Which one first: prayer or eating?

In everyday life, especially for Muslims, often questions that are troubling ‘pray or eat first?.‘ We can see this problem from a different perspective. Some people argue that prayer must take precedence, because it is the main obligation for a Muslim. But there are also those who argue that it’s better to eat first in order to pray solemnly. Both of these opinions are not just a matter of stomach or worship, but a discussion of how Islam gives a position between physical needs and spiritual peace, because sometimes we feel guilty when choosing to eat first rather than prayer, as if we are more concerned with world affairs in the hereafter. Is that true? Then, which one is more precise, pray first or eat first?

It turns out that this kind of question has been clearly discussed by the Prophet in the hadith narrated by Imam Bukhari no. 673 and Muslim Imam no. 559, he said:

If the night is placed, and the prayers are determined, then start with that night, and do not rush from your dinner.

It means: “When dinner is served, then dinner before Maghrib prayer. And don’t get in a hurry to eat”

From this this hadith gives the understanding that if there is food that is already available and we are already hungry, then it is recommended to eat first, after that then perform prayers. That is because Islamic law understands human nature; People who are hungry difficult to be solemn in worship, especially if food is available. Concentration will be disrupted and prayer will be in a hurry. This point of view applies when the prayer time is still quite long and eating is not used as an excuse not to perform prayers. When the prayer time is not long enough, then you should pray first.

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Indeed, the Prophet allowed eating first, but that does not mean we may ignore prayer or even postpone it until the prayer time has run out. Priority to eating is not a form of underestimating prayer, precisely the form of effort to maintain the quality of worship. And vice versa, we should not force prayer in a weak body condition or hungry so that the body’s metabolism decreases and can disturb the solemnity in prayer

In the Muslim Syarh Sahih Volume 5 Page 6, Imam Nawawi states:

“Disunned to prioritize dinner first when it is present, even though the prayer time has entered, so that someone can pray with a calm heart”

Prayers in hunger often only make physical movements without any solemnity. When food is available, but we have not eaten and continue to pray, then our minds will be busy imagining food, is this what is called solemn? Clearly no. Even though the Shari’a has provided space to complete basic needs in advance so that worship can still be done with a calm heart instead of torturing themselves holding hunger with a long time. In the modern world, the point of view of worship psychology is very important. When a person holds a hunger for a long time, his blood sugar levels will decrease, this will have an impact on focus and emotions, which is why people who are hungry will be easily angry, restless and difficult to concentrate.

Then we must be able to maintain balance by preparing the best possible time. If there is food that is available and close to the prayer time, try to eat sufficiently first, then continue the prayer, because if we eat excessively it will definitely be lazy to perform prayers. But if it’s not too hungry and there is also no food available to pray first. Eating first does not mean that prioritizes the world rather than the hereafter, but instead keeps the afterlife of worship not done half-heartedly and also not delaying worship but preparing for worship that the worship is truly meaningful.

The conclusion is that I can eat first with a note, the prayer time is still long, food is already available and the stomach is hungry. It is also possible to pray first if the stomach is not hungry, and food is also not yet available. This needs to be considered because worship is not only about time, but also about awareness, calmness and presence of the day.

Also read: Prayer or Eat first?

Author: Nabila Rahayu

Editor: Muh Sutan