Is it permissible to eat by leaning? Is it harmful medically?

Dear Brother / Sister,

There are various narrations about the sitting style of the Prophet (pbuh) while eating. Abu Juhayfa reports the following from the Messenger of Allah:

"I do not eat my meals while leaning." (Bukhari, At'ima 13; Tirmidhi, At'ima 28; Ibn Majah, At'ima 6; Darimi, At'ima 31).

Shuayb b. Muhammad b. Abdullah b. Amr reports the following from his father: We have never seen the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) eat while leaning. (Bukhari, Ahkam 43; Ibn Majah, Muqaddima 21; Ahmad b. Hanbal, II, 125, 127).

Ibnul-Qayyim al-Jawzi gives the meaning of the word "ittika" (leaning/reclining) as follows in his book called Zadul-Maad:

1) Sitting cross-legged,
2) Sitting by leaning against something,
3) Sitting by leaning to the right or left; he states that they are all prohibited since the third one is harmful to the stomach and the first two are the sitting styles of oppressors.  

Khattabi states the following: "When the word ittika is used, people understand it as eating by leaning on one side; on the contrary, it means sitting firmly on the mattress and remaining like that. In that case, the meaning of the hadith should be as follows: I do not sit by settling myself firmly on the ground/mattress when I eat. People who eat a lot do like that. I eat a few morsels, which is enough as nutrient; therefore, I sit in a way that will enable me to stand up easily after eating."

Ibnul-Athir states the following in an-Nihaya: "If a person interprets ittika as leaning on one side, he will have interpreted it appropriately in terms of medical science. According to the claim of medical science, in that case, the thing that is eaten cannot move easily in the alimentary canal and will not make the person feel comfortable; it will give pain."

Ibn Abidin, one of the Hanafi scholars, holds the view that it is permissible to sit by leaning on or against something while eating. The same thing is stated in Fatawa al-Hindiyya too. As a matter of fact, the following is reported from Mus'ab b. Sulaym: I heard Anas say, “The Prophet (pbuh) sent me somewhere. When I returned, I saw him leaning back and eating dates. (Muslim, Ashriba 148; Ahmad b. Hanbal, III, I80). However, the religious permissibility of leaning on or against something while eating depends on not having a feeling of conceit. (Aliyyul-Qari, Aynul-Ilm wa Zaynu-Hilm, I, 275)

The mustahab style of sitting is as follows: Sitting on one’s knees and on the top part of his feet or keeping the right foot upright and sitting on the left foot by placing it straight on the ground.

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