Assalaamualaykum!

Peace and blessings be upon you, our dear student and soon-to-be-counsellor. This Lesson is the first of our course. Watch the video clip, listening carefully. Then have a look at the assignment and quiz questions. Be confident and happy to watch it as many times as you like, to clarify your answers and deepen your understanding.

Tayyib- The Prophet's Way

Reflections on the Prophet (SAW)'s life and eating habits.

Assignment: Making Tayyib Real

Notes:

This is a medium-level task. The dishes are mostly very simple to make.

For many brothers who are married or live with family, your mothers or wives may be doing the cooking. If you have no experience whatsoever and have no confidence in the kitchen, then you can skip this assignment.

However, the Prophet was known to help with chores around the house and it would be fantastic to try something outside your normal comfort zone, if you are so inclined. The women will be more than happy, insha'allah, to help you out. They may even help you or take over the task for you- all is fine. Stay with them and learn what they do. Appreciate the process, subhanallah. It is an experience and a blessing to spend time with your loved ones like this.

To brothers who cook for themselves, well, you know what to do. Get cooking.

• Pick two of the dishes mentioned in the video, which you want to try. Pick one dish for suhoor (breakfast) and one for the evening (Iftar).
• See if you can find simple, clear recipes for the two dishes you have chosen. Perhaps go online or ask someone you know.
• Write down those recipes in your notebook. Share the recipes with your whatsapp group, or maybe see what recipes your group have found.
• Now here comes the special part. You have to make one, or both, dishes, over the next few days, and report back on how the experience went. So, the next steps are-
• Tell the people you cook for about your task. Explain why you are doing it. Make it sound interesting and exciting: you are cooking something the Prophet ate; you're learning the Tayyib way!
• Acquire the ingredients. See which ones you might have at home. If possible, rather than buying them first, ask in your community if someone has any given ingredient to let you have some. When they ask, tell them you are making something that the Prophet (SAW) used to have. Spread the love!
• Prepare and serve the dish
• Describe the experience, the taste, the feedback from others. Make notes in your book, or discuss it with people close to you, or on the Group chat.

What a thrill to make something the Prophet himself enjoyed. Celebrate your achievement, whether it worked out of not!

Encountering difficulties and triumphs

If it worked well, say subhanallah and feel great. If it didn't work out, also say subhanallah. Remember that you have to put in the effort. Allah decides the result. Failing or struggling does not mean that He is punishing or guiding you away from the path at all!

Be light of heart and encouraging in your approach. Perhaps upload pictures of your dish to your Whatsapp Group. Be sure to offer your praise and help to other people in your group.

Was it delicious, did it go well, or did it end on a sour note? Enjoy the newness and excitement of this simple task. Remember to ask your group for recipes and feedback about how things went for them, Do this over the next week so that you all share experiences about the same time.

Reflection Exercise

• Think back about the dish you made, (or would make if cooking is not possible for any reason). What do you notice about the ingredients? Are they expensive? Are they easy to find? Are they wholesome or processed, and would they be part of the common ingredients you would buy?
• What do you know about the Islamic recommendations for how quickly one should eat, and how much one should chew? Is this slower or more comprehensive than the way you eat? Reflect on how you eat when you eat a main meal or when you snack. Do you tend to rush or eat slowly? Do you chew enough to appreciate the full flavour of the food?

During Ramadan, communities tends to notice that weight doesn't drop; in fact, many times weight goes up. Reflect on your own community, or your own eating habits, and consider why this might be happening. Then, imagine someone from your family or community wanted you to advise them on how to eat more appropriately. Thinking of the steps you would advise them, what kind of things would you suggest?

Learning through reflection, repetition and lightness.

You may want to watch the video again. In fact, we strongly advise you download and repeat it. Each time you watch it, do it as if it is the first time you are watching it. Ask yourself different questions. What do you notice when you repeat watching it? Does it feel boring or so you learn something differently or more clearly? Don't be shy, be honest about the experience with yourself. Share your experience with your group if you like. You may have positive or negative things to say: be OK with that either way, subhanallah, as long as you conduct your communications in an honourable and kind way.

Reflect on all of these matters, and know that there is very little that is right or wrong here. It is more about a way of life, a way of being that is open to new experience, simplifying life towards more wholesome habits, and helping others understand why you are doing it. Perhaps they will find the courage to do it too!

Next: The Quiz

Now go on and look at the quiz that appears next. They're multiple choice questions but some questions have more than one right answer. Whether you get them all right or you get many wrong, it is important to ask yourself this question: why did we, the course designers, ask you this question: what were we trying to illustrate? Thinking about it this way will be far more useful than simply getting right or wrong scores.