The Main Idea of the Hadith: The keenness of Islam in removing evil through the act of worship of enjoining good and forbidding evil.
This Hadith is an evidence of the obligation of enjoining good and forbidding evil, which is one of the most important issues for the salvation and prosperity of a nation. If it is completely abandoned, the nation will be destroyed.
Abu Sa'eed Al-Khudri narrated this Hadeeth due to an incident that occurred:
عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ، وَعَنْ قَيْسِ بْنِ مُسْلِمٍ، عَنْ طَارِقِ بْنِ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ، قَالَ أَخْرَجَ مَرْوَانُ الْمِنْبَرَ يَوْمَ الْعِيدِ فَبَدَأَ بِالْخُطْبَةِ قَبْلَ الصَّلاَةِ فَقَامَ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ يَا مَرْوَانُ خَالَفْتَ السُّنَّةَ أَخْرَجْتَ الْمِنْبَرَ يَوْمَ عِيدٍ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ يُخْرَجُ بِهِ وَبَدَأْتَ بِالْخُطْبَةِ قَبْلَ الصَّلاَةِ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ يُبْدَأُ بِهَا . فَقَالَ أَبُو سَعِيدٍ أَمَّا هَذَا فَقَدْ قَضَى مَا عَلَيْهِ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ يَقُولُ " مَنْ رَأَى مُنْكَرًا فَاسْتَطَاعَ أَنْ يُغَيِّرَهُ بِيَدِهِ فَلْيُغَيِّرْهُ بِيَدِهِ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ فَبِلِسَانِهِ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ بِلِسَانِهِ فَبِقَلْبِهِ وَذَلِكَ أَضْعَفُ الإِيمَانِ
In another report:
عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ، قَالَ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَخْرُجُ يَوْمَ الْفِطْرِ وَالأَضْحَى إِلَى الْمُصَلَّى، فَأَوَّلُ شَىْءٍ يَبْدَأُ بِهِ الصَّلاَةُ ثُمَّ يَنْصَرِفُ، فَيَقُومُ مُقَابِلَ النَّاسِ، وَالنَّاسُ جُلُوسٌ عَلَى صُفُوفِهِمْ، فَيَعِظُهُمْ وَيُوصِيهِمْ وَيَأْمُرُهُمْ، فَإِنْ كَانَ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَقْطَعَ بَعْثًا قَطَعَهُ، أَوْ يَأْمُرَ بِشَىْءٍ أَمَرَ بِهِ، ثُمَّ يَنْصَرِفُ. قَالَ أَبُو سَعِيدٍ فَلَمْ يَزَلِ النَّاسُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ حَتَّى خَرَجْتُ مَعَ مَرْوَانَ وَهْوَ أَمِيرُ الْمَدِينَةِ فِي أَضْحًى أَوْ فِطْرٍ، فَلَمَّا أَتَيْنَا الْمُصَلَّى إِذَا مِنْبَرٌ بَنَاهُ كَثِيرُ بْنُ الصَّلْتِ، فَإِذَا مَرْوَانُ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَرْتَقِيَهُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُصَلِّيَ، فَجَبَذْتُ بِثَوْبِهِ فَجَبَذَنِي فَارْتَفَعَ، فَخَطَبَ قَبْلَ الصَّلاَةِ، فَقُلْتُ لَهُ غَيَّرْتُمْ وَاللَّهِ. فَقَالَ أَبَا سَعِيدٍ، قَدْ ذَهَبَ مَا تَعْلَمُ. فَقُلْتُ مَا أَعْلَمُ وَاللَّهِ خَيْرٌ مِمَّا لاَ أَعْلَمُ. فَقَالَ إِنَّ النَّاسَ لَمْ يَكُونُوا يَجْلِسُونَ لَنَا بَعْدَ الصَّلاَةِ فَجَعَلْتُهَا قَبْلَ الصَّلاَةِ
Narrated Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri: The Prophet (ﷺ) used to proceed to the Musalla on the days of Id-ul-Fitr and Id-ul-Adha; the first thing to begin with was the prayer and after that he would stand in front of the people and the people would keep sitting in their rows. Then he would preach to them, advise them and give them orders, (i.e. Khutba). And after that if he wished to send an army for an expedition, he would do so; or if he wanted to give and order, he would do so, and then depart. The people followed this tradition till I went out with Marwan, the Governor of Medina, for the prayer of Id-ul-Adha or Id-ul-Fitr. When we reached the Musalla, there was a pulpit made by Kathir bin As-Salt. Marwan wanted to get up on that pulpit before the prayer. I got hold of his clothes but he pulled them and ascended the pulpit and delivered the Khutba before the prayer. I said to him, "By Allah, you have changed (the Prophet's tradition)." He replied, "O Abu Sa`id! Gone is that which you know." I said, "By Allah! What I know is better than what I do not know." Marwan said, "People do not sit to listen to our Khutba after the prayer, so I delivered the Khutba before the prayer." [Bukhari #956]
In the first report, the Munkar was changed through tongue, whereas in the second, it was changed through action.
