Abu Hurayrah - The Father of Kittens

   Abu Hurayrah, famous as a companion of the Prophet (saw) and a major narrator of his sayings. Was given the nickname Abu Hurayrah (literally father of Kittens) by the Prophet because he used to care for a small male cat. ("Cat" word comes from the Arabic word qit/Hirra but a tiny male cat is called hurayrah, or thus In Arabic, hirra means cat and hurayra means a kitten.)

   Also Legend has it that the reason Sayyiduna Muhammad (saw) loved cats so much was that his life had been saved by one. A snake had crawled into his sleeve and refused to leave. A cat was called and asked the snake to show its head, in order to discuss its departure. When the snake finally appeared, the cat pounced on it and carried it off.

   There is also a legend about this in which a cat saved the Prophet's life from a deadly snake. The story is narrated by Annemarie Schimmel as follows: "There are variants of the story of how Abu Huraryra's cat, which he always carried in his bag, saved the Prophet from an obnoxious snake, whereupon the Prophet petted her so that the mark of his fingers is still visible in the four dark lines on most cats' foreheads, and, because the Prophet's hand had stroked her back, cats never fall on their backs" (A. Schimmel, Deciphering the Signs of God, Albany, NY, 1994).

   The cat is such a clean animal that according to authentic narrations one may make ablution for Prayer with the same water that a cat drank from. Yet, it is known that some people nowadays have opposed the traditions of the Prophet by taking up the evil practices of torturing and poisoning cats.

   In Islam, the punishment for such actions is severe. Islam holds a special place for cats as lovable and cherished creatures, and mistreating a cat is seen as a serious sin. Al-Bukhari reported a hadith regarding a woman who locked up a cat, refusing to feed it and not releasing it so that it could feed itself. The Prophet Muhammad said that her punishment on the Day of Judgment will be torture and Hell.

   There are many records of the Prophet's love for cats and his relationship with them. "The prophet's fondness for cats is often referred to, and whether or not the hadith that ‘Love of cats is part of the faith' is genuine, it reflects the general feeling for the little feline."

   It is believed that you will suffer no harm if you drink from the cat’s water provided no impurities are seen in the cat’s mouth. In another story from the hadith, it is stated that a when a cat ate a pudding put down during prayers, the person who was in charge of the pudding ate from the same place as the cat and Prophet (s) said this was alright as the cat is not unclean and is "one of those who go around amongst us".

   The Prophet of Islam was once performing ablution (Wudhu) for prayers from a pot of water. A cat passed there and turned its eyes at the pot of water with a thirsty look. The Prophet realised at once that the cat was very thirsty, so he stopped the ablution (Wudhu) and placed the pot before the cat. Only after the cat had fully quenched its thirst, did the Prophet resume the ablution (Wudhu).