Hadith Library

1. When the Prophet sent Abu Mūsā al-Ash‘arī on a mission to Yemen, he asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) about the status of some drinks that were familiar to the people of Yemen, such as bit‘ and mizr. Abu Burdah, who was Abu Mūsā’s son, explained to his own son, Sa‘īd, that bit‘ was a drink made by the fermentation of honey, while mizr was the drink made by the fermentation of barley. It is also said that it is the fermentation of a mixture of wheat and barley. The Arabic word used in the hadith is nabīdh, which is a drink of dates, grapes, honey or any other soaked in water and left to ferment over a period of time, whether it intoxicates or not.

 2. The Prophet gives Abu Mūsā a clear answer that applies to all drinks, not merely the two he specified. The Prophet’s answer attaches the ruling to the effect of what is being consumed of food or drink. If it intoxicates, then it is forbidden, whether it is made of honey, dates, grapes, barley or any other substance, and whether it is solid, liquid or powder, regardless of names or descriptions.

 In Arabic, wine means khamr, a word derived from a root that signifies covering. It is given to spirits generally because it is like a covering that blurs the mind, in the same way as a head covering conceals it. Thus, whatever has the same characteristic is given the same verdict. This is the meaning of the Prophet’s answer: ‘Every intoxicant is forbidden’.

The hadith refutes the claim that the prohibition applies only to wine made of grapes. This is confirmed by the fact that when the verses prohibiting wines were revealed, the people of Madinah did not use wine made from grapes. Ibn ‘Umar said: ‘When wine was prohibited, the people of Madinah used to have five different drinks, but none of these was made of grapes’ [1]

The same ruling equally applies to a strong drink of which only a small amount intoxicates and a mild one which intoxicates only with heavy drinking. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘If a large amount of a drink intoxicates, it is forbidden even in a small amount’ [2] The point here is that a small amount is forbidden although it does not intoxicate, because it is the means to drinking much and  ecoming intoxicated. This comes under the rule of cause prevention, prohibiting what leads to the ultimate evil. Thus, a small amount which does not intoxicate is still forbidden.

1. Every Muslim should take precautions and stick to what Islam requires. Therefore, we must not do anything unless we know that it is permissible. The Prophet’s companions were keen to ensure this, as is clear from Abu Mūsā’s question about these drinks.

2. The questioner should explain what he is asking about, so that the mufti has a very clear idea of what the question concerns and gives the right ruling.

3. The original verdict about types of food and drinks is that they are permissible, unless we have evidence indicating the prohibition of something in particular. When there is nothing to indicate the prohibition of a certain type of food or drink, then it is permissible.

4. The safe protection of the mind is one of the objectives of Islamic law. Hence, the Shariah prohibits whatever influences the mind or disrupts its proper function. The worst of these is alcohol as it harms both body and mind.

5. Names may change, but the ruling is the same: alcohol, narcotics, qat, etc. carry the same ruling of prohibition, because they all have the same ultimate effect. No one may try to deceive God by using different names.

6. The reason for prohibiting alcohol is that it influences the mind, which is addressed by God’s commands. When the mind is dysfunctional, the barrier that stops a person from sinful action is removed. Moreover, the person concerned is unable to control his behaviour, which may lead to hostility with others.

7. The temptation to drink alcohol is one that leads to the loss of control of one’s mental faculty. He is thus unable to remember God and contemplate His blessings and signs. An early scholar said that a person who drinks goes through a period of time when he does not know his Lord. God has created mankind so that they would know, remember, glorify, worship and obey Him. What prevents this and obscures one’s vision of one’s Lord is certainly forbidden. [3]

8. One very important aspect of the punishment administered to the one who drinks alcohol is that he is denied drinking it in Heaven, if he is admitted there. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Whoever drinks wine in this present life and dies an addict of it, and does not repent, shall not drink it in the life to come’. [4]

9. Unless a person who drinks alcohol repents, God shall make him drink of the sweat and puss of Hell’s dwellers. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Whatever covers [the mind] is wine, and whatever intoxicates is forbidden. Whoever drinks an intoxicant, his prayers are redeemed short for forty days, but if he repents, God accepts his repentance. If he returns to it a fourth time, God will certainly make him to drink of ṭīnat al-khabāl’. People asked the Prophet what that was, and he answered: ‘The puss of Hell’s dwellers. And whoever gives such a drink to a minor who does not distinguish what is lawful from unlawful, God will certainly make him drink of ṭīnat al-khabāl’.[5]

10. Advocates of Islam and scholars should have the insight to give questioners answers that benefit them. If they feel that it is best to give a simple answer to the question, without adding anything, they should do so, but if they feel that some extra is beneficial, they should add it.

11. Al-‘Abbās ibn Mirdās al-Sulamī disdained drinking intoxicants in pre-Islamic days. He was asked why he did not drink, when drinking increases one’s courage and generosity. He said: I fear that I will be my people’s master in the morning and their stupid fool in the evening.

12. Drinking alcohol is the mother of all evil. When a person drinks it, it may lead him to commit adultery, theft or manslaughter. He may even blaspheme without being cognizant of what he is saying.

  13. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘A man who lived before your time used to devote much time to worship and stay away from people. A woman loved him and she sent her servant to him saying: “We would like you to come as a witness”. He went to her. As he entered through a door, the servant locked it. Ultimately, he entered a room where a pretty woman was seated. There was also a servant with her, and a jug which contained wine. She said: “We have not invited you to witness anything. I only want you to kill this boy, or sleep with me or drink a glass of wine. If you refuse, I shall scream and undermine your reputation”. When he realized that he had no escape, he said to her: “Give me a glass of wine”. When he drank it, he asked for more. He continued, and ultimately, he slept with her and killed the boy’. [6] 

Related by al-Bukhari, 4616. 1.

2. Related by Ahmad, 5648; Abu Dāwūd, 3681; al-Tirmidhī, 1865; Ibn Mājah, 3393.

3. Ibn Rajab, JāmiꜤ al-‘Ulūm wal-Ḥikam, Vol. 2, p. 475.

4. Related by al-Bukhari, 5575; Muslim, 2003.

Related by Abu Dāwūd, 3680 .5.  

6. Related by Ibn Ḥibbān in his Ṣaḥīḥ anthology, 5348

1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) warns against eating too much, as several illnesses are caused by overeating. Moreover, when a person eats his fill, he will feel lazy, disinclined to attend to worship, having no enthusiasm for work. His mind will be slow functioning.

 2. Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) recommends his community to be satisfied with a few bites, removing the feeling of hunger and giving them the energy to do their worship and good work.

 3. If one is unable to maintain this and wish to eat more, the Prophet recommends that one should allow one-third of one’s stomach for food, one-third for drink and one-third for easy breathing. When a person fills up his tummy with food and drink, he will be short of breath. He will feel uncomfortable, tired as though he is carrying a heavy burden.

1. The Prophet’s medical advice concentrated on disease prevention, more than treatment and cure.

2. A wise person does not fill his tummy with food, as this causes much harm. Luqmān, the wise, said to his son: ‘When the stomach is too full, thought is in slumber, wisdom is dumb, and the body organs are too lazy to attend to worship’. [1]

3. The desire to eat often leads a person into what is unlawful. It was the means by which Satan tempted Adam and Eve to eat of the forbidden tree.

4. Eating sparingly is a good quality. The Arabs of old used to praise a person who ate little. This should apply more to the people of faith.

5. It is enough for any person to eat what satisfies hunger and thirst, and gives sufficient energy. Beware of overeating.

6. The Prophet and his companions used to eat only what was sufficient to keep them active. Therefore, they did not care for riches. Abu Hurayrah passed by some people who had cooked a whole lamb. They invited him to join them. He declined and said: ‘God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) left this life without ever having his fill of barley bread’.

7. Aspire to attain what is superior, not merely to eat your fill.

8. Let your maximum be to have one-third of your stomach for food, so that you leave enough for your drink and comfortable breathing.

9. It is mentioned that Ibn Māsawayh, a famous physician, said when he read this hadith in Abu Khaythamah’s book: ‘Had people implemented this advice, they would have spared themselves all sorts of illness while hospices and pharmacies would have been idle’.[2]

10. A Muslim should eat what is enough to support life and satisfy hunger, while an unbeliever indulges in the pleasure of eating much. The Prophet said: ‘A believer eats for one intestine while an unbeliever eats [to fill] seven intestines’.[3]

1. Al-Ghazālī, Iḥyāʼ ‘Ulūm al-Dīn, Vol. 3, p. 82.

2.  Ibn Rajab, Jāmi‘ al-‘Ulūm wal-Ḥikam, Vol. 2, p. 468.

3. Related by al-Bukhari, 5393; Muslim, 2060.

 The Prophet (peace be upon him) was keen to disseminate religious teachings and rulings. Therefore, in his speech on the Day of Arafat during his Farewell Pilgrimage he highlighted many important issues before an audience in excess of 100,000 of his companions.

 1. He started his speech with praising and glorifying God and immediately followed that with a strict order forbidding the shedding of Muslims’ blood or taking their money and property. It is strictly forbidden for a Muslim to kill another Muslim unfairly, or to take his money or property unlawfully. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says: ‘All that a Muslim has is forbidden to another Muslim: his blood, property and honour’. [1]

2. The Prophet then states that all the rituals and acts of worship invented in pre-Islamic days are void and unacceptable, whether these pertain to hajj rituals or otherwise. Acts of worship are only those stated by God and explained by His Messenger.

3. The Prophet (peace be upon him) then rules that all killings that occurred in pre-Islamic days were void: they incur neither blood money, nor retaliatory execution, nor indemnity. No demands may be made for these. The Prophet started with himself and his family’s claim, voiding the killing of the son of Rabī‘ah ibn al-Ḥārith ibn ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib, who was an infant given to a wet nurse from the Banī Sa‘d tribe and killed by mistake by the Hudhayl tribe.

4. The Prophet also nullified all outstanding usurious transactions dating to the time of ignorance, i.e. pre-Islamic days. Whoever entered into such a transaction prior to becoming a Muslim and had not yet been paid would be entitled only to the sum he advanced, taking nothing more. A person who dealt usuriously prior to Islam, and completed the deal, getting his dues before becoming a Muslim, his past practices are waived, because embracing Islam atones for whatever was committed previously.

Indeed, the prohibition of usury predated the time when the Prophet delivered this speech, and the Muslims stopped it, but the Prophet was emphasizing it, particularly for newcomers to Islam. Its prohibition is stated in the Qur’anic verses:

Taking usurious money is a major sin, and the Prophet describes it as such. Jābir narrated: ‘God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) cursed the one who devours usury, the one who pays it, the one who writes [the agreement] and the two witnesses’. He said: ‘They are all the same’.[3]

The Prophet (peace be upon him) started by writing off the usurious gains of his uncle al-‘Abbās who used to lend money usuriously before Islam. He became very rich, and amassed a lot of money in such transactions. The Prophet voided all usury from being incurred by his loans but allowed him to retain what he had gained prior to the prohibition of usury.

