There is an incident in the life of the great Imam Abu Hanifah rahimahullah, which gives us a great lesson on how to settle disputes. Someone accosted him in a busy market place and heaped all sorts of insults and invectives on him. The great Imam controlled his anger and said nothing to him. He went home, took out a considerable quantity of gold and silver coins, put them in a gift-wrapped tray and went out to the home of his confronter. He knocked at his door. When this person came out, he presented this tray full of coins before him saying: 'Today, you did something very good to me. You gave me (something) of your good deeds (that you had done). It is in gratitude of this great favour of yours that I am presenting this gift to you.' The Imam's unusual conduct naturally affected the man. He repented and got rid of his bad habit for ever. After asking for Imam's forgiveness, he entered into his circle as a disciple and finally became a great scholar.
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Surah Al-Imran, Ayah 134: Those who spend in ease and hardship and those who restrain their anger and pardon people – and Allah (SWT) loves the good-doers.
This is a story about when Ali (R) restrained from anger. The report says that his maid was helping him in his wudu (ablution) when, all of a sudden, the water-pitcher slipped out of her hands spilling water all over Hadrat 'Ali (Zainul'abidin) ibnSayyidna Husain Radhi-AllahuAnh: Allah be pleased with him. His clothes got wet. In was natural that he would be angry. The maid sensed the impending danger and lost no time in reciting the following verse of the Qur'an: (...and those who suppress anger and forgive people). Hearing this, the venerated scion of the Prophet's household lost whatever rash of anger he may have felt. He became totally silent. The maid then recited the second sentence of the verse: (And Allah loves those who do good). Since this sentence implicitly instructs people to be good to others and thus be loved by Allah, so Hadrat 'Ali (Zainul'abidin) ibnSayyidna Husain once he heard it, said: 'All right, go. I give you your freedom.' (Ruh al-Ma'ani with reference to Baihaqi) Doing things himself: Once when Abu Bakr was riding a camel, the reins of the camel dropped from his hands. He came down from the camel to pick up the reins. He was asked why he had not asked other persons to pick up the reins for him. He said, “My Prophet(saws) has ordered me to do my things myself, and not beg anything from any human being.”
Milking goats: Before becoming the Caliph, Abu Bakr used to milk the goats of the widows in the neighborhood. When he passed through the street after becoming the Caliph, one of the widows remarked, “Now, he would not milk the goats for us”. Addressing the widows, Abu Bakr said, “No, the Khilafat will make no change. I will continue to milk your goats.” No distinction: Once Abu Bakr was sitting with a number of persons. A person came, and he said, “Peace be to you, O Caliph of the Prophet”. Abu Bakr felt irritated and said, “There is no distinction between the Caliph and other Muslims; why have you wished peace to the Caliph alone and not to the other members of the assembly?” Ayah 134 in Surah Al-Imran states Allah (SWT) loves those who are forgiving towards mankind. Mankind refers to people like us. So the ayah states that if you are forgiving towards people who you wrong by accident, Allah (SWT) will love you. It is also known that if a person does you wrong and you do not forgive that person, Allah (SWT) will also not forgive the person who you didn’t forgive. Some people are very revengeful and don’t want to forgive others. That is not right. The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was the most forgiving person of all time. When he went to Ta’if to give dawah, the people there threw things at him. He was so badly bleeding that his shoes were stuck to his feet with blood. The angel Jibreal (AS) came to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and said that if he willed, he would bring the two mountains together and crush the whole town. The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) said no and that even if the generation right now didn’t believe, maybe the descendants would believe.We should all try to follow the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
In today’s time and day, it’s all about how much cash our wallets contain. Giving to others has become quite foreign to some. As Muslims, spending in the way of Allah (SWT) is commanded in the Quran. Muslims give ‘zakah’ 2.5% of all their wealth to those who need it.
Contrary to many beliefs, that’s not the only way to spent in the way of Allah (SWT). One can spent his or her time doing good deeds in their spare time and that also can be counted as spending in the way of Allah (SWT). As the saying goes “time is money” volunteering in a major way Youngers can spend in the way of Allah (SWT) if they don’t have money or jobs. Allah (SWT) say’s when one gives his reward is multiplied many times. Allah (SWT) will not only repay him with the actual amount but a generous tip as well! And who doesn’t like a good tip? It is one of the beautiful mercy’s of Allah (SWT). Abu Hurairah (ra) reported Allah’s Messenger (saw.) as saying: “Charity does not in any way decrease the wealth and the servant who forgives, Allah adds to his respect; and the one who shows humility, Allah elevates him in the estimation (of the people).” (Muslim Vol. 4, Hadith 6264) Our leaders tell us that our political system is in need of change for honest leaders we can trust. Sociologists see that our social system also requires change. Social relations are in jeopardy, calling for intensive care. Strong social relations demand trust. There can be no security or unity in society if its members are suspicious of one another. Developing trust is a real challenge in these times. People are afraid of being deceived or conned. In order to change this condition we must work hard to become trustworthy. Trust is to be earned.