In the Quran, Allah shows us that the goodness of this nation is completely linked to enjoining righteousness and forbidding evil. It was for this that this nation was preferred over other nations. In Surah Aal-Imran [3:110]:
"You [true believers in Islamic Monotheism, and real followers of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and his Sunnah (legal ways, etc.)] are the best of peoples ever raised up for mankind; you enjoin Al-Ma'ruf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam has ordained) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden), and you believe in Allah. And had the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) believed, it would have been better for them; among them are some who have faith, but most of them are Al-Fasiqun (disobedient to Allah - and rebellious against Allah's Command)."
This Hadith clarifies the importance of this act of worship and teaches us how to deal with evil if we see it.
من رأى منكم منكرا
"Whoever of you sees an evil"
This command is directed to every Muslim individual, man or woman, young or old, rich or poor. Forbidding evil is an obligation upon every Muslim, if he witnesses it.
You should not spy on others; this evil should be done in front of you - except if you are informed by a trustworthy person that a type of evil is committed in a certain place.
E.g. Someone informs so and so that in that house is a man who is planning to commit a murder. He has the right to spy.
Scholars say it is not limited to hearing or seeing, but includes it coming into your knowledge that an evil is committed at a certain place.
منكرا = Everything that is rejected and objectionable by Allah and His Messenger, regardless if it is a saying or an act, and regardless of its size. Its opposite is المعروف, which is every act of obedience to Allah.
The Ruling of Forbidding Evil
Forbidding evil by tongue and hand can either be a:
a) A Collective Duty (فرض الكفاية)
In Surah Aal-Imran [3:104]:
"Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that is good (Islam), enjoining Al-Ma'ruf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do) and forbidding Al-Munkar (polytheism and disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden). And it is they who are the successful."
If a group performs this obligation, it is dropped on everyone else. The Muslim leader is thus obliged to appoint a group of people for this mission, in order for it to be dropped on the rest of the nation.
b) or an Individual Duty (فرض العين)
The evidence that it can be an individual duty is the Hadith we are currently studying.
Refraining from changing the Munkar is a Major Sin.
Which Munkar should be removed?
A. The Munkar which the Scholars are in agreement that it is a Munkar.
E.g. Riba, Adultery, Consumption of Alcohol, etc.
There are matters which the Scholars disagree regarding its ruling. Whether one should forbid the Munkar or not varies depends on the situation:
1) If both Parties have Evidence
a) If the disagreement is strong (Both evidences are equal in strength and contradictory; you cannot prefer one over the other)
In this case you have no right to forbid the person from the act.
E.g. Paying Zakat on Jewellery. The disagreement between Scholars is strong. Some say you have to pay the Zakat of what you wear of gold every year, while other Scholars say you do not, and their evidences are equal in strength. If you see someone not paying it, you can advise her and show her your evidence, but cannot rebuke her for not doing so.
B) If the Disagreement is Weak (Ones groups evidence is stronger than the other)
We have to follow the one with strong evidence and you have right to forbid the Munkar.
E.g. Listening to Music
People think this is a strong argument, and that there are evidences which prove otherwise, but according to Usool Al-Fiqh this argument (stated by Ibn Hazm) is very weak in comparison to the other party. You should therefore forbid the Munkar.
2) No Evidence (Neither party has legitimate evidence and depend on Ijtihad)
In this case no one can force the other to accept his opinion, because it is Ijtihad.
فليغيره
"Let Him change..."
We should take the means and try to remove it, and leave the result to Allah.
The Types of Changing the Munkar
- Hand
- Tongue
- Heart
This all depends on the nature of the Munkar, the situation, the status of the person forbidding it, etc. However, one should not directly go to the lowest without attempting the higher levels.
بيده
"...with his Hand"
The Scholars say that you have to advise the person and warn him before you change it with your hand.
Examples of this type is breaking bottles of wine or musical instruments.
Points to Consider:
1) Scholars say if changing a Munkar by hand will lead to a Munkar greater in evil than it, then do not change it.
2) If the one who forbids Munkar will be harmed then there is no obligation on him to remove it. Insults and being cursed are harm, but not great enough to be considered real harm. By harm we mean physical injury or getting killed, or if ones reputation is destroyed due to it (where people create false stories about him because of it), or if a person is afraid of being exposed to a great deal of financial loss due to it.