5. Next, the Prophet (peace be upon him) urges kindness to women. They must be treated fairly and caringly. Men must be considerate of women and their feelings, and they must meet their needs. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Take good care of women. A woman is created from a rib. The most crooked part of a rib is its top. If you try to straighten it, you break it, and if you leave it, it remains crooked. Take good care of women’. [4] He urged good treatment of women, saying: ‘The best of you are those who are best to their women; and I am the best of you to my women’. [5] Indeed, he made what a man spends in looking after his family an act that earns God’s reward. He said: ‘Whatever you spend, seeking God’s pleasure, will earn a reward for you, even a bite you put in your wife’s mouth’. [6]

The Prophet explains the basis of his emphatic recommendation of taking good care of women, stating that a woman becomes a man’s lawful wife according to God’s covenant and law. Whoever goes back on his covenant with God incurs His wrath and deserves His punishment.

6. The Prophet then mentions that a woman’s duty towards her husband includes that she may not admit anyone into his home without his explicit or implicit permission. An implicit permission means that she thinks that that person’s entry does not upset her husband. If she does not observe this, her husband may discipline her as may be suitable in her case, such as staying away or resorting to punishment that gives little or no pain, either physical or mental.

God has also given certain rights to women. It is a man’s duty to ensure that her rights are fulfilled.

His duties include looking after her, providing her with what she needs of food, drink, residence and clothing, according to his means:

7. The Prophet (peace be upon him) then mentions that he was leaving with the believers something that will always provide guidance for them and never let them go astray, provided that they implement its rulings and principles. He was certainly referring to the Qur’an, God’s Book:

God, Blessed and Exalted describes it in the following terms:

The Prophet does not mention the Sunnah in this instance, because the Qur’an orders Muslims to implement it. Therefore, implementing the Qur’an includes implementing the Sunnah.

8. The Prophet (peace be upon him) then tells his companions that they will be questioned about him, as they are witnesses to his delivery of God’s message. He asks them how they will respond to this question. They tell him that they will testify that he is faithful to his trust, delivering God’s message and giving his community good counsel. The Prophet moved his hand pointing to heaven and then to his companions, asking God to witness their admission that he had been faithful to his trust.

 1. The sanctity of the life of an individual Muslim is great in God’s sight. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘For this world to entirely disappear is lesser, in God’s view, than the unjustified killing of a single believer’. It is not permissible for a Muslim to kill another without proper justification.

 2. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stresses the importance of life to the extent that he stated that unjustified killing is unforgivable. He said: ‘Every sin may be hoped to be forgiven by God except that of a person who deliberately kills a believer, or a person who dies an unbeliever’.[7] However, like other sins, murder is subject to God’s will: He may wish to forgive or punish its perpetrator. The hadith is intended to stress the horror of the crime and that its perpetrator deserves severe punishment.

 3. It is not permissible for a Muslim to refer in his belief and thoughts to the practices of the days of ignorance that preceded Islam, permitting what its people considered legitimate and forbidding what they prohibited.

 4. The hadith makes clear that what a person did before embracing Islam is waived and forgiven. If he had taken money from an unlawful source before becoming a Muslim, he may keep it as it remains permissible to him. However, if before becoming a Muslim, he lent money on usury, sold alcoholic drinks or pig meat or some other forbidden thing, and had not received the money, it is unlawful for him to take the usurious excess or the price of the forbidden article.

 5. A scholar, an advocate of Islam, an educator should make himself a role model. If he enjoins something right, he should be the first to do it, and if he points out something wrong, he should be the first to refrain from it. This will make what he says more acceptable and enforceable.

 6. Every Muslim must be kind to his wife and God-fearing in how he treats her. He should consort with her in a goodly manner, be patient with her and overlook her mistakes.

 7. The Prophet (peace be upon him) set the finest example in his treatment of his wives. When‘Āʼishah fancied something permissible, he would do as she wished. When she drank from a jug, he would take it and place his mouth at the point where she drank and drink. If she was biting a piece of meat on a bone, he would eat of it at the same spot she ate. He would recline on her lap, and he would recite the Qur’an placing his head on her lap.

 8. It is the duty of a woman to respect her husband’s rights. She may not admit in his home anyone he dislikes without his permission.

 9. It is the woman’s duty not to admit anyone into her husband’s home without his permission, which may be either clearly stated or implicitly understood. If he expressly refuses permission, or she gathers from his attitude that he does not wish to admit a certain person, this is treated as non-permission. At the same time, it is not permissible for the husband to abuse this right and prevent her visiting her family or prevent them visiting her, particularly her parents, because this becomes a matter of severance of kinship relations. He must not submit to the dictates of a personal mentality that leans towards boycott. Only when there is a clear negative result to such visits should he treat the matter in the best suitable way.

 10. It is very important to conduct the relationship between man and wife in the best way that ensures mutual care and kindness and that promotes a fine family atmosphere.

 11. A wife has the right and her husband has the duty to support her and meet all her needs for food, clothing and residence, according to his means. She may not ask him for what is beyond his means.

 12. If a husband refuses to support his wife or he is tight-fisted, despite having the means, she may take from his money what she reasonably needs. When Hind complained to the Prophet that her husband, Abu Sufyān, was stingy, he said to her: ‘Take what is reasonable to meet what you and your children need’. [8]

 13. Whoever wants to be rightly guided and to have his affairs on the right course should follow what the Qur’an says. It is the guide and light for everyone who needs guidance.

 14. The Qur’an does not only guide people to the truth and show them the right way; it also raises the status of those who adhere to it in both this life and the life to come. Those who want to improve their status should study it and implement it. The Prophet said: ‘God elevates some people by means of this Book and brings down others’. [9]

  15. To neglect the duty of delivering the message of Islam is a great offence. The Prophet was delighted when his companions testified that he delivered his message and gave good counsel. He prayed to God to be his witness. The Muslim community has undertaken this task, and should make sure to fulfil it.

1. Related by Muslim, 2564.

2. Related by al-Nasāʼī, 3984.

3. Related by Muslim, 1598.

4. Related by al-Bukhari, 3331; Muslim, 1468.

5. Related by al-Tirmidhī, 3895; Ibn Mājah, 1977.

6. Related by al-Bukhari, 1295; Muslim, 1628.

7. Related by al-Nasāʼī, 3984.

8. Related by al-Bukhari, 5364; Muslim, 1714.

9. Related by Muslim, 817.

1. A true Muslim is one who does no harm to other people. Thus, Muslims are safe from any verbal or physical harm from other Muslims. God states a strong warning to those who try to harm believers.

This hadith does not mean that a person who harms Muslims takes himself out of Islam altogether, but it means that the true and perfect image of Islam does not apply to him completely. To keep other Muslims safe from verbal and physical harm is a duty incumbent on all Muslims. Delivering them such hurt is forbidden.

Harm is not only caused by tongue and hand; other organs of the body may also cause harm, but these two are used most often in causing harm. The tongue is used in backbiting, abusive language, false statements and accusations, etc. while the hand is used in causing physical harm, stealing and killing.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) mentions the tongue first because it can be more offensive and it is easier to use in causing harm to other people. Besides, it can affect both deceased and living people. Mu‘ādh asked the Prophet (peace be upon him): ‘Messenger of God, are we held to account for what we say?’ The Prophet answered: ‘Are people thrown in Hell on their faces except for what they have uttered with their tongues? [1]

2. Real migration is not the mere moving from a land of disbelief to the land of Islam. The Arabic word for migration is hijrah, which is derived from the root hajara, which means ‘to abandon, leave alone, depart from, etc.’ The Prophet uses it here in its full meaning, which is leaving and discarding. Therefore, the real migration of a Muslim means to abandon everything that God has forbidden. Therefore, continuing with one’s sinful practices after leaving the land of disbelief does not constitute the complete migration. What is meant by hijrah in the Islamic sense is ‘to depart from evil and keep away from it in order to seek goodness and love it’. As such, it applies to abandoning sin and disobedience of God. Leaving the land of disbelief to join the land of Islam is part of it.

1. Everyone should be keen to reflect all Islamic values, so that we earn the full reward of true Muslims. Therefore, beware of being physically or verbally unfair to others.

  2. Make sure not to be unjust to anyone, either verbally or physically, because this is the cause of ultimate bankruptcy as it loses you the reward of your good deeds. God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) said: ‘Do you know who is bankrupt?’ People answered: ‘A bankrupt person is one who has neither money nor goods’. He said: ‘In my community, a bankrupt person is one who on the Day of Judgement will show that he has attended to prayers, fasted and paid zakat, but who has also reviled this person, levelled accusations on that person, took money unlawfully from a third, injured or killed someone, and physically attacked another. Every one of them will be given some of his good deeds [in compensation]. If all of his good deeds are taken away but he still owes them compensation, then some of their bad deeds will be added to his, and he will be thrown into Hell. [2] This is an eventuality of utter loss and it should be guarded against.

3. Good manners and morality are the standard by which faith is measured. Whoever excels in manners and morality, excels in faith.

4. It is good to remember: never to be hasty, doing injustice to anyone, because the outcome of such injustice is indeed foul. Equally, never hurl abuse on anyone, even though you are furious, because such abuse rebounds on you.

 5. The early believers secured the merit of abandoning their homeland and settling in Madinah. The same merit remains available to everyone who abandons sin and disobedience of God.

 6. It does not behove any Muslim to rely on their past good deeds, thinking that such deeds will secure their safety on the Day of Judgement, even if they stop their worship. Migration, which is one of the most rewarding acts, will be of no benefit to the migrant if he fails to do his duty which he owes to God. 

1. Related by Ahmad, 22665; Ibn Mājah, 3973; al-Tirmidhī, 2616.

2. Related by Muslim, 2581

1. A man asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) who had the first claim to his good companionship, kind treatment, good will, as well as his financial support and any type of help.

2. The Prophet told him that his mother was the one who deserved this more than anyone else. The man asked who came second, but the Prophet gave him the same answer, mentioning his mother. This was to emphasize one’s mother’s right and fitting status. The man put the question a third time, but the answer that was given was the same.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) gives the same answer three times in order to give the mother her due of care and good companionship. She went through a long and difficult pregnancy, then a hard childbirth. She further took the trouble of breastfeeding and bringing her child up. Therefore, her claim takes precedence ahead of the father’s claim and all other people. In fact, she has a claim for every aspect of what she does for her child. As such, she has double the father’s claim.

3. The man again asked the Prophet who came next to the mother, and the Prophet mentioned his father. That the father came next is because he has a strong claim on his children because of having undertaken their upbringing and paid their living expenses. However, the mother has the first claim. The Prophet said: ‘One’s father is the middle gate of Heaven. One may lose or retain this gate’. [1] This order is useful when parents’ claims are too many and a son or daughter cannot meet them all. In this case, the mother’s claim takes precedence.

