Miswak

There are many hadiths, or accounts of the Prophet’s example, peace and blessings be upon him, telling us that he used a Miswak or Siwak to clean his teeth.

A Miswak is a twig from a tree, which is used as a toothbrush. The end of the Miswak is soaked in water and is then worked into a brush, becoming suitable to clean one’s teeth. The best Miswak is from a Peeloo tree, the next best is from an Olive tree and the next best from a Terebinth tree. The Prophet said,
“The Miswak is obtained from a blessed tree. It cleanses the mouth and removes the yellowness from the teeth. This type of Miswak was used by me and the Prophets before me.”

“Make the use of the Miswak compulsory upon yourself for in it lies the cleansing of the mouth and the pleasure of God.”

This hadith informs us of two great benefits, one relating to this world and the other relating to the Hereafter. The worldy benefit is the cleansing of the mouth. The benefit of the Hereafter is that a person obtains the pleasure of God Almighty, which is the goal of life.

The Prophet said, “two rakats of Prayer which are performed after using the Miswak are more beloved to me than performing seventy rakats of Prayer without using the Miswak.”

Hazrat Omar said,” The Prayer performed after using the Miswak is seventy five times superior to that Prayer which is performed without using the Miswak.”

Hadrat Ali said, “Make the use of the Miswak necessary upon yourself and always practice it because in it lies the pleasure of Allah while the reward of Prayer is increased ninety nine times by it’s use.”

The Prophet said, “The Archangel Gabriel stressed upon me the importance of the use of the Miswak until I feared that it may become compulsory on my Community. Had I not feared that it may inconvenience my community, I would have made the use of the Miswak compulsory upon them. I use the Miswak so excessively that I sometimes fear that the front portion of my mouth may be brushed away.”

He said another time, “Had I not feared the difficulty of the use of the Miswak upon my Community, I would have commanded them to use the Miswak at the time of each Prayer.”

It is also related that the Prophet said, “On the day of Jummah, of Friday Congregational Prayer, the one who washes themselves, uses the Miswak, applies perfume, wears their best clothes, comes to the Mosque and does not cross over the shoulders of other people, but performs his Prayer and emerges silent, God will forgive all sins which were committed during the previous week.”

The use of the Miswak is encouraged to be used before Prayers, Dhikr, reciting the Quran, before and after eating, before and after sleeping and whilst fasting.

The Prophet said, “When a person performs Wudu during the day or night, and performs Wudu, together with using the Miswak and then stands up to perform Prayer, the Angels surrounds him. They come near him until they place their mouths upon his mouth.”

Mawlana Shaykh Hisham reminds us of the saying of the Prophet, “Whoever revives my Sunnah, my example, when there is so much corruption (in the last days of this world), will get the reward of a hundred martyrs.’
When you use the Miswak, therefore, you get the reward equivalent to that of a hundred martyrs, which is a huge reward.”