Jannah: Home at Last
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What Will You Eat in Jannah | Episode 11
Your first meal in Jannah is already being prepared, and everything you’d ever desire to eat and drink is just beyond its gates. You can eat anything you desire, including what is forbidden in this world. For your patience and piety, your Lord has prepared luxurious goblets and tableware, sealed nectars aged since the dawn of time, and rivers reserved for those closest to Him.
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DISCLAIMER: All depictions of Jannah are purely conceptual and only vocals were used in the making of the soundtrack.
Transcript
This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings. Khadijah radiAllahu anha was on her way to the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam with a tray of food when Jibreel Alayhi Salaam came to the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam to give her the glad tidings of a palace of Jannah where she will be served. When you think about the inaugural address of the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam in Medina, spread Salaam and feed the people. Imagine the one who used to bring Salaam and sustenance not to the people but to our Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam and what nourishment awaits her in paradise. And imagine sitting with her in her living room with the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam and the angels serving all of us together. So you enter Jannah and you want to feast. What does that first meal look like? All you have to do is order it because the chefs of Jannah make what you want. So whether it's biryani or maqluba or mandi or burgers or durian or jalof rice, you name it. Whatever you want, order it and it will be served to you as you wish. And it may be food that you couldn't have in this dunya. Just like you can't have wine here but you can have it there. And you think about when Western Muslims find a McDonald's in the Middle East or the first time you have pizza with halal pepperoni. The point is nothing is off limits in Jannah and you have what you want. Now is the food of Jannah even similar to what we have here in any way? Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala says in the Qur'an, كُلَّمَا رُزِقُوا مِنْهَا مِنْ ثَمَرَةٍ رِزْقًا قَالُوا هَذَا الَّذِي رُزِقْنَا مِنْ قَبْلٍ That every single time they see another fruit, they say, this is what we had before. Meaning the fruit is familiar enough in name and on the exterior to where you recognize it.
But then once you bite into it, it's next level. So it's sort of like an American mango versus Pakistani or Bengali mangoes. And I'm going to let you sort out which ones are better. But biting it is different than what it looks like on the outside. And Ibn Abbas said, in Jannah, nothing resembles anything of this world except by its name. And some of the scholars said, the higher you go up, the more exotic the fruits get to a point that they have no comparison. Just like how when the Prophet ﷺ was ascending on the night of Al-Isra and Al-Mi'raj, the trees started to become unrecognizable to the point that he was unable ﷺ to describe the colors of Sidrat Al-Muntaha in worldly terms. So the Prophet ﷺ mentioned bananas, and then he mentioned clusters of grapes. And there was a Bedouin that asked the Prophet ﷺ with excitement, Ya Rasulullah, Inab, they have grape in Jannah? And the Prophet ﷺ said, yes. He said, how big is a bundle of grapes in Jannah? And the Prophet ﷺ said, the distance of a month for a flying crow, which never gets exhausted and flies without pause. And every time you pick a fruit in Jannah, it's automatically replenished. And the tree branches lower their fruit for you, so you don't have to work for them. Just like you used to ascend to good deeds with effort, the fruits now descend to you with no effort. These are the people who the Prophet ﷺ said would reach for Iman in the sky. These are the people who the Prophet ﷺ said would hold on to faith even when it's like a burning hot coal. And so these are the people then who receive the book in the right hand given to them after their hard work. And now the fruits of Jannah lower themselves to them for eternity. These are the fruits of your labor, literally. So if these are the fruits, what about the food and the cooked meals? Now amazing things are going to happen that day, some of which we can't process at all.
So for example, the Prophet ﷺ said, Allah will take the entire land of assembly from the Day of Judgment, turn it into a single loaf of bread, then throw it to the people of Jannah to eat. So the appetizer is the earth as a loaf of bread. And when the Prophet ﷺ was asked, well, what will be the welcoming meal in paradise? He said that there is a bull that is grazing now in Jannah, and it will be sacrificed upon arrival. And he ﷺ said, a whale from whose excessive liver 70,000 people would be able to eat. So a rare delicacy known as kabad al-hoot, the liver of a whale. Now you might think to yourself, you know, the bread of the Day of Judgment and fish liver doesn't sound very appetizing. And you might not even like seafood, but this is Jannah. And just think of the idea that the animal that's going to be sacrificed for you is already grazing in Jannah right now. And Allah says, وَلَحْمِي طَيْرٍ مِمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ And then you can have the flesh of any delicate bird that you desire. So you look around in Jannah, and you see these huge birds flying around, and these birds are specifically for consumption. And the Prophet ﷺ said, their necks are like the necks of camels. And Umar ﷺ when he heard that, he said, what blessed birds these are. And the Prophet ﷺ said, no, the ones who eat them are even more blessed. So how does that even work? Do you hunt in Jannah? Do you pick up a gun in Jannah? Do you have something to shoot them with? No, the Prophet ﷺ said, effortless, you look at a bird in paradise and desire it, and it immediately falls on your plate, roasted to perfection, just like the fruits lower themselves to you. Now this is what we somewhat can recognize, and the ease by which it comes to us cooked or fresh as we please is part of the Jannah experience.
But then you have the buffet of Jannah that has meals that we've never even heard of. Ibn al-Qayyim ﷺ said that 70 dishes of gold will be passed around them. Each dish will have a different type of food that is not in the other. And the best part of it is that in Jannah, there's no weight gain, there's no waste, you don't get bloated in Jannah, you don't get full, it's just pure shahwa, pure desire. And Allah ﷻ says, even in the vessels, golden trays and cups with endless servants circling around, the platters themselves are art that is pleasing for you to stare at. Crystal glasses and golden platters. And then come these abariq, these pitchers that have handles, and they're shiny, but you can still see the content on the inside of them, and it's already measured to exactly how much you would want, not a sip more or a sip less. So what would you like to have to drink with your food in Jannah? Now imagine a menu of these mixed cocktails and drinks from the rivers and springs of Jannah. Now remember, there's no filter needed for these, but the mixes are even better. In some places, Allah mentions drinks that are flavored with camphor. Other drinks from the spring of Salsabeel, flavored with ginger. And as we said, tasneem is the drink of the muqarrabun, those who are closest to Allah ﷻ. But Allah says, يُسْقَوْنَ مِنْ رَحِيقٍ مَخْتُومٍ That a bottle of pure wine, sealed with musk, with your name on it, is presented to you. How old is the wine? It's been stored in the cellars of Jannah this whole time. خِتَامُهُ مِسْك The last sip is flavored with musk. And Allah ﷻ says, وَفِي ذَٰلِكَ فَلْيَتَنَافِسِ الْمُتَنَافِسُونَ So let that be what you compete over. Forget about the wine and wealth of this world.
This is the party you want to work for. What you'll notice is that some of these things are not even drinkable in this world, like drinking musk. And the things that are drinkable have issues and harms in this world, like wine. Wine makes you sick and wine makes you sinful in this world. But the wine of Jannah is different, and the people who drink that wine are different as well. Pay attention to how the Prophet ﷺ said, Do not drink in the vessels of gold and silver, and do not eat in their plates. It is for them, meaning the disbelievers in this world, and it is for you in the hereafter. And in the same way, the Prophet ﷺ said, Whoever drinks wine in this world will not drink it in the hereafter. Here we only consume what is halal, in the next life we consume whatever we want. The mindset that brings it all together is to serve others now, and be served by Allah later. Restrain yourself for Allah now, and be rewarded by Allah later. Eat and drink at ease for that which you used to do in days past. In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, Ever Merciful. Ameen.
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