4. Other relatives come next, and when claims cannot all be fulfilled, then the nearness of kinship determines who is given priority. This is the same as in inheritance, as God gives right of inheritance to the nearest of kin then to the one who follows. Again this order applies when it is impossible to meet all claims and give their dues to all relatives, in-laws, friends, etc. If all claims can be met, then there is no prioritization. All should be fulfilled.

The hadith implies that people should be given their dues and their status respected. Each should be given their dues according to their close relationship.

 1. Determining priorities of claims is not subject to personal preference. It must be according to what God says and the Prophet’s Sunnah.

 2. A Muslim should not take any action without first ascertaining the Islamic ruling applicable to it. The hadith tells us that the Prophet’s companion asked him who deserves his care and love most, although one knows by nature that parents and close relatives are the ones to be preferred.

 3. Every Muslim should make sure that he is dutiful and especially kind to his mother. She is the one who is first entitled to his love, care and kindness.

 4. Educators and advocates of Islam should not feel irritated by being asked may questions, remembering that theirs is a role of teaching and pointing out what is of benefit to people.

 5. Al-Ḥasan was asked what does dutifulness to parents mean in practice? He said: ‘To make whatever you have available to them and to obey them in whatever they order you, unless it involves disobedience of God’. [2]

6. There was a dispute between Abu al-Aswad al-Duʼalī, who belonged to the tābi‘īn generation, and his divorced wife. He wanted to take his son from her. He went to see Ziyād ibn Abīh, the Governor of Basrah. The woman said to him: ‘What is this child to me? My tummy was his refuge; my lap his garden; my breast his drink. I took care of him when he was asleep, and looked after him when awake. I continued to do this for seven years. When he is now independent and I am hoping that he will be of help to me, his father wants to take him from me by force’. Abu al-Aswad said: ‘This is my son. I had him within me before she was pregnant with him, and I separated with him before she gave birth to him. I am the one who looks after his education and provides for his keep’. The woman said: ‘He tells the truth. He carried him when he was light, while I carried him heavy. He separated with him with desire but my separation was painful’. Ziyād said to him: ‘Give the woman her child back. She deserves to have him more than you, and do not trouble me with your pedantry’. [3]

7. A person who denies his mother who brought him up with care and kindness her rights and dues is one from whom no good is to be expected.

8. ‘Āʼishah narrated: ‘I asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) who has the best claim against a woman? He said: “Her husband”. I said: And who has the best claim against a man? He said: “His mother”.’[4] 

9. Dutifulness to one’s father takes precedence over every other duty, including those due to one’s wife, children and all others. Therefore, no Muslim should ever neglect his father’s right.

10. A person who can fulfil his duty to both his parents at the same time should do so. It is his binding duty. If this is impossible, the mother’s right takes precedence.

11. Dutifulness to parents does not cease when they die. Abu Usayd narrated: ‘We were with God’s Messenger when a man said: “Messenger of God, now that my parents are dead, is there any act of dutifulness left for me to do so as to be dutiful to them?”  The Prophet answered: “Yes. There are four things: supplicating for them and praying that God grants them forgiveness; fulfilment of their wills; being kind to their friends and maintaining good relations with those of your relatives with whom your kinship is established only through them”’. [5]  

12. All relations including one’s own children, spouse, siblings, etc. are in a lower grade than one’s parents. They cannot be equated with them in what is due to them of care and kind treatment.

 13. When claims are numerous and it becomes unlikely that one can fulfil all the claims of one’s family and relations, one must start with the closest relatives, according to the order of inheritance. The first claim is that of one’s parents, then come those of one’s children, spouse, siblings, etc.

1. Related by Ahmad, 28061; Ibn Mājah, 3663; al-Tirmidhī, 1900.

2.  Ibn al-Mulaqqin, Al-Tawḍīḥ lisharḥ al-Jāmi‘ al-Ṣaḥīḥ, Vol. 28, p. 241.

3.  Ibid, p. 240.

4.  Related by al-Nasāʼī, 9103; al-Ḥākim, 7244.

5.  Related by Ahmad, 16156; al-Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad, 35; Abu Dāwūd, 5142; Ibn Mājah, 3664.

On several occasions, the Angel Gabriel urged the Prophet (peace be upon him) to be kind to his neighbours, respect their rights, repel harm, share in their rejoicing and support them in adversity. He counselled him to give them gifts and ṣadaqah if they were poor, and to maintain very good relations with them. He urged him to extend all aspects of good treatment to his neighbours, to the extent that the Prophet thought that there would come a time when revelations would require that neighbours were included among one’s heirs.

  The Qur’an is clear in urging kind treatment of one’s close and distant neighbours.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us that kindness to neighbours is one of the signs of belief. He says: Whoever believes in God and the Last Day must cause no harm to his neighbour’. [1] The Prophet repeats his oath three times declaring that the one who causes harm to his neighbour is not a believer. He said: ‘By God, he is not a believer. By God, he is not a believer. By God, he is not a believer’. People asked: ‘Who is that, Messenger of God?’ He said: ‘The one whose neighbour is not secure from his evil designs’.[2] Indeed, such a person does not enter Heaven, according to the meaning of the hadith: ‘A person whose neighbour is not secure from his evil designs shall not enter Heaven’. [3]

 Neighbours fall into different categories: a Muslim neighbour who is also a relative claims the right of neighbourliness, the right of brotherhood in faith, and the right of kinship. A Muslim neighbour who is unrelated has the first two of these three rights, while a non-Muslim neighbour claims only the right of neighbourliness. 

 1. Highlighting a theme on several occasions gives a clear impression of its importance. It also motivates the listener to ensure the fulfilment of what is required. Hence, the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to repeat what he says three times. Advocates of Islam, educators and scholars should tackle the most important issues of their community and discuss these with their audience.

 2. A neighbour has clear rights, referred to in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Every Muslim should respect these rights and ensure their fulfilment.

3. To harm one’s neighbour indicates deficiency of faith, and to be kind to neighbours is an aspect of faith. Everyone should consider whether their faith is whole or deficient.

4. Abu al-Jahm al-‘Adawī sold his house for one hundred thousand dirhams. When the buyer turned up to complete the sale, Abu al-Jahm pointed to the money and said: ‘This is the price of the house. How much will you offer for becoming neighbours with Sa‘īd ibn al-‘Āṣ?’ The buyer said: ‘Is that something to be bought?’ Abu al-Jahm said: ‘Then take your money and give me back my house. I will never relinquish being a neighbour of a man who will enquire after me when I am missed; welcome me whenever he sees me; protect me when I am away; keep me close when I visit him; do what is required if I have a request but will ask me [what I need] if I do not make a request; and will stand by me when I suffer a calamity’. Sa‘īd heard of what Abu al-Jahm said to the one who wanted to buy his house. He sent him one hundred thousand dirhams and a message saying: ‘This is the price of your house, and the house is yours’.

  5. Every person has the right that other neighbours should tolerate some inconvenience he might cause, and that they not be too quick with their complaints. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī said: ‘Good neighbourliness does not just mean not to cause harm to others, but also means tolerating the harm caused by others’. [4]

1. Related by al-Bukhari, 6018; Muslim, 47.

2. Related by al-Bukhari, 6016.

3. Related by Muslim, 46.

4. Ibn Rajab, Jāmi‘ al-‘Ulūm wal-Ḥikam, Vol. 1, p. 353.

 Islam establishes a strong bond between believers, so that they become brethren united by their mutual love. They share in their delights and when they experience adversity. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘In their mutual love, compassion and sympathy, believers are like a single body: when any of its organs suffers a complaint, the rest of the body will share its sleeplessness and fever’. [1] 

 The Prophet (peace be upon him) makes clear that a person’s faith does not attain perfection until he wishes for his brother the same as he wishes for himself of good things. Therefore, when he realizes that certain things bring good results, he tells other believers about them, and if one of his brethren has a complaint, he is quick to remove its cause.

 The hadith does not mean that a Muslim should stifle his desire for good things. This is something that no one can do. What the hadith means is that he wishes what is good for others, without harming his own interests and chances. This is easy for a good person.

 This does not mean that a Muslim should not compete and aspire for high position. Abu Bakr and ‘Umar used to compete in doing good things. This did not signify any deficiency in their belief. What the hadith requires is that a Muslim should wish for goodness generally and should pray for the removal of evil generally. As for aspiring for better values and noble virtues, there is no harm in anyone wishing the best for himself.

 Scholars have attached great importance to this hadith, and some consider it as one of four hadiths that form the foundation of the entire religion of Islam. This means that this hadith represents one-quarter of Islam.

 1. To wish what is good for other Muslims is a quality that takes a person to the highest level of moral goodness. It purges his soul of envy, grudge and arrogance. May God give us all such goodness.

2. What is required of a Muslim is to wish what is good for his brethren. If he is eager to have a certain good quality, whether religious or material, he hopes that his friends and brethren have the same. Ibn ‘Abbās said: ‘I may recite a verse of the Qur’an and I gather its meaning. I wish that all people would have the same understanding of it’. [2] 

3. It behoves every Muslim to check whether he has this quality of wishing every good thing for his Muslim brethren. The one who does not have it should realize that he is short of the perfection of faith.

4. A believer puts himself in his Muslim brother’s position. If he loves something, he wishes it for his brother, and if hates something, he does not wish it for his brother. Al-Aḥnaf ibn Qays said: ‘When I disliked something done by someone else, I would never do it to anyone’. [3]

5. God praises the Anṣār in the Qur’an, because they gave their brethren, the Muhājirīn, the best they had and shared their own property with them. The Prophet established a bond of brotherhood between them, making one from each group a brother of one from the other. Thus, Sa‘d ibn al-Rabī‘, an Anṣārī, became a brother of ‘Abd al-Raḥmān ibn ‘Awf who was one of the Muhājirīn. Sa‘d offered ‘Abd al-Raḥmān half his wealth and that he would divorce one of his two wives so that ‘Abd al-Raḥmān could marry her. However, ‘Abd al-Raḥmān showed the same characteristic of nobility, appreciating Sa‘d’s generosity and declining the offer. Instead, he went to the marketplace where he showed some business acumen and was soon able to become self-sufficient. 

6. Advocates of Islam and educators should endeavour to strengthen social relations within the Muslim community.

7. Wishing what is good for people does not contradict competing with them for the best positions, in this world and in the next. It is sufficient to wish what is best for them.

  8. A student who is a good believer wishes success for all his colleagues in their examinations. However, this does not stop him from trying to be the head of his class. The same applies to a Muslim shopkeeper or businessman: he wishes good profit for all in the same profession, but this does not prevent him from wishing to be rich. Indeed, this applies in all professions and walks of life.

