تغطية الآنية وإيكاء الأسقية
A preventive practice of covering food and drink containers at night, explicitly linked to avoiding contamination and disease-bearing agents.
غَطُّوا الْإِنَاءَ، وَأَوْكُوا السِّقَاءَ، فَإِنَّ فِي السَّنَةِ لَيْلَةً يَنْزِلُ فِيهَا وَبَاءٌ لَا يَمُرُّ بِإِنَاءٍ لَيْسَ عَلَيْهِ غِطَاءٌ ... إِلَّا وَقَعَ فِيهِ مِنْ ذَلِكَ الْوَبَاءِ
“Cover your vessels and tie your waterskins, for there is a night each year when an epidemic descends, and it settles into any uncovered vessel it passes.” (meaning, not a literal translation)
The same hadith adds a simple alternative for someone without a proper lid — placing a stick crosswise over the vessel's mouth while mentioning Allah's name is described as sufficient, showing the instruction was meant to be practically achievable rather than requiring specific equipment.
Commentators note this as an early articulation of basic food-safety and disease-prevention hygiene, regardless of how the specific 'night' is understood. Ibn al-Qayyim discusses this instruction alongside other practical protective measures in the tradition, treating covered storage as a straightforward precaution against airborne contamination, insects, and vermin, independent of any specific single night the hadith refers to.
Covering food and water storage overnight is standard modern food-safety guidance, protecting against airborne bacteria, dust, and pests — a straightforwardly sound practice by contemporary hygiene standards, independent of the specific historical framing in the hadith.