ALMISKEENAH

 

DATE STONES 

[Prophet], have you considered those who claim purity for themselves? No! Allah purifies whoever He will: no one will be wronged by as much as the husk of a date stone. (4:49)

Do they have any share of what he possesses? If they did they would not give away so much as the groove of a date stone. (4:53)   

Little is the enjoyment in this world, the Hereafter is far better for those who are aware of Allah: you will not be wronged by as much as the fibre in a date stone.  (4:77)

Lo! It is Allah who splits open the grain of corn and the date-stone. (6:95)

 

The Arabs use the word "naqeer," "fateel" and "qitmeer" to describe something insignificant. A "naqeer" is the incision on the date stone, "fateel" is the string, or thread that is found in this groove, and "qitmeer" is the skin of the date stone. Such rich language describing this tiny part of the date we hardly notice. And yet Allah Ta’ala mentions the date palm, its fruit and the stone or seed several times in His Book, SubhanAllah, as well as numerous Ahadith referring to the date stone.  

Hudhaifah and Abu Dharr RadhiAllahu anhuma reported that when the Prophet, SallAllahu alaihi wassalam went to bed, he would say, "O Allah, by Your name I live and die." And when he woke up he said, "Praise be to Allah Who gave us life after death and to Him is the return." He placed his right hand under his cheek and prayed, three times, "O Allah, save me from Your punishment on the day when You will raise Your creature." He would also say, "O Allah, Lord of the heavens, the earth, and the Mighty Throne, our Lord and the Lord of everything, Who causes the seed to grow and the date-stone to split and sprout, Who sent down Taurah, Injil, and the Qur’an, I seek refuge in You from the evil of all evil-mongers under Your Control. You are the First and there is nothing before You, and You are the Last, and there is nothing after You. You are the Evident and there is nothing beyond You, and You are the Source and there is no power beside You. Relieve us of our debt and poverty." (Bukhari.)

And similar wording, specifically linking the Greatness of Allah Ta’ala to the date stone in another beautiful Du’a: when Fatimah RadhiAllahu anha came to the Prophet, SallAllahu alaihi wassalam, asking him to give her a servant, he said, "Say, ‘O Allah, the Lord of the seven heavens, and the Magnificent Throne, our Lord and the Lord of all things, the Revealer of the Torah, Injil, and the Qur’an, The Splitter and Grower of the seed grain and date stone, I seek Your refuge against the evil of all things that You hold under Your control. You are the First, there is nothing before You. You are the Last, and there is nothing after You. You are the Manifest and there is nothing above You, You are Innermost and there is nothing beyond You. Remove the burden of debt from us and relieve us from want.’" (Muslim)

Narrated Anas RadhiAllahu anhu that when ‘Abdur-Rahman bin Auf RadhiAllahu anhu came to Medina, the Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wassalam established a bond of brotherhood between him and Sad bin Ar-Rabi al-Ansari RadhiAllahu anhu. Sad was a rich man, so he said to ‘Abdur-Rahman, "I will give you half of my property and will help you marry." ‘Abdur-Rahman RadhiAllahu anhu said to him, "May Allah bless you in your family and property. Show me the market." ‘Abdur-Rahman RadhiAllahu anhu did not return from the market till he gained some dried buttermilk, yogurt and butter through trading. He brought that to his house-hold. We stayed for sometime, as long as Allah wished, when one day ‘Abdur-Rahman RadhiAllahu anhu came, scented with yellowish perfume. The Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wassalam said to him: "What is this?" He replied, "I got married to an Ansari woman." The Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wassalam asked, "What did you pay her?" He replied, "Gold equal to the weight of a date stone." The Prophet said to him, "Give a wedding banquet, even if with one sheep."

Asmaa, RadhiAllahu anha, when first married to az-Zubair RadhiAllahu anhu used to grind date stones as food for the camels. Many narrations report how the Sahabah RadhiAllahu anhum would suck on date stones for days when faced with not having any other nourishment. While we read of how many would use date stones as counters for their Dhikr.

I know of one sister who has one thousand date stones in a pouch, along with a large white cloth and several laminated copies of Durood Tunjina. As visitors arrive, she places the pile of stones on the cloth, gives a copy of the Durood to each visitor, who then begins reciting the Durood, along with all assembled. Each takes a date stone for each recitation and then places it in front of them, until all stones from the pile are finished. SubhanAllah, such a way of welcoming others, filling the heart and the house with Nur!  

 

It is we who, like the tulip in the desert of Medina,

Bear in our heart the scar of longing for Medina.
Passionate longing for Paradise may disappear from the wise man’s head, but

It is not possible that the passionate longing for Medina should leave him.

The Tuba tree that has lifted its head on the apex of the Throne

Is only a branch from the garden-adorning palm tree of Medina.
When you eat dates, kiss their kernels, for

The kernels of the dates of Medina are the beads of the angels’ rosary!

Rumi

Maybe these final resplendent lines from Rumi’s poem explain why I hoard date stones! 

All good is from Allah Ta’ala whereas mistakes are from this humble speck. May Allah Ta’ala Bless all readers, bringing you all closer to Him and His Rasul SallAllahu alaihi wasallam. Ameen.