1. Related by al-Bukhari, 6011; Muslim, 2586.

2. Related by al-Ṭabarānī, 10621.

3. Ibn Baṭṭāl, Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhari, Vol. 1, p. 65.

 Islam builds a strong community with firm foundations. It is characterized by love, care and cooperation between its members. Its governing rule is: ‘None of you [truly] believes unless he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself’. [1]

 In this hadith the Prophet draws a comparison to show how believers should establish their relations. He likens their compassion and care for one another to the feelings of a single body. When any part or organ of the body suffers a complaint, the rest of the organs will share the complaint and feel the pain and discomfort. Thus, the whole body will be restless and feverish. The same sort of feeling and mutual compassion should exist between Muslims. They share in their sorrows and happiness. They relieve each other’s distress whenever and however they can. The Prophet says: ‘Believers are to one another like a building whose parts strengthen one another’.  [2]

The Prophet (peace be upon him) makes it a duty of every believer to care for other believers, particularly his neighbours who are the closest to himself. The Prophet says: ‘A believer is not one who eats his fill while his close neighbour goes hungry’ [3] He urges believers to help their brethren and to exert their efforts in such help. He said: ‘Whoever relieves a believer from one distress of this life, God will relieve him from a distress of the Day of Resurrection. Whoever makes it easier for someone in straightened circumstances, God will make things easier for him in this life and the next. Whoever shields a Muslim, God will shield him in this life and the life to come. God will help a person as long as that person helps his brother’. [4]

1. Giving examples and using figures of speech are very good tools to explain one’s meaning. They should be frequently used by advocates of Islam and educators.

2. One indication of good faith is that a Muslim should be concerned with whatever is important for Muslims and that he shares their feelings, whether of sorrow or happiness.

3. To exert an effort in doing what people need and to lighten their burdens is one of the best types of worship a person does to draw closer to God. The Prophet says: ‘The person who God loves best is the one who benefits people most. The deed God loves most is that you make another Muslim happy by relieving his distress, paying off his debt or feeding him to remove his hunger. To walk with my brother to help him with something he needs is dearer to me than spending a month in this mosque (meaning the Prophet’s mosque in Madinah) in worship. Whoever suppresses one’s wrath when one can give it full expression shall have his heart full of satisfaction on the Day of Judgement. And whoever walks with his brother to attend to something he needs, until it is done, God will make his feet firm on the Day when feet slip’. [5]

4. One aspect of mutual care among Muslims is that when the news of Ja‘far ibn Abi Ṭālib’s martyrdom was received, the Prophet said to some of his companions: ‘Cook some food for Ja‘far’s family. They have received something to keep them busy’. [6]

5. To visist a Muslim when he is sick, to help the one in need, to maintain ties of kinship, to be hospitable to guests, to attend funerals and to refrain from expressing pleasure in front of someone who is in grief are all aspects of believers’ mutual care.

1. Related by al-Bukhari, 13; Muslim, 45.

2. Related by al-Bukhari, 481; Muslim, 2585.

3. Related by Abu Ya‘lā in al-Musnad, 2699.

4. Related by Muslim, 2699.

5. Related by al-Ṭabarīnī in al-Mu‘jam al-Awsaṭ, 6026.

6. Related by Abu Dāwūd, 3132; al-Tirmidhī, 998; Ibn Mājah, 1610.

God’s mercy is boundless.

He divided His mercy into one hundred equal parts and placed one part only on earth. It is through this part that all creation, in all times, show mercy to one another, to the extent that a female animal lifts her leg so that she does not harm her young. [1]

 God sent his prophets and messengers as an act of mercy He bestowed on His servants, to guide them to the truth. He, thus, showed them guidance and granted them the blessing of having faith. In the life to come, He admits them into the abode of honour. Speaking of His Messenger,

 For this reason, God bestows His mercy only on the merciful among His servants. Thus, whoever does not follow His line of being merciful to His creation will be deprived of God’s mercy. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘God is specifically merciful to those of His servants who are compassionate’. [2]

  The reason is that a believer is compassionate to others: he feels for those who are weak, poor, bereaved or suffering.

The Prophet said that ‘Only a wretched person is deprived of mercy’. [3]

 Mercy should not be confined to one’s own family; in fact, a Muslim should be compassionate to all creation. The Prophet said: ‘By Him who holds my soul in His hand, God does not bestow His mercy except on one who is merciful’. People said: ‘Messenger of God, everyone of us is compassionate’. He said: ‘It is not the mercy one shows to a friend; it is the mercy extended to all’. [4]

The Prophet himself was the most merciful of people.

Indeed, he was full of mercy to all. One aspect that reflects the extent of his compassion is described in the following hadith: ‘I start a prayer, intending to make it long. I hear a child crying and I shorten my prayer, lest I make it hard for its mother’. [5]

The Prophet’s mercy also benefited animals and birds.‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd narrated: ‘We were with God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) on a journey. He went away to relieve himself. We saw a bird with two young ones. We took the young birds. The bird came over and spread its wings. The Prophet then came and said: “Who has grieved this one with her young? Give them back to her”’. 

1. To be compassionate to people is one of the marks of happiness. The person who is deprived of mercy is nothing short of wretched. It is important, then, not to share the characteristics of wretched people.

2. Mercy is one of God’s attributes which He likes to be emulated by His servants. He loves to see a compassionate and merciful person who pardons and forgives people’s errors and who is very generous.

3. The Prophet (peace be upon him) provides the example to follow. He was merciful to young and old. Al-Aqra‘ ibn Ḥābis al-Tamīmī was visiting the Prophet when al-Ḥasan ibn ‘Alī, the Prophet’s grandson, came in. The Prophet held him and kissed him. Al-Aqra‘ said: ‘I have ten children and I never kissed any of them’. The Prophet looked at him and said: ‘Whoever does not extend mercy shall not be shown mercy’.

4. No one can claim to be in no need of God’s mercy. We all have our faults, errors and sins. Without God’s mercy, all mankind would be doomed. Therefore, whoever wants to receive God’s mercy should be merciful to His creation. An Israelite prostitute saw a dog panting and licking the dust because of thirst. She gave a drink of water to the dog, and God granted her forgiveness of her sins because of the mercy she showed to an animal. [6]

5. Actions are rewarded in kind: whoever is merciful will be granted mercy; and whoever inflicts suffering will suffer. Whoever makes things easy for people, God will make things easy for him.

6. To withhold mercy from God’s creation is enough to cast a person into Hell. Abu Mas‘ūd al-Anṣārī narrated: ‘I was beating a slave of mine when I heard someone behind me saying: “Learn, Abu Mas‘ūd! God has far more power over you than you have over him”. I turned and saw that it was God’s Messenger (peace be upon him). I said: “Messenger of God, he is free for God’s sake”. He said: “Had you not done [so], the Fire would have scorched you” or “the Fire would have touched you”’. [7]

1. Related by al-Bukhari, 6000; Muslim, 2752.

2. Related by al-Bukhari, 7448; Muslim, 923.

3. Related by Ahmad, 9700; Abu Dāwūd, 4942; al-Tirmidhī, 1923.

4. Related by Abu Ya‘lā, 4258.

5. Related by al-Bukhari, 707.

6. Related by al-Bukhari, 3467; Muslim, 2245.

7. Related by Muslim, 1695.

It is permissible for Muslims to make bequests out of their estates, provided that such bequests do not exceed one-third of the total estate, and that no such bequest is made to an heir. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘God has gifted you one-third of your property to use at the time of your death, so as to increase your good deeds’. He also said: ‘God, Blessed and Exalted, has given their dues to everyone who has a claim. No bequest may be made for an heir’. However, a Muslim may wish to bequeath a portion of his or her property to relatives who are not heirs, or they may wish to give something to charity.

  Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) recommends everyone who has something to bequeath not to delay writing their wills.  It is better not to let one or two nights pass without having a will written. No one knows whether death comes all of a sudden, and then it would be too late. Early scholars considered that this recommendation of prompt writing of one’s will applied to one who is ill or approaching death. The Prophet did not make this specification in the hadith, because this was the normal thing people did. [1] 

The ruling concerning a will differs in relation to what is being bequeathed. It may be a duty, as in the case of stating a debt a person owes and which is unknown to his heirs, particularly if the creditor does not have evidence proving it. Unless the debtor specifies it in his will, the creditor may lose what is owed to him. A will may be forbidden, if it involves something forbidden, such as a will requiring an act of disobeying God, or a will in favour of an heir. It may be recommended, if it is to donate for a good purpose serving God’s cause, or in favour of relatives who are not heirs.

1. A Muslim should always be mindful of death, thinking of it and doing what is good for himself. A Muslim should not be distracted by the pleasures of this life. Al-Ḥasan said: ‘Death is inevitable for everyone, and life is being folded behind you’. [2]

2. God has undertaken to divide the inheritance Himself. It is not permissible for a Muslim to contend with God for its division, or to think that the way he divides it is better than God’s way.

3. God has gifted His servants with one-third of their estates to choose how they want to spend it by will. A wise person will make use of this by ensuring that what he does meets with God’s pleasure and expresses obedience to Him. He will spend this portion in what serves God’s cause.

4. A Muslim should not delay writing his will, if he has something to bequeath, before life’s problems or illness cause him to forget, or he is suddenly overtaken by death. Ibn ‘Umar, the narrator of this hadith, said: ‘Ever since I heard God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) say this, I never spent a night without having my will ready with me’. [3]

5. The fact that a will may be made with one-third of one’s estate does not mean that this is the only thing permitted or that it is the best amount of the will. Rather, it is better for a Muslim to leave his heirs self-sufficient, needing no help from other people. When Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqāṣ asked the Prophet to allow him to bequeath one-half of his estate, the Prophet refused. He said to him: ‘No; one-third. Even one-third is much. To leave your heirs in funds is better than you leaving them poor, seeking people’s help’. [4] For this reason, Ibn‘Abbās expressed his view, suggesting that people should limit what they give by will to one-quarter. Abu Bakr bequeathed one-fifth, saying: ‘I accept for myself what God has allocated for Himself’. He was referring to the verse that mentions the division of war gains:

6. Scholars and those who write other people’s wills must explain to them that the question of a will varies according to people’s circumstances. If the heirs are poor and they need the money, then it is better not to bequeath anything by will. If the heirs are well off, then a will is recommended, amounting to one-third of the estate, or less, according to the status of the heirs.

1. Ibn Ḥajar, Fatḥ al-Bārī. Vol. 5, p. 360.

2. Ibn Rajab, Jāmi‘ al-‘Ulūm wal-Ḥikam, Vol. 2, p. 382.

3. Related by Muslim, 1627.

4. Related by al-Bukhari, 2742; Muslim, 1628.

1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) makes it clear that a Muslim should not seek a position of authority, such as that of governor or minister. Such a position represents a heavy responsibility and weighty trust.

2. The Prophet then states that when a man requests such an appointment and is given it, he will be left to his own devices, getting no help from God through its difficulties. Thus, in most cases, he will not achieve what he wants.

Excepted are the prophets. They are immune to sin, and they do not covet any position of government. Prophet Joseph said to the King of Egypt: ‘Give me charge of the store-houses of the land.

