Sunnah Practice of Licking Fingers and Cleaning the Utensil After Eating

The Sunnah of Licking Fingers After Eating


Author: Imran Ayyub Lahori

Cleaning One’s Fingers and Utensil After Eating​

❶ Ibn ʿAbbās (RA) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
إذا أكل أحدكم طعاما فلا يمسح يده حتى يلعقها أو يلعقها
"When one of you eats food, let him not wipe his hand until he licks it himself or has it licked."
Bukhari: 5456; Muslim: 2031; Abu Dawood: 3847; Ibn Mājah: 3269; Ahmad: 1/221



❷ Jābir (RA) reported that the Prophet ﷺ ordered the licking of fingers and the utensil, and said:
إنكم لاتدرون فى أى طعامكم البركة
"You do not know in which portion of your food the blessing lies."
Muslim: 2033; Ahmad: 3/315; Ibn Mājah: 3279



❸ Anas (RA) reported:
أن رسول الله كان إذا أكل طعاما لعق أصابعه الثلاث
"When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ate food, he would lick his three fingers."
Muslim: 2034; Abu Dawood: 3845; Tirmidhi: 1803

Avoiding the Use of Towel Before Licking Fingers​

Before licking the fingers, one should not use a towel — and in today’s context, also tissues — as per the narration of Jābir (RA) in which the Prophet ﷺ said:
ولا يمسح يده بالمنديل حتى يلعق أصابعه
"He should not wipe his hand with a towel until he has licked his fingers."
Muslim: 2033