Sidr Leaf Powder (Beri ke patte)

English Name           

Lote tree leaves;

Lotus leaves (not the lotus flowers that grow in water);

Jujube

Arabic Name

Sidr:  سدر

Scientific Name

Zizyphus Spina-Christi

Description

Green leaves ground into powder

Properties

Natural cleansing agent like soap

(Contains saponins, tannins, anti-bacterial agents and alkaloids) Note: some people who are allergic to latex may have similar reactions to the sidr alkaloids so seek advice first before using)

Medicinal Uses

Cleanse skin and hair

Fragrance

Smells like wet grass

Mentioned in Islaam

Sidr is mentioned in the Qur’aan in 4 places:

Surah Saba ayaahs 15 and 16;

Surah Najm aayahs 7-18;

Surah Waaqi’ah ayaahs 27-33.

Sidr is mentioned in the sunnah in numerous ahaadeeth.

It was used at the time of the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) as a soap and shampoo in different situations:

1.     Wash hair and body

2.     Ghusl

3.    Wash the dead before burial. "Wash him with water and Sidr and shroud him in his two cloths".

4.     Remove effects of magic/envy. (Not a sunnah from the Prophet (sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam) but some scholars have mentioned using it as a cure)

Methods of using

Sidr for hair and body:

Add 1 tablespoon of powdered sidr to approximately 1 cup of warm water. Mix it vigorously with your fingers to make it frothy and like soap suds. Wash your hair with it, leave on for a few minutes while washing the rest of your body, then rinse out completely.

A day after hair has been washed with sidr it will be shiny and full of volume inshaa Allaah!

Sidr for washing the dead:

Add one cup of sidr powder to a bucket of water. Make it frothy with your fingers before using.

Sidr for accepting Islaam:

“It is Mashru` (Islamically prescribed) for anyone who wants to embrace Islam to first say Shahadah then perform Ghusl. This is according to many Hadiths. It was narrated by Qays ibn `Asim that when he wanted to embrace Islam, the Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered him to perform Ghusl using water and Sidr (lote tree/ lotus jujube). (Related by the Five Compilers of Hadith [Imams Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Al-Tirmidhy, Al-Nasa'y, and Ibn Majah] except for Ibn Majah)” (Shaykh Bin Baz vol. 11 p37)

Sidr for removing envy or magic:

“...It is also recommendable to add seven leaves of Sidr to the water, as some Salaf (righteous predecessors) used to do, and recite Ayat-ul-Kursy, Al-Iklas and Al-Mu`awwidhatayn and some Ayahs (verses from the Qur'an) on removing the magic effect, from Surah Al-A`raf, Surah Yunus and Surah Ta-Ha, on the water by yourself or by aid of anyone else and this will be helpful, in sha'a Allah.” (Shaykh Bin Baz part 28 p346)

“...One method of treating sorcery after its occurrence - it is also an effective remedy for a man who cannot have sexual intercourse with his wife because of sorcery - is the following: Take seven leaves of the green Sidr (lote tree) and pound them with something like a stone; then put them in a vessel and pour into it an amount of water enough for washing. After that, recite the following Surahs and Ayahs over the water: Ayat-ul-Kursy, Surahs Al-Kafirun, Al-Ikhlas, Al-Falaq, and Al-Nas, and the Ayahs in Surah Al-A`raf that speak of sorcery. Then drink three times from that water and wash yourself with the rest. Thus, the illness will be cured, if Allah so wills. This method may be employed two times or more until the illness is cured...” (Fataawa of Shaykh bin Baz vol. 3 pp274-282)