However, a person who is certain that he is well qualified for a certain position and wants to run it fairly and for people’s benefit may seek that position.

3. If a position of authority is given to a person, without seeking it, and he appeals for God’s help and exerts his efforts to discharge his responsibilities, God will certainly help him through its difficulties and grant him success in his endeavours. 

4. The Prophet then says that a Muslim should not make an oath he has said a barrier preventing him from doing something good. If he says an oath and then realizes that something else is better, it would be good for him to atone for his oath and do what is better. 

A person who swears to do something sinful, such as the severance of a tie of kinship, or staying away from his wife, or to lodge an official complaint against a debtor, or something similar, is advised to atone for his oath and maintain his tie of kinship, stay with his wife, or give his debtor a period of grace. Each one of these is better than sticking to the oath he said.

1. Make sure never to seek a position of authority over people. Pray to God to keep you safe and grant you what is good for you. You may be given such a position of authority and find yourself unable to discharge your responsibility. 

2. A person who is keen for safety in the life to come must not aspire to high positions in this life.

3. Beware of the ultimate outcome of high position.

4.

5. ‘SaꜤd ibn Abi Waqqāṣ was tending his camels when his son ꜤUmar came. When SaꜤd saw him, he said: I appeal to God for refuge from the evil of this rider. He dismounted, and said to him: Are you looking after your camels and sheep, leaving people to compete for kingship? SaꜤd slapped him on his chest and said: Be silent.

6. Those who strive for a position of authority and seek to govern Muslim people should fear God. They hope to be able to satisfy some low desires and have the luxuries of this present low life. God leaves m to their own devices with the result that they are lost and they cause a great loss. Ultimately, they lose both the present life and the life to come.

7. Rulers should not appoint a person who seeks high position, because the ultimate result of appointing such a person is failure.

8. If a high position is offered to you, without you seeking it, and you find that you have the qualities and honesty that enable you to manage people’s affairs well, you may accept it, seeking God’s help. 

9. A ruler should take extra care in choosing his top officials and assistants. He is responsible for their conduct. 

10. An idle oath is discounted. A Muslim should not worry about oaths that one unintentionally pronounces.

11. If you swear to do something, whether a good deed or a sinful action or something permissible, then you discover that honouring your oath stops you from doing what is better, you should atone for your oath and do what is better. For example, a scholar may swear not to speak throughout the day, but then realizes that people are in need of a fatwa or advice. He should give his fatwa or advice and atone for his oath. 

12. The proper thing is for a person to do as one’s oath requires. One should not break one’s oath except to take a better course of action. Suppose that a person swears not to wear a particular garment for a week. Honouring his oath is better than breaking his oath and atoning for it.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) makes clear for his community that obedience is due to those who are in charge of community affairs, such as kings, presidents, heads of state and their deputies. Such obedience is essential for the stability of life, the spread of religion and the implementation of its commandments and rulings. Were it permissible for everyone to disobey their governors, things would be in chaos and the Muslim community would be disunited. The enemy would then find it all too easy to overcome them. 

Therefore, the Prophet emphasizes the duty of obeying the ruler.

Indeed, the Prophet makes clear that it is our duty to obey the ruler and to endure what we dislike. If the ruler behaves wrongly, the fact that we dislike what he does should not make us disobey him, creating division within the community.

However, such obedience is not absolute; it is restricted to what is permissible. If the ruler orders something that is sinful, then a Muslim must neither listen nor obey. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says: ‘Obedience is only in what is reasonable’.[3]  Hence

He does not make the obedience of rulers an unqualified order. Indeed, he makes it subject to the obedience of God and His Messenger.

If the ruler orders something sinful, it is not permissible to obey him in this particular matter. It is not meant as disobeying him in all matters. Moreover, it is not permissible to rebel against him for having issued such an order. What is recommended for a Muslim is to take issue with the ruler, giving him good and wise counsel. It is important for Muslims to forego their personal interests and desires in order to preserve the unity of the Muslim community. 

It is not permissible to contend with a ruler concerning his authority, nor to call on people to pledge allegiance to another person, nor to declare general disobedience, except in the scenario of him clearly becoming an unbeliever, and then he is removed by the unanimity of the community. ꜤUbādah ibn al-Ṣāmit narrated: ‘God’s Messenger invited us and we gave him our pledges. What he stipulated for us included that we pledged to him to listen and obey in what is pleasant and unpleasant, hard and easy and when others are given preference to us, and that we do not contend against rulers. He said: ‘Unless you see blatant disbelief for which you have God’s clear evidence’. [4]

1. A Muslim should consider the public interest ahead of personal interests. Obeying the ruler serves the community through the implementation of Islam and keeps peace.

2. When a Muslim sees that the ruler is doing something contrary to Islam, he should go to scholars and ask them about it, seeking their advice. It may be that he is wrong and that he sees matters from an incorrect perspective. 

3. When a Muslim has made certain that the ruler’s order requires the doing of what is sinful, it is not permissible for him to obey such. If he can give advice to the ruler, this becomes his duty. If not and he cannot disobey, he should migrate.

4. It is not permissible to obey anyone in what constitutes disobedience of God. The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked people to pledge to him obedience in what is reasonable, and he never ordered nor countenanced any kind of disobedience of God. This applies in a greater measure to other people.

5. Never try to appease a ruler in what pertains to God’s commands and prohibitions. You may either reject what is contrary to that and give proper advice, or leave. 

6. God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) dispatched a military expedition, assigning its command to one man from the Anṣār, and ordered them to listen and obey him. They incurred his displeasure about something. He said: Gather some wood for me, and they did. He then said: light up a fire for me, and they did. He then said to them: Has not God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) commanded you to listen to me and obey me? They said: He did. He said: Then, get into the fire. They looked at one another, and said: We have fled to God’s Messenger in order to escape the fire. They were in this condition, until his anger subsided and the fire was extinguished. When they returned, they mentioned this to the Prophet. He said: “Had they entered it, they would not be let out of it. Obedience is due only in what is good and reasonable’. [5]

7. If the ruler orders some disobedience of God, this does not mean he is not to be disobeyed altogether. He is only to be obeyed in what does not constitute disobedience of God.

1. ‘Ubādah ibn al-Ṣāmit relates the details of the pledge given by the Anṣār to the Prophet on the night when they met for the second time at Aqabah in Mina, during the hajj days. Twelve representatives of the two tribes of the Aws and the Khazraj gave the pledge on behalf of all those who had embraced Islam among the people of Yathrib. ꜤUbādah mentions that he was one of a group of people who gave their pledges to the Prophet. He accepted their pledge that they believed in God’s oneness and discarded all notions of polytheism. They also gave their pledges not to commit theft, adultery, kill their children, or invent false rumours and lies, and they also pledged to obey God’s Messenger.

The first point in the pledge stated by God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) is the belief in God’s oneness and discarding polytheism. The first pillar of Islam is the declaration of God’s oneness, ‘there is no deity other than God’. The belief that God has partners is the most serious of sins. ꜤAbdullāh ibn MasꜤūd said: ‘I asked God’s Messenger (peace be upon him): “Which sin is the most serious in God’s sight?” He said: “To set up an equal to God when it is He who has created you”’. [1] God states that all sins are subject to God’s will with regard to forgiveness or punishment, except the claim that God has partners.

The Prophet then prohibited them theft and adultery, because Islam protects people’s honour and property. Were people to allow adultery and theft, they would wrong one another. The powerful would deny the weak their rights. Family relations would be confused and illegitimate children would be very common. Hence the Prophet (peace be upon him) says that when a person commits theft or adultery, he takes himself out of faith. He is an unbeliever at the time when he is committing his offence. He says: ‘An adulterer is not a believer when he commits adultery; a thief is not a believer when he steals; a drunkard is not a believer when he drinks intoxicants’.  [2]

Some Arabs used to kill their own children because of poverty, or because they feared becoming poor as a result. God has forbidden all child killing. He says about the one who kills his child because of poverty:

As for the one who kills a child for fear of becoming poor, God says:

Some Arabs used to bury their young daughters alive, for fear that she might commit what is dishonourable. God forbids this as

The Prophet (peace be upon him) also forbade them inventing false rumours and making false accusations. This includes all aspects of falsehood, such as perjury, accusing other men or women believers and backbiting, particularly when it is false. The Prophet asked his companions: ‘Do you know what backbiting is?’ People said: ‘God and His Messenger know best’. He said: ‘That you say about your brother what he dislikes’. Someone asked: ‘What if what I say about him is true?’ He said: ‘If it is true, then it is backbiting, and if it is untrue, then it is slander’. [3]

2. The Prophet (peace be upon him) then tells them that whoever remains true to his pledge will earn his reward from God, which is God’s acceptance and pleasure as well as admittance into Heaven. God says: ‘Those who pledge their allegiance to you are actually pledging their allegiance to God: God’s hand is over their hands. He who breaks his pledge does so to his own detriment; but to the one who fulfils his pledge to Him, God will grant a rich reward’. (48: 10) Whoever commits any offence that carries a mandatory punishment, and the punishment is enforced in this life, it serves as atonement for his sin which means that he does not have to answer for it on the Day of Judgement. Thus, whoever is punished for adultery, theft, drinking alcohol, false accusation of others, etc. according to Islamic law, will not be punished again for the same offence in the life to come. A person who commits an offence and it has remained between him and God, suffering no punishment for it in this life, his case is to be judged by God in the life to come. He may wish to forgive him his sin or may punish him for it, and then He admits him to Heaven when he has completed his punishment.

1. Belief in God’s oneness is the best thing a human being presents to draw closer to God. Hence, the phrase Lā ilāh illa Allah, which means ‘there is no deity other than God’, is the best type of God’s remembrance and glorification. Shirk, or the association of partners with God, is the grave sin which God will never forgive. Therefore, every Muslim must ensure that his belief in God’s oneness is sound, free of any trace of shirk.

2. The Prophet (peace be upon him) started with the most important, then added the major sins that are very serious, such as adultery, theft, manslaughter, etc. Advocates of Islam and teachers should give the most important matters highest priority.

3. A believer never steals and does not look for what does not belong to him. He knows that God has apportioned people’s provisions on the basis of his own wisdom, and that his own provisions are specified in the Imperishable Tablet long before God created the heavens and earth.

4. Believers know that God will hold them to account for their money: how they acquired it and how they spent it. Therefore, a believer is most unlikely to take other people’s property unlawfully. 

