.

To be Continued In Sha Allaah

مَوْلَاىَ صَلِّ وَ سَلِّمْ دَائِمًا أَبَداً  عَلىٰ حَبِيْبِكَ خَيْرِ الْخَلْقِ كُلِّهِم