Those who are able to must, otherwise they will be in sin. The Prophet ﷺ said:
كُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ، وَكُلُّكُمْ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ، وَالأَمِيرُ رَاعٍ، وَالرَّجُلُ رَاعٍ عَلَى أَهْلِ بَيْتِهِ، وَالْمَرْأَةُ رَاعِيَةٌ عَلَى بَيْتِ زَوْجِهَا وَوَلَدِهِ، فَكُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ وَكُلُّكُمْ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ
"All of you are guardians and are responsible for your wards. The ruler is a guardian and the man is a guardian of his family; the lady is a guardian and is responsible for her husband's house and his offspring; and so all of you are guardians and are responsible for your wards." [Sahih Al-Bukhari #5200]
And he ﷺ said:
مَا مِنْ عَبْدٍ اسْتَرْعَاهُ اللَّهُ رَعِيَّةً، فَلَمْ يَحُطْهَا بِنَصِيحَةٍ، إِلاَّ لَمْ يَجِدْ رَائِحَةَ الْجَنَّةِ
"Any man whom Allah has given the authority of ruling some people and he does not look after them in an honest manner, will never feel even the smell of Paradise." [Sahih Al-Bukhari #7150]
فإن لم يستطع فبلسانه
"If he could not, then let him change it with his tongue"
If you are unable to change it with your hand because the other person is greater in strength or status, then you move to a lower rank: With Tongue.
In Surah Al-Baqarah [2:286]:
"Allah burdens not a person beyond his scope. He gets reward for that (good) which he has earned, and he is punished for that (evil) which he has earned. "Our Lord! Punish us not if we forget or fall into error, our Lord! Lay not on us a burden like that which You did lay on those before us (Jews and Christians); our Lord! Put not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Pardon us and grant us Forgiveness. Have mercy on us. You are our Maula (Patron, Suppor-ter and Protector, etc.) and give us victory over the disbelieving people."
You can advise, warn the doer of the punishment of Allah, make him hope for the reward, scold the doer, gently argue with him, as mentioned in Surah An-Nahl [16:125]:
"Invite (mankind, O Muhammad) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Quran) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided."
This can be done indirectly or directly. The Prophet ﷺ did it both.
فأن لم يستطيع فقلبه
"If he could not, then with his heart"
This is the lowest rank. But changing by heart is not considered sufficient if the person can still change it by tongue or hand.
With your heart means to have dislike of what is happening and the desire to remove it if you are able to do so.
Changing the Munkar by the tongue or hand can sometimes be a collective duty and other times individual, but as for the heart, it is an individual duty; no one is exempted. It is said that if you do not do it, your heart is free of faith. Ibn Masoud said, "He is destroyed whoever does not refuse evil and enjoin righteousness in his heart"
If you cannot change it with your tongue or hand, but still reject it in your heart, your rejection entails having to leaving the gathering. In Surah an-Nisa [4:140]:
"And it has already been revealed to you in the Book (this Quran) that when you hear the Verses of Allah being denied and mocked at, then sit not with them, until they engage in a talk other than that; (but if you stayed with them) certainly in that case you would be like them. Surely, Allah will collect the hypocrites and disbelievers all together in Hell,"
وذالك أضعف الإيمان
"And that is the weakest of faith"
Rejecting it in your heart will never remove the Munkar, which is why it is the weakest. Another reason is because that person is weak; he could neither change it with his hand nor tongue.
Imam Muslim classified this Hadith in his Saheeh under the Book of Faith. Those who do not forbid Munkar do not have faith in their hearts.
People differ in forbidding the Munkar according to their ability, rank, and authority in society:
- Authority of the Common People. The circle of forbidding evil is narrow.
- Authority of the Scholars. They have a wider circle of forbidding evil. If they neglect this matter, the society will face calamities just like the society of the Jews before.
- Authority of the Rulers. They have the greatest authority and responsibility. If they do not fulfill this obligation, evil will be widespread in the society, and the doers of Munkar will do it publicly, whilst those who forbid it will be weak and sometimes even jailed.
The Importance of Forbidding Evil
By applying this act of worship, the condition of this nation will improve, virtues will prevail, vices will disappear, and members of society will cooperate on forbidding evil.
The status of this act of worship is high with Allah. In the Quran, Allah mentioned it before He mentioned الإيمان. In Surah Aal-Imran [3:110]:
"You [true believers in Islamic Monotheism, and real followers of Prophet Muhammad and his Sunnah (legal ways, etc.)] are the best of peoples ever raised up for mankind; you enjoin Al-Ma'ruf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam has ordained) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden), and you believe in Allah. And had the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) believed, it would have been better for them; among them are some who have faith, but most of them are Al-Fasiqun (disobedient to Allah - and rebellious against Allah's Command)."