5. A believer knows that God has forbidden adultery and made it one of the major sins. Therefore, he steers away from it. ꜤAbdullāh ibn MasꜤūd said: ‘I asked God’s Messenger (peace be upon him): “Which sin is the most serious in God’s sight?” He said: “To set up an equal to God when it is He who has created you”. I said: “That is grave indeed. Which comes next?” He said: “To kill your child so that you do not have to feed it”. I said: “Which is next?” He said: “To commit adultery with your neighbour’s wife”’. [4] This is confirmed in the Qur’an, as God says of the believers that they ‘never invoke any deity side by side with God, and do not take any human being’s life – [the life] which God has willed to be sacred – except for a just cause, and do not commit adultery. Whoever does any of this will face punishment, and on the Day of Resurrection his suffering will be doubled, and he will abide therein in ignominy’. (25: 68-69)

6. To kill someone is a very grave offence, and God threatens anyone who does it with very severe punishment, as

Therefore, a Muslim does not shed anyone’s blood unlawfully. It is inconceivable that a sane person should perpetrate murder knowing that such a punishment awaits him in the life to come.

7. To believe in God and accept His judgement is the source of happiness and comfort in this life. When a person knows that his provisions are determined by God, he will not worry how many children he has. He will be reassured and feels no problem with having several children, let alone try to kill some of them for fear of poverty. 

8. While all killing is a very grave sin, to kill one’s own child is a much graver sin. It creates hatred within the family and even destroys families. It also betrays thinking of God in a bad way.

9. Starting, fabricating and spreading rumours, without making sure that they are correct, is contrary to Islamic values. Hence, God forbids this very clearly. He says: ‘If only when you heard it you said: ‘It is not right for us to speak of this! All glory belongs to You. This is a monstrous slander’. (16) God admonishes you lest you ever revert to the like of this, if you are truly believers. (24: 16-17) He warns those who spread rumours with punishment, saying: ‘Those who love that gross indecency should spread among the believers shall be visited with painful suffering both in this world and in the life to come’. (24: 19)

10. The Prophet (peace be upon him) states that he is only to be obeyed in what is reasonable, although he never ordered anything but what is reasonable. He wanted this to be an overall principle in everything. It is not permissible for a Muslim to obey anyone, including parents and rulers, except in what is reasonable and acceptable. No human being may be obeyed in what constitutes disobedience of the Creator.

11. The enforcement of mandatory punishment atones for the offence. It is not permissible for a Muslim to verbally abuse a person who has been punished for his offence. Khālid ibn al-Walīd cursed a woman who was being punished for her offence. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to him: ‘Hold on, Khālid! She has repented, and her repentance is such that it would be sufficient for one who levies tributes to ensure his forgiveness’.  [5]

12. It should be clear that other people’s claims are not waived by the mere repentance of the offender. Everyone should be given back what is due to them. Make sure to settle with people in this life; otherwise, repayment will be by one’s good deeds.

13. It is recommended for a Muslim who commits a sin that he keeps it private and repents sincerely to God. He need not publicize the offence and incur a mandatory punishment. MāꜤiz went to Abu Bakr al-Ṣiddīq and told him that he had committed adultery. Abu Bakr asked him whether he told anyone else. MāꜤiz said that he did not. Abu Bakr said: ‘Then repent sincerely and seek God’s cover. God accepts His servants’ sincere repentance’. However, MāꜤiz was not satisfied and went to ꜤUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb. ꜤUmar said to him the same thing as Abu Bakr. Again, he was unhappy, and went to God’s Messenger (peace be upon him). The Prophet enforced the mandatory punishment. [6]

1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) wonders at the situation of a believer and his relationship with God. It is a feeling of wonder that gives pleasure, because a believer stands to gain God’s reward in all situations. 

2. If God grants him a favour in respect of himself, his family or property and he is delighted with it, he will thank God for His favours. His thanks will bring him further good, as God will grant him more of His blessings and reward him for his gratitude. 

3. If God tests him with some affliction or adversity, he will remain patient and resign himself to it. He hopes to gain God’s reward for so doing, and God will inspire him to remain patient and give him good reward in return for his patience and acceptance. 

This hadith covers all that God wills for His servants. He tests them with either good or bad means. He says:

If a believer remains patient when he is afflicted with adversity and thankful when he experiences a blessing, then he is a complete believer. Scholars of the early generations said that faith is divided in halves: one half is patience in adversity and one half is thankfulness. God says:

1. A true believer who accepts God’s decree, remains patient in adversity, shows gratitude for God’s favours and blessings will have his affairs going along the best way. It behoves every Muslim to aspire to the status of a patient and thankful believer, so that his grade is raised and his reward is multiplied.

2. Every believer should be thankful for God’s countless favours and blessings. When he tries to take stock of God’s favours in his faith, life, self, health, education, business, work, property, family, etc. he realizes that he swims in a great pool of blessings, and that he falls very short of being thankful. 

3. Paying thanks to God for His favours ensures receiving more of them.

4. When facing an adversity a believer knows that God’s will is bound to be done and that what has happened to him could not have been averted. 

5. A Muslim should never feel in a panic when some adversity happens. A trial will happen to him, no doubt. However, patience in adversity ensures help and reward, while despair brings humiliation and frustration.

6. SaꜤīd ibn Jubayr said: ‘Patience means that a person demonstrates to God his acceptance that what has happened to him is from Him, and that he hopes for God’s reward for it. A person may feel anxiety, but he trains himself to show nothing of it. He is seen to be patient’. [1]

7. Ibn Rajab said: ‘Those who are content sometimes look at the wisdom of God as He tests His servants, and know that He is not to be blamed for His decree. At other times, they look at the reward for the acceptance of God’s will, and this enables them to forget the pain of their affliction. On the other hand, they may observe the majesty and greatness of God who is testing them, and they become absorbed in this so that they forget their pain. This is only achieved by the top elite who have the right knowledge and love of God. They may even enjoy their trial because it comes from the One they love. Some of them said: ‘He let them experience some sweetness in the suffering He caused them’. [2]

8. During his illness, one of the tābiꜤīn was asked how he felt. He said: ‘The part of it I love best is that which He loves best’.  [3]

9. ꜤUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb said: ‘Had patience and thankfulness been two camels, I would not mind which of them I ride’. [4]

1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) orders his followers and community to be always truthful, because truthfulness leads to righteousness, which covers every good thing. Thus, truthfulness leads a person to Heaven and he is admitted there. A Muslim tells the truth and makes it his continuous habit, stating it in all situations, whether easy or difficult, and this earns him the truthful grade in God’s ranking, which in Arabic is ṣiddīq. 

A ṣiddīq is one who always states the truth and does not lie. Thus, when a person continues to tell the truth in all situations, God records him as truthful. He will earn a reputation of being a truthful person and he will be welcomed by people. He will also be known in God’s Highest Society with this quality. God will resurrect him among the ones who do not deviate from the truth. This is the second highest grade, preceded only by that of prophets. God says:

God commands His servants to be truthful and to join those who are always truthful. He says:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) mentions that the truthful are the best of all people. ’Abdullāh ibn ’Amr ibn al-’Āṣ narrated that

2. The Prophet (peace be upon him) then warned against lying. It is at the head of every evil, and it leads to all sorts of corruption and sin. This will ultimately lead to landing the liar in Hell. The Prophet then tells us that when a person becomes a habitual liar, he will be recorded by God as a liar. He will be known to people as such and, thus, people will look unfavourably upon him. He will be marked as such by the Highest Society and then on the Day of Judgement, he will be resurrected among the hypocrites. 

The Prophet then mentions that lying is a distinctive characteristic of hypocrites. He says:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) makes the tongue the primary element in a person’s character, whether he is good or bad. God’s Messenger says:

1. Make sure to always say the truth, because this is the quality that separates hypocrisy from sincerity, and it is the fair arbiter between those who will be in Heaven and those who deserve Hell. 

2. Truthfulness is the top characteristic in Islam. Therefore, God tells His servants to be among the truthful. He gives the people who obey Him the reward of being resurrected with the truthful. This indicates that they have a very high grade and that they are close to God. This should motivate every Muslim to maintain truthfulness.

3. God has given the tongue a privileged status ahead of all other organs, making its merit very clear by giving it the unique ability to express His oneness. Therefore, a Muslim should not make his tongue familiar with lying. He should make it habitually truthful, because it is what benefits him in both this present life and the life to come. A person’s tongue will say what is consistent with its habit, whether true or false. 

4. Whoever wants to have a good influence on people must not give them a chance to accuse him of lying or being deceitful. To be truthful earns the merit of being included by God in the record of the truthful and it earns acceptance among people. 

5. Saying the truth raises the status of a person in both the present life and the next. Luqmān, who was endowed with wisdom, was asked what enabled him to attain his high status. He said: ‘saying the truth, being true to my trust, and my non-interference in what does not concern me’.

6. Truthfulness is an attribute of God, Exalted and Sublime. He says:

. We need to emulate this attribute of God’s.

7. A person who wants to do good deeds should start by making his speech good, saying only what is true. Truthfulness leads to righteousness. Yūnus ibn ꜤUbayd said: ‘Whenever I saw a person who is careful about what he says, I soon realized that goodness characterizes all his actions’.

8. No one should ever think that lying ensures safety. A liar may be able to deceive people and they may believe him, but he cannot deceive God. Therefore, safety is ensured in maintaining truthfulness. When the Prophet went on the Expedition of Tabuk, some people stayed behind. On his return, the hypocrites came forward with their false excuses. However, Ka’b ibn Mālik insisted on telling the truth about his staying behind. The outcome was that God accepted his repentance, revealing Qur’anic verses concerning his case, and these continue to be recited by people. These verses are concluded by the one that says:

9. God Almighty warns liars that they will be punished in Hell. He says:

God’s punishment must be definitely avoided.

10. The worst type of lying is to lie against God, forbidding what He made lawful and legitimizing what He has forbidden. This is all a case of inventing lies. Hence, God says:

It is most important for all Muslims that they do not attribute to God’s law what they are uncertain of. Instead, they should say: ‘God knows best’. When we are asked about something and we do not know the answer, we should tell the questioner to go to scholars who can issue fatwas. This is much better and safer than wrongly attributing something to God. 

11. Everyone should steer away from falsehood, saying no lie, either seriously or in jest.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us that mankind passed on, from one generation to another, values that remain valid and will never be abrogated. One such value is summed up in the words: ‘If you feel no shame, then do what you want’. This is something that is well known to be right, and it is universally accepted by sound minds. What belongs to such a category may not be discarded, abrogated or altered.

What this statement means is that a sense of shame stops people from doing many unbecoming things. Therefore, the one who has no sense of shame will have no restraint that stops him from doing what is foul or evil. 

A sense of shame is a good characteristic to have, as it stops a person from doing something for which he may be censured or blamed. It is indeed at the top of good characteristics, as it enhances good manners and moral values. It is the pivot around which the branches of faith revolve. It is the evidence of faith and the motivator to develop good qualities and follow right guidance. It tells man to avoid what is bad and ensures the fulfilment of people’s rights. 

The most important and necessary aspect of shame is that one should be ashamed of oneself in front of God. This means that one should try to ensure that God does not see one doing what He has forbidden. This does not happen without very good and correct knowledge of God and putting such knowledge into practice.

