(23/11/16) - الأربعين النووية - Hadith #27

بِسْم الله الرحمن الرحيم

23-2-1438H

The Main Idea of the Hadiths: The two Hadiths give a comprehensive meaning of righteousness and sinfulness. البر entails all acts of righteousness whilst الإثم entails all acts of sinfulness. The Prophet ﷺ gave two meanings for البر and one for الإثم in the two Hadiths.

-> The Prophet ﷺ informed the companion of what he was about to ask before he said anything. 

The Definition of البر

In Surah Al-Baqarah [2:177]:

  

"It is not Al-Birr (piety, righteousness, and each and every act of obedience to Allah, etc.) that you turn your faces towards east and (or) west (in prayers); but Al-Birr is (the quality of) the one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, the Prophets and gives his wealth, in spite of love for it, to the kinsfolk, to the orphans, and to Al-Masakin (the poor), and to the wayfarer, and to those who ask, and to set slaves free, performs As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat), and gives the Zakat, and who fulfill their covenant when they make it, and who are As-Sabirin (the patient ones, etc.) in extreme poverty and ailment (disease) and at the time of fighting (during the battles). Such are the people of the truth and they are Al-Muttaqun"

1) Good Conduct

Good conduct is divided into two main categories:

1) Having good conduct with your Creator 

This is by obeying all Allah's commandments and abstaining from all His prohibitons.

2) Having good conduct with the Creation

In Surah Al-Isra'a [17:23]:

"And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him. And that you be dutiful to your parents. If one of them or both of them attain old age in your life, say not to them a word of disrespect, nor shout at them but address them in terms of honour."

The best example is the Prophet ﷺ. In Surah Al-Qalam [68:4]:

"And verily, you (O Muhammad ﷺ) are on an exalted standard of character."

Ayesha رضي الله عنها said regarding the Prophet ﷺ: 

كَانَ خُلُقُهُ الْقُرْآنَ

"His conduct was just like what the Qur'an enjoins" [Al-Adab Al-Mufrad] 

Nowadays a person may not pray or fast, yet have good conduct with people, and we call him a well mannered person. This is not sufficient, he should have good conduct with his Creator as well. 

البر and التقوى are mentioned together in the Qur'an, in Surah Al-Maa'idah [5:2]:

"وتعاونوا على البر والتقوى ولا تعاونوا على الإثم والعدوان"

"And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression."

When البر is mentioned alongside التقوى and comes with the meaning:

1) To treat people with kindness 

Taqwa will mean:

1) To obey Allah and abstain from its prohibitions.

If البر takes the meaning of:

2) Implementing the obligations.

Taqwa takes the meaning of:

2) Avoiding the prohibitions 

It is important for one to have good conduct. The Prophet ﷺ used to supplicate to Allah saying:

اللَّهُمَّ اهْدِنِي لأَحْسَنِ الأَعْمَالِ وَأَحْسَنِ الأَخْلاقِ ، فَإِنَّهُ لا يَهْدِي لأَحْسَنِهَا إِلا أَنْتَ ، وَقِنِي سَيِّءَ الأَعْمَالِ وَسَيِّءَ الأَخْلاقِ ، فَإِنَّهُ لا يَقِي سَيِّئَهَا إِلا أَنْتَ 

How do I acquire good conduct?

1) Study the Qur'an and Sunnah to first understand the importance of good conduct.

2) Strive hard and work on yourself with a sincere intention to acquire this good characteristic.

3) Try to emulate the character of the Prophet ﷺ as much as possible.

4) Keep the company of people who have good conduct. It is not easy to have good conduct while you are surrounded by people who have bad conduct. The Prophet ﷺ said: 

الرَّجُلُ عَلَى دِينِ خَلِيلِهِ فَلْيَنْظُرْ أَحَدُكُمْ مَنْ يُخَالِلُ

"A man is upon the religion of his best friend, so let one of you look at whom he befriends.” [Abu Dawud #4833] 

5) Ask Allah to grant you have good conduct.

The Prophet ﷺ used to say:

اللَّهُمَّ كَمَا حَسَّنْتَ خَلْقِي ، فَحَسِّنْ خُلُقِي 

"O Allah you made my physical being beautiful, so make my character beautiful"

2) That which the inner self is satisfied, comfortable towards, feels good about

"Consult your heart" - "استفت قلبك"

استفت means requesting a Fatwa (i.e. the legitimate ruling).

