The Prophet (peace be upon him) regularly used perfumes, and he liked every pleasant smell, but he preferred distinctive ones when he could find them. Indeed, when he mentioned the two things he liked best in this present life were perfumes and women, emphasizing always the need to treat women kindly, particularly in a social environment in which he grew up, when women were generally ill-treated. One of his wives, Ramlah (radi Allahu anha), used to give him a special perfume she brought with her on her return from Abyssinia. He was very pleased with that because it had a very pleasant and distinctive smell. Lady Ayesha (radi Allahu anha) reports that she used to give the Prophet (peace be upon him) his perfume on special occasions. When he spent several days in the mosque, dedicating himself to worship during Ramadan, he would at times let his wife, Ayesha (radi Allahu anha), comb his hair. She would be in her home, which was adjacent to the mosque, and he would be inside the mosque, but next to his door.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) did not like to eat onions and garlic, because of the smell of the mouth they give. He said to his companions that anyone who ate these should not come to the mosque soon afterward. They thought that he would prohibit them, but he emphasized that as a servant of God, he had no authority to prohibit anything. This authority belongs to God alone.

Two of his wives tried to play a trick on a third one who gave him a type of honey he liked. They wanted to deprive her of the pleasure of giving the Prophet something that pleased him. As he went to see them, each commented that he smelled of a certain type of food, which gave a bad smell. He told them that he only had some honey. They said that the bees must have fed on that food. He decided not to eat that honey again. This was an unnecessary step, because what he ate was perfectly lawful, and he liked it. Besides, the point about its bad smell was not true.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) took care of his personal hygiene, washing and cleaning every part of his body whenever this was needed. He washed his hands before and after meals. He (peace be upon him) would rinse his mouth after eating. He (peace be upon him) taught his companions to rinse their mouths after drinking milk, so that they would remove the traces of cream that milk left. Needless to say, the milk they drank contained all its cream, as they did not have the facilities to skim it. Indeed, they could not leave the milk long enough so that the cream would form a layer on the surface, because in their hot climate, milk would go bad if left for a few hours. Moreover, the Prophet (peace be upon him) encouraged us to take a shower whenever we could. He (peace be upon him) said that it was a duty owed to God by everyone to wash one’s head and body at least once a week. This was in an area where water was scarce. Now that most of us enjoy having plenty of water, more frequent showers are much encouraged.

By Adil Salahi