This is what the Prophet meant when he made it one of the essential aspects of faith, as he said: ‘Be sure to feel true shame in front of God’. The Prophet’s companions said: ‘Messenger of God, we are certainly shy, by God’s grace’. He said: ‘This is not what I meant. To feel true shame in front of God is to make sure that you keep your head and understanding sound and on the right course, and to ensure that your abdomen and what it contains are lawful, and to remember death and what it brings. Whoever seeks safety in the life to come will abandon the adornments of this life. Whoever maintains these is one who feels true shame in front of God’.  [2]

To stress this, the Prophet (peace be upon him) states that modesty is a branch of faith.[3]  The Prophet passed by one man who was remonstrating with his brother, saying to him: ‘You are always shy’. He almost meant that his shyness had harmed him.

A sense of shame is of two types. The first is natural. This is a personal trait God grants to a person, making him naturally shy. His shyness stops him from doing wrong and encourages him to do what is good. This is one of the most precious things God grants any of His servants. It is a branch of faith, because it has the same effect as faith, preferring what is good and discarding evil. A person with such natural inclination may well rise to the standard of a good believer. 

The other type is acquired: it may be derived directly from being a believer. For example, a believer feels shy of standing before God on the Day of Judgement, and he starts to prepare for that meeting. Alternatively, it may be the result of aspiring to the degree of iḥsān. Thus, a person feels ashamed of being watched by God, who is certainly close to him. This is one of the highest qualities of faith. 

1. A sense of shame is a fine characteristic: it refines character and motivates a person to stick to good manners and fine values, and to steer away from foul deeds and evil. Therefore, Muslims should nurture and enhance their sense of shame.

2. Modesty is a characteristic of prophets. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was very modest. Abu SaꜤīd al-Khudrī narrated: ‘God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) was more modest than a virgin who is still in her private room. If he disliked something, we realized that by his facial expression’.[5]  Describing Prophet Moses, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Moses was a shy person. In his modesty, nothing of his skin was left visible’.[6]  We can do no better than to emulate prophets.

3. Whoever wants to be in Heaven should nurture his sense of shame. One of the greatest points about modesty is that it leads to Heaven.

4. Modesty is the best of characteristics. Whoever adorns himself with it is praised by God and people. Whoever is devoid of it is disliked by God and people.

 
5. Modesty is a divine characteristic. It is enough for anyone who is modest that he acquires such a characteristic which applies to God Himself.

6. Al-Fuḍayl ibn ꜤIyāḍ said: ‘There are five signs of misery: hard-heartedness, a fixed stirring eye, lack of modesty, eagerness for the pleasures of this world, and endless hope’.

1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) highlights some good qualities, starting with kindness to neighbours. Every believer is required to be good to his neighbours, ensuring that a neighbour’s rights are honoured. Thus, good neighbourliness means extending good treatment to one’s neighbours, enquiring after them, speaking to them in a gentle and friendly manner, helping them with their needs and doing them no wrong, either verbally or practically. 

God Himself urges good treatment of one’s neighbours. He says:

On repeated occasions, Gabriel recommended that the Prophet be kind to his neighbours. The Prophet said:

The Prophet states an oath confirming that a person who harms his neighbour is deficient in faith.

2. The Prophet then highlights hospitality to one’s guests as a sign of belief in God and the Last Day. He mentions that a host’s perfect hospitality is that he gives his guest the best food and accommodation he can afford for a day and night. After that, he gives him of the normal food he gives his family. Such hospitality lasts for three days. If the host invites his guest to stay beyond three days, this is an act of charity and generosity. It is not incumbent on the host to do so, because having been host for three days fulfils his responsibility.

The Prophet stresses the need to be extra hospitable to one’s guest on the first day and night because the guest will be tired and perhaps exhausted after a day of travel. When he is met with generous hospitality, he feels that he is welcome, and this is bound to strengthen the bond of mutual love and care within the Muslim community. After the first day, no extra burden is placed on the host. He gives his guest the same as he and his family have. 

3. The third quality highlighted by the Prophet is that a believer should consider what he is about to say. If it is good or leads to what is good, he says it. If not, he refrains from saying it. To remain silent when speaking leads to something sinful is a gain, because everyone is accountable for what they say. God says:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) says:

This hadith is one that combines the best of good things. Scholars say that Islamic manners and values are summed up in four hadiths. This is one of them. The other three are: 1. ‘A clear indication of a person’s good adherence to Islam is that he abandons what is of no concern to him’. 2. The Prophet’s summed up his counsel to one of his companions by saying: ‘Do not give way to anger’. 3. ‘None of you [truly] believes unless he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.’

1. One of the signs of faith taking hold in a believer’s heart is that he is kind to his neighbour, causing him no harm. Everyone should check whether they reflect this sign.

2. Beware of harming your neighbour, as this may lead you to be denied entry into Heaven, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) says:

3. The closer a neighbour is the greater his claim to kindly treatment is. It is important to respect a neighbour’s claims, refraining from trying to find out his faults. On the contrary, one should extend good treatment to neighbours and exchange visits and gifts with them. 

4. Good neighbourliness is not limited to extending good treatment to them. It also includes tolerating any harm one’s neighbours unintentionally cause to you. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī said: ‘Good neighbourliness does not mean refraining from causing one’s neighbours any harm; it means tolerating the harm they may cause’. [5]

5. Extending hospitality to one’s guests is an aspect of belief in God, and following the tradition of prophets. The Qur’an describes the generous hospitality of Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him). On the other hand, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was exceptionally generous. His generosity is described as ‘more forthcoming than unrestrained wind’. Hence, ꜤAbdullāh ibn ꜤAmr said: ‘A person who is not hospitable to guests does not belong either to Muhammad or to Abraham’. [6]

6. A Muslim should be keen to have the quality of being hospitable to his guests. He should not refuse to admit a guest seeking hospitality, whether that person is known to him or not. Abu Hurayrah stopped at the quarters of some people where he was unknown. They refused to take him as a guest. He was later brought some food and he invited the same people to share his meal, but they refused. He said to them: ‘You neither offer hospitality nor accept invitation! You have no Islamic manners.’ One of them recognized him and said to him: ‘Come down and be our guest’. He answered: ‘This is even worse. Do you only welcome someone you know?’ [7]

7. Every Muslim must watch what he says. He should not be casual saying what is lawful or unlawful. ꜤUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb said: ‘Whoever says much, errs often; and whoever often errs, his sins increase; and whoever increases his own sins takes his way to Hell’. [8]

8. Muhammad ibn ꜤAjlān said: ‘Appropriate speech is of four types: God’s glorification and praise, recitation of the Qur’an, answering a question seeking information, and discussing something of this life that concerns yourself’.

9. A man said to Salmān: ‘Give me some good advice.’ Salmān said: ‘Say nothing’. The man said: ‘A person who lives among people cannot refrain from speaking’. Salmān said: ‘If you speak, then say what is true or stay silent’.

10. Abu Bakr al-Ṣiddīq used to point to his tongue and say: ‘This one has landed me in unpleasant areas’.

11. Ibn MasꜤūd said: ‘By God other than Whom there is no deity, nothing on the face of the earth deserves to be in chains more than the tongue’.

12. Be in control of what you say and you will gain admittance into Heaven. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘I guarantee entrance into Heaven to whoever secures the organ in between his jaws and the one in between his thighs’.  [9]

1. God orders that we should try to do every thing well, and to seek what is better in all matters. He says:

Doing good means looking for what is better and seeking to do it, in all matters and life affairs. In worship, we should try to worship God as though we see Him. Do good to oneself means that one does not do what incurs God’s punishment in the life to come. It also means that one should not burden oneself with what one cannot carry. Doing good to other people means that in our dealings with them we implement Islamic values: we do not treat anyone unjustly, or deny them their rights. We should treat them well, returning their good deeds with better ones, and we overlook their faults. We do not repay wrong for wrong.

Good treatment of others is of two types: a duty, which includes fairness and giving everyone their rights, while doing our duties towards them. The other type is recommended, which is going beyond the duty, doing what is of benefit to them, whether physical, material or related to knowledge and scholarship. It also includes advising them with regard to what benefits them in this life and in the life to come. Whatever good we do to other people is counted as ṣadaqah, or an act of charity.

2. Doing well is required even in causing death. No human being, Muslim or non-Muslim, may be killed unjustly. Doing things well applies even in killing a criminal who incurs the death punishment. He must not be tortured to death. It is not permissible to kill such a person by poisoning, nor is it permissible to incapacitate him, leaving him to die. The easiest and least painful method should be chosen.

Islamic law makes an exception in the case of a person who seeks to spread corruption on earth. If such a person incurs the mandatory punishment for armed highway robbery, it should be enforced, so as to serve as a deterrent for anyone else who contemplates such a crime. 

Another exception is retaliatory killing. A murderer is killed in the same way he used to kill his victim. If he killed his victim by poisoning, shooting, pushing from a high building, etc. he is killed in the same way. God says:

During the Prophet’s lifetime, a Jew killed a maid by hitting her head against a stone. The Prophet (peace be upon him) enforced the capital punishment, hitting his head in between two stones. [1]

Yet another aspect of doing things well is that a killed person, whether in battle or punishment for a crime, should not be disfigured or mutilated. This comes under ‘carrying things into excess’, which Islam does not approve of. God says:

3. Doing things well also applies to animal slaughtering. To start with, it is not permissible to slaughter an animal for any reason other than for food. It is forbidden to use an animal as a target for shooting with arrows or any other object, in a competition or for pastime. ꜤAbdullāh ibn ꜤUmar narrated: ‘God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) cursed anyone who uses a living creature as target’.[3]  Slaughtering an animal must be done well. The animal must not be dragged forcibly to the place of slaughter, and must not be slaughtered among other animals. The slaughterer must not start to skin the animal or cut it into pieces before confirming its total death. Rather, he should do everything to keep the animal comfortable and quick to die with minimum pain. Thus, the knife or blade to be used should be sharpened, and the animal should be laid down. The butcher should cut the jugular veins, throat and oesophagus to assist the quick departure of the soul. He then leaves the animal to cool, making sure that it is completely dead.

1. One of the best ways of doing good is to respond to a bad turn with a good one. God mentions that this is a fine status which can only be attained by a person who has a great measure of faith and patience in adversity. He says:

2. Every deed is requitted with something of the same type. If you do good, God will be good to you. He says:

3. Good deeds that are duties include being good to one’s family, taking care of their religious and general needs, being gentle with them and looking after them.

4. An aspect of doing things well which is obligatory for a Muslim is that he or she should do their duties and abandon what is forbidden. Every duty should be done in full, without omission of any of its essential or obligatory parts. Every Muslim must also refrain from what is forbidden and from what leads to whatever is forbidden.

5. Since we are commanded to be kind when we execute the death penalty, there is no doubt that protecting people’s lives and prohibiting assault on them are among the most essential aspects of doing good. 