This does not mean you ask your heart if something is Halal or Haraam. This is not what it means at all. It means to check your heart, if it feels comfortable towards the Fatwa given to you by the Scholar. If you feel tranquil, go ahead. If you do not feel tranquil regarding it, you should not take it, even if the Scholar said it is Halal. 

Ibn AlQayyim said that one should not take the Fatwa of the Sheikh if he does not feel tranquil towards it and it still wavers in his chest. He should seek the Fatwa again and again until he is tranquil. 

This demonstrates the importance of the heart. You cannot just consult any kind of heart. What kind of heart is the heart the person can consult? The pure, healthy heart, full of Eeman and Knowledge. The work of this heart is not based on desires and lusts, it is based on belief and knowledge of Allah. This is the heart of the true believer, whose فطرة (natural dispositon) is pure and not distorted. It is a heart that loves good and hates evil. 

In Surah Ash-Shua'raa [26:89]:

"Except him who brings to Allah a clean heart"

The heart is pure from Shirk, Hypocrisy, and all other diseases of the heart.

The heart plays the role of a filter, which distinguishes the good from bad; البر from الإثم. If it feels tranquil towards a certain matter, know that the matter is البر. The person who has this type of heart will never have confusion with regards to البر and الإثم. However, if people who have such hearts do not strive to maintain and protect its purity, it will get spoilt, and they will not be able to distinguish between the two. 

The Definition of الإثم

The Scholars gave some definitions of الإثم:

1) A word that entails every form of evil and sinful acts, whether major or minor. 

2) An act for which its performer deserves blame 

The Prophet ﷺ gave us two signs of الإثم in the Hadith:

1) What creates restlessness in the soul

The person feels uneasy, confused, restless, regarding that act and its consequences.

This is a completely internal sign. 

2) That which you hate people to know about

This is an internal sign which is associated with an external reaction.

The soul does not like for people to witness it doing evil actions.

Does this refer to just any people? Evil doers do not care about other evil doers watching him do the act. People here refers to the righteous, religious, clean hearted people. 

Is it enough to take just one of the above signs as an indicator for الإثم? Yes. Both signs do not need to be present at the same time, however, if they are, it will be a strong indicator that the act is a sinful act.

If a believer did an act and does not feel that it wavers in his chest and is not ashamed about people knowing about it, it is considered البر. And you will not find these feelings except in the chest of the true believer, because the evildoer does not care or feel this.

Is every act which you hate people to find out about considered الإثم? No. There are certain acts which you do not like people to know about, but they are not الإثم.

E.g. Your secret voluntary good deeds. The true believer is keen to hide such acts from others, because he does not want to affect the acceptance of his deed. 

The Prophet ﷺ said regarding one of the seven who will be shaded under the Throne of Allah on the Day of Judgement:

وَرَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَةٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا حَتَّى لَا تَعْلَمَ يَمِينُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ شِمَالُهُ 

"...a person who spends in charity and conceals it such that his right hand does not know what his left hand has given" [Bukhari #629]

There are instances when it is better to do such acts openly, when you want to set a good example while feeling safe from showing off, Riyaa, hypocrisy. In this case you will get the reward of your act, and the reward of all those who follow you. 

E.g. الوسواس القهري 

This is a person being overpowered by Waswaas. He hates people to know of this disease and it wavers in its chest, but it is not considered الإثم. 

Does the believer feel a wavering in his chest only when he commits الإثم? No. There are several reasons which cause a person to feel a wavering in his soul:

1) When ignorant about the legitimate ruling of a matter. The treatment of this is to seek the ruling from the Mufti. If you come to know that the ruling is obligatory for example, you have to perform it and stop wavering, even if you do not like that act.

2) Due to the different views of Scholars regarding a certain matter. The treatment of this is to take the opinion which he finds most rest and tranquility in, or to take the opinion of the most knowledgeable scholar in that specific field. 

3) When he receives a Fatwa which is not based on valid proof. In this case you should not take their Fatwa at all. 

4) When the asker does not feel content with regards to a matter when he asks the Mufti because he thinks that the Mufti did not understand his matter. He should then give him more details, or ask another Mufti. 

Which Fatwa should one take? One is obliged to take the Fatwa built on valid evidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah even if he does not like it. 

The Comparison between البر and الإثم

الإثم causes annoyance and unease in ones soul if he commits in privacy, and feels ashamed of performing it in public. البر does not make one feel this whether in privacy or in public; on the contrary, it makes one tranquil and at peace.