ProverbHub
Arabic · Arabic scriptProverb: Verified

«اِللِّي يَاكُلْ لُقْمَهْ يُلْطُمْ لَطْمَهْ»

Meanings

Each meaning is reviewed on its own.

Meaning: Verified
English translation

Anyone who eats at the mourning meal is expected to take part in the mourning.

Literal wording

Whoever eats a morsel must slap himself once.

Meaning and lesson

The saying links eating food at a mourning gathering with an expected display of grief. Someone who accepts a portion of the meal is portrayed as owing a corresponding act of participation in the mourning.

Its force comes from pairing receiving food with joining the occasion’s visible sorrow. The image of face-slapping refers specifically to a mourning gesture in this context, not to ordinary assault or a general endorsement of such practices.

When it is used

Use it when discussing the expectation that someone who shares in a mourning meal should also participate in the gathering’s observances of grief. Avoid it in sensitive bereavement situations, where its imagery may be distressing.

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