6. One aspect of killing well is that we must not verbally abuse a person who has incurred the death penalty. Referring to the woman verbally abused by Khālid ibn al-Walīd when she was being stoned for having committed adultery, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

7. It is important that when an animal is slaughtered, only a skilled person undertakes the task. This is one aspect of doing it well.

8. A person who is about to slaughter an animal should start by expressing gratitude to God His favour, enabling him to use such animals for food. Had He willed it otherwise, He could have set such animals against that person.

9. It is important to make sure to have a sharp knife and to take the animal to be slaughtered away from other animals. The slaughterer should be in full control of the animal, so that it does not run away when he makes his cut, as it will be in pain. He should be quick and must not show his knife to the animal. He should make a cut clean, cutting the jugular veins, throat and oesophagus, as this will ensure the animal’s quick death.

In this hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us what God revealed to him concerning these two qualities: 

1. Greatness, which signifies power and supremacy in names and attributes, belongs only to God Himself. To Him, greatness is like a garment which covers a man’s body. Such a garment belongs to the person wearing it and cannot be claimed by anyone else. Hence, greatness is an attribute that belongs solely to God, and no created being has any claim to any portion of it so as to claim any superiority over other people. 

2. Pride indicates one’s superiority over others. As such it belongs only to God. It is like a cloak which covers a person’s body from the shoulders down. As such, it belongs to the person wearing it and cannot be claimed by anyone else. 

The meaning of the hadith is further amplified in a different version, narrated by Abu Hurayrah quoting the Prophet (peace be upon him): ‘God, Mighty and Exalted, said: Pride is My cloak and greatness is My garment. Whoever competes with Me for either of them I shall throw in the Fire’. The difference between the two is that a proud person requires someone else to treat as inferior. The Prophet (peace be upon him) defines it as being ‘scornful of the truth and contemptuous of people’.[1]  Greatness is different in that a person may feel one’s own excellence, without looking down on others. Since pride is more extensive than greatness, God likens it to a cloak which covers everything else, while He likens greatness to a garment which may cover only a part of the body. 

3. Therefore, whoever tries to have a share of these two qualities, behaving arrogantly towards people, God will throw him in Hell where he will receive his punishment. It is not up to any created being to assume these two qualities, because a created being should behave with humility. God has forbidden arrogant behaviour and treating others with contempt.

He also states that the Fire of Hell shall be the abode of those who are conceited:

1. The truth should always be presented most clearly and in the most appealing way. This qudsī hadith uses fine and beautiful metaphors that illustrate its meaning and drive its message home. Advocates of Islam, scholars and lecturers should make use of such figures of speech. 

2. We should always examine our attitude to ensure that it is free of pride and conceit. When any of us examines his behaviour, he may discover that he behaves arrogantly, feeling the importance of his own wealth, position, knowledge, strength or social status. He may look down on a stranger or a poor person, or on a community. 

3. It is not an aspect of pride or greatness that a person is keen to have a good appearance.

.  What is forbidden is arrogance that denies the truth and makes a person treat others with scorn and contempt.

4. We should always acknowledge God’s greatness in our hearts, discourse and gatherings. Let it be the way by which we erase all conceit. The phrase Allah akbar, which means ‘God is supreme’, is made an essential part of prayers, the adhān which is the call to prayer, and the celebration of the Eid. It is also recommended to say it when one goes up a hill or a high position, or rides a mount or a car, etc. It is reported that it helps to extinguish a fire, even when it is raging. At the time when the adhān is called, Satan runs away.

5. We all realize our inability to secure our own interests and requirements, for reasons we cannot control. We may hold a view today and discard it tomorrow. We may feel that we are able to achieve something we like, but then a minute impediment places it beyond our reach. Such matters make it clear to us that God has forbidden pride because it is one of His attributes. It is not right that a created being with deficiencies and needs should behave arrogantly, stressing his own greatness. Hence, Islam forbids human beings from assuming either of these two qualities: pride and greatness. Both are cardinal sins. A person who thinks himself superior and forgets the favours God has bestowed on him personally is one who has no knowledge of himself or his Lord. This is the characteristic of Satan that made him refuse to prostrate himself before Adam in obedience of God’s command, arguing:

It is also Pharaoh’s characteristic which made him declare to his people:

Therefore, these two will have the most severe punishment in Hell. 

6. God loves for His servants to possess some of His own attributes, such as mercy, forgiveness, generosity, etc. These are, in essence, qualities of excellence. If a person demonstrates such qualities, he is simply looking to achieve excellence. There are other attributes which belong to God alone, such as pride and greatness. He forbids His servants to assume these because they only fit the One who is absolutely perfect. If these are claimed by a person who does not deserve them, the claim is false at best. 

7. Man should always steer away from feelings of pride and greatness, and should suppress any leanings towards these qualities whenever he has gained something in this life. These are qualities that condemn a person to the Fire. Sufyān ibn ꜤUyaynah said: ‘You may hope for the forgiveness of one whose sin is an indulgence in some desire. Adam disobeyed God in satisfying his desire and he was forgiven. By contrast, a curse is feared for the one whose disobedience is motivated by pride. Satan arrogantly disobeyed God and he was cursed’.  [3]

8. A person who experiences some feeling of pride and arrogance should warn himself of a result that is the opposite of his purpose. An arrogant person feels himself great. Therefore, God punishes him by showing him as contemptuous and insignificant. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says: ‘On the Day of Judgement, arrogant people will be resurrected infinitely small, but having men’s form. Humiliation surrounds them on all sides.’[4]  God may even punish him in this life, before He punishes him in the life to come, as happened to Qārūn, or Korah, when God made the earth swallow him, and as happened to Pharaoh, when God caused him to drown.

9. It is advisable when one engages in a scholarly or social discussion to examine one’s attitude. Pride is one of the most frequent reasons for rejecting the truth, and it is the reason that caused the punishment of many early communities. They were too proud to follow the prophets sent to them. In reference to Noah’s people

It should be noted that in all these cases God links their punishment and destruction to the fact that they were arrogant. Every Muslim should always endeavour to remove all traces of pride and arrogance from their feelings and behaviour. 

10. Muṭarrif ibn ꜤAbdullāh ibn al-Shikhkhīr, who belonged to the tābiꜤīn generation, saw Yazīd ibn al-Muhallab ibn Abi Ṣufrah, who was the Governor of Basrah, walking proudly, with his robe dragging on the ground. Muṭarrif said to him: ‘You, servant of God! God and His Messenger dislike this kind of walking’. Yazīd said to him: ‘Do you not know me?’ Muṭarrif said to him: ‘I do know you: you started as an insignificant sperm, and you will end as a dirty carcass. In between, you carry foul smelling dirt within you’. Yazīd then stood well and walked normally.  [6]

1. A man came to the Prophet, requesting advice from him that brings him all types of goodness and ways to success. He wanted to learn this advice and put it into practice.

2. The Prophet (peace be upon him) counsels the man not to give way to anger. Indeed, anger is the key to all sorts of evil, and keeping it in check is the way to all types of goodness. Some scholars go as far as equating good manners with keeping one’s anger in check. Anger may lead a person to kill another, or cause physical harm to someone, or hurl verbal abuse on people, or resort to vulgar and obscene language. It may cause a person to swear most solemnly, or to divorce his wife, or to boycott his relatives. Indeed, it may even take the angry person on to disbelief in God.

3. The man repeated his request, hoping that the Prophet would give him further advice that would benefit him in this life and the next, but the Prophet confined himself to his initial advice, telling the man not to give way to anger.

That the Prophet (peace be upon him) counsels us not to get angry means that we should refrain from its preliminaries and causes, such as getting involved in a futile argument or exchange of blame over trivial matters. It also means acquiring the traits that prevent it, such as forbearance, tolerating people’s faults, cheerfulness, etc. With such traits, it becomes easier to suppress anger when there is some cause for it. 

It also means not to give way to one’s feelings when angry. If something happens to a Muslim making him angry, such a Muslim should endeavour to restrain his anger, stopping short of saying or doing anything that is motivated by angry feelings.

God praises His servants who keep their feelings under control, restraining anger and forgiving other people’s faults.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us of the very handsome reward God grants to those who suppress their anger.

1. Every Muslim should seek advice, asking scholars, experts and people of experience. Their advice is based on what their life experiences and studies have given them. 

2. The Prophet’s companions were keen to ask the Prophet about whatever occurred in their lives. They sought his counsel. This testifies to their sincerity and keen desire to learn and understand what God requires of His servants. They are the people to follow.

3. Advocates of Islam and educators should give their advice which is most likely to suit the person requesting it. The person asking the Prophet’s counsel in this hadith seems to be one of quick temper. Hence, the Prophet counselled him not to give way to anger and limited his advice to that.

4. Refrain from anger, because it beclouds a person’s vision and lands him in what is forbidden. It makes a person lie, accuse others and hurl abuse and slander on them. Hence the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to include in his supplication: ‘My Lord, help me to say the truth when I am pleased or angry’. [2]

5. Striving against oneself is harder than against enemies. There is always an inner motive to do what is wrong, such as retaliating for an injury by something much worse, even if the other person is a friend or relative.

6. The Prophet (peace be upon him) remains the role model for all of us. He was never angry over any personal matter, nor did he ever try to avenge a wrong done him. He only got angry for something related to God Himself. ꜤĀʼishah said: ‘Never did God’s Messenger take revenge for himself. Only when something God, Mighty and Exalted, had forbidden was violated [would he exact punishment]’.[4]  This means that all anger is bad except that for God’s sake. This is a duty upon every Muslim. 

7. The Prophet (peace be upon him) gives us guidance on resisting and overcoming anger. One effective method is to seek refuge with God against Satan. Two men denounced each other in the presence of the Prophet (peace be upon him). One of them was so angry that his eyes reddened, and his face swelled.

  Once a Muslim feels about to be angry, he should seek refuge with God from Satan the accursed.

8. Another way of restraining anger is to sit down if one happens to be standing, or to lie down if one is seated. In the standing position, a person is ready to avenge himself, but a seated person is less likely to, and the one lying down is even further away.

9. One way of controlling one’s anger is to remain silent and not speak. If one speaks when angry, one’s anger is in control. It dictates what to say.

10. Be careful and do not say in anger what you may regret for the rest of your life. How often a fit of anger led a person to a situation of humiliation and regret. ꜤAṭāʼ ibn Abi Rabāḥ said: ‘Nothing caused scholars to weep late in their lives worse than a fit of anger. It could destroy their work over fifty, sixty or seventy years. Many a fit of anger has pushed a person into a position in which he remained entangled’.[9]  Muwarraq al-ꜤUjalī said that he never said something when angry which he did not regret later when his anger subsided.

11. The Prophet (peace be upon him) did not counsel his interlocutor more than stressing his initial advice not to give way to anger. This because anger is the key to all sorts of evil things. Ibn al-Mubārak was asked to sum up good manners in a short sentence. He said: ‘Never be angry’.

12. A well-known Arab maxim says: ‘Looking at enemies, I saw no worse enemy for one’s good judgement than anger.’