Faith will not remain strong in your heart if you do not forbid the Munkar.
If the nation does not forbid Munkar they will expose themselves to the anger of Allah and be dismissed from His Mercy, as Allah expelled the People of Israeel from it. In Surah Al-Maa'idah [5:78-79]:
"Those among the Children of Israel who disbelieved were cursed by the tongue of Dawud (David) and 'Iesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary). That was because they disobeyed (Allah and the Messengers) and were ever transgressing beyond bounds."
"They used not to forbid one another from the Munkar (wrong, evil-doing, sins, polytheism, disbelief, etc.) which they committed. Vile indeed was what they used to do."
If wickedness is spread on the land and the pious do not forbid it, the punishment will encompass the entire nation; the pious and the wicked. In Surah An-Nur [24:63]:
"Make not the calling of the Messenger (Muhammad) among you as your calling of one another. Allah knows those of you who slip away under shelter (of some excuse without taking the permission to leave, from the Messenger). And let those who oppose the Messenger's (Muhammad) commandment (i.e. his Sunnah legal ways, orders, acts of worship, statements, etc.) (among the sects) beware, lest some Fitnah (disbelief, trials, afflictions, earthquakes, killing, overpowered by a tyrant, etc.) befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them."
Motives for Forbidding Evil
1- Believing that this action is a part of Eeman, because it is a part of faith to hate what Allah hates.
2- Glorifying Allah and feeling great love towards Him. He is the only God who deserves to be feared and obeyed, and His commands should be implemented. There were people who felt this to an extent that they preferred to be killed or tortured than to stop forbidding the Munkar, such as Imam Ahmed Ibn Hanbal and others.
One of the Salaf said, "I wish that all creation would only worship Allah, even if the price for that would be that my flesh is torn apart with clippers.
If you glorify Allah, you would be furious if He is disobeyed on earth. This anger will drive you to forbid the Munkar.
3- Hoping to gain great reward from Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said:
من دعا إلى هدى كان له من الأجر مثل أجور من تبعه لا ينقص ذلك من أجورهم شيئً
He who calls others to follow the Right Guidance will have a reward equal to the reward of those who follow him, without their reward being diminished in any respect on that account. [Muslim]
4- Fearing Allah's punishment.
5- Sincerity to Ones Muslim brother. One loves for his brother what he loves for himself; he does not want him to be punished by Allah.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
الرَّاحِمُونَ يَرْحَمُهُمُ الرَّحْمَنُ ارْحَمُوا مَنْ فِي الأَرْضِ يَرْحَمْكُمْ مَنْ فِي السَّمَاءِ
The merciful are shown mercy by Ar-Rahman. Be merciful on the earth, and you will be shown mercy from Who is above the heavens. [At-Tirmithi #1924]
These motivations make the burden of forbidding evil light and sometimes favorable.
Characteristics to be found in the Forbidder of Evil
1) Muslim
2) Sane
3) Capable
4) Knowledge that what he is forbidding is a Munkar with the consensus of the Scholars
5) The Ability to Forbear what He is going to expose himself to
6) Courage
Etc.
Q. I myself commit Munkar, how can I forbid others from doing it?
All of us are sinners, no one is perfect. This is not an excuse to stop preventing the Munkar, because every person has two duties with regards to it:
1) The duty of forbidding himself to commit it
2) The duty of forbidding others to commit it
If you failed in one duty, the other will not be dropped; it is still obligatory on you. Forbid others, even if they say "What about you?" Accept that you are falling short, but you still have this duty to fulfill.
Many people cite the following verse in Surah Al-Maa'idah [5:105] and use it as an excuse to stop forbidding others from evil:
"O you who believe! Take care of your ownselves, [do righteous deeds, fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden) and love Allah much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained)]. If you follow the right guidance and enjoin what is right (Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do) and forbid what is wrong (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden) no hurt can come to you from those who are in error. The return of you all is to Allah, then He will inform you about (all) that which you used to do."
This is not something new, it was said at the time of Abu Bakr:
The meaning of this verse is that if you perform your duty and people do not comply, there is no blame on you if they did not respond. In Surah Al-An'am [6:164]:
"Say: "Shall I seek a lord other than Allah, while He is the Lord of all things? No person earns any (sin) except against himself (only), and no bearer of burdens shall bear the burden of another. Then unto your Lord is your return, so He will tell you that wherein you have been differing."
Upon the caller is to forbid and upon the one being called is to accept.
Some people are good at forbidding Munkar, except with people who they fear or have an interest with. This is Haraam. You may lose in this world, but what you will lose you will gain in the Hereafter.
We cannot stress the importance of this act of worship. By it, we protect the society, and it is a cause of the superiority of this nation over all other nations.
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