Allah sent us the best model for this virtue. Our inspiration, Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was the most trustworthy man in history. He earned his name, (Al-Amin) The Trustworthy as a young boy, by the people of Mecca. In his fair dealings, he became recognized for being trustworthy. He was always entrusted to take charge of other people’s merchandise. He was entrusted to trade on behalf of those who could not travel themselves. He was so trustworthy, he impressed a wealthy, widowed, noble, businesswoman so much, she actually proposed marriage to him, despite being 15 years his elder. Muhammad (SAW) worked very hard for Khadija, managing all of her caravans. His time was spent traveling across deserts and through oases to distant lands and foreign cities. He never overpriced his goods, nor skimped on weights. He usually gave other merchants the benefit of the doubt. Hazrat Anas (rz) says: Once a man begged Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) for a camel for conveyance purpose.
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) was in jolly mood, so He said, "Yes i will give you, but a calf (baby camel). That person could not understand and got surprised and said, "O messenger of Allah! what I will do with a calf of a camel?" (means how can i ride a calf). Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) said "Every camel is the calf of a camel (means even after getting matured for riding, it remains a child of camel) (Tirmizi, Abo Dawood) Sahl bin Sa’d(R.A) said: The Prophet (SAW) had more care for those around him than for his own self. "A woman gave the Messenger of God (SAW) a Burdah (gown). The Prophet (SAW) asked his Companions: ‘Do you know what a Burdah is?’ They replied, ‘Yes, O Prophet of God! It is a piece of woven cloth [similar to a shawl]. The woman said: ‘O Prophet of God! I have woven this shawl with my own hands, for you to wear.’ The Messenger of God (SAW) took it while he direly needed it. After a while, the Messenger of God (SAW) came out of his home wearing it, and a Companion said to the Messenger of God (SAW): ‘O Prophet of God! Grant me this shawl to wear!’ The Messenger of God (SAW) said: ‘Yes.’ He then sat for awhile, and headed back home, folded it and gave it to the person who asked for it. The Companions scolded him saying: ‘It was not appropriate for you to ask for his shawl; especially since you know he does not turn anyone down or send them away empty-handed! The man said: ‘By God! I only asked him to give it to me because I want to be shrouded in this shawl when I die.’ Sahl, the narrator of the Hadeeth said: ‘The shawl was used as a shroud for that man when he died." (Bukhari #1987)
A Bedouin came to Rasul Allah and told him, "Give me from what Allah gave you, not from the wealth of your mother nor from the wealth of your father." The Sahaabah were furious at the man and step forward to discipline him for what he said. Rasul Allah commanded everyone to leave him.
Then by the hand, Rasul Allah took him home, opened his door and said, "Take what you wish and leave what you wish." The man did so and after he completed, Rasul Allah asked him, "Have I honored you?" "Yes, by Allah," said the Bedouin. "Ash hadu an laa ilaaha illa Allah, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadar Rasul Allah." When the Sahabah heard of how the man changed, Rasul Allah taught them. "Verily the example of myself, you and this Bedouin is that of a man who had his camel run away. The townspeople tried capturing the camel for him by running and shouting after the camel, only driving it further away. The man would shout, 'Leave me and my camel, I know my camel better.' Then he took some grass in his hand, ruffled it in front of the camel, until it came willingly. 'By Allah, had I left you to this Bedouin, you would have hit him, hurt him, he would have left without Islam and eventually have entered hellfire." Quran is the holy book of Islam. It is the word of Allah that was revealed in the month of Ramadan, to prophet Mohammad (SAW) from angel Jibril. It took 23 years for the Quran to be revealed. Angel Jibril would reveal them to prophet Mohammad, and he would share it with his people. Quran is the message from Allah (SWT) to the human beings in this world and the here after.
At the time of the revelation it was not written in a form of a book. Every body knew it by heart. Propher (SAW) let some of his companions write it down on cloth, bones, and animal fur. The scribes would then read their writing back to the Prophet, who would check it for mistakes. With each new verse that was revealed, the Prophet Muhammad also dictated its placement within the growing body of text. These writings were later collected and complied into a book after the demise of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) There are 114 surahs in the Holy Quran. A surah is the Arabic Quranic word for a chapter. When a new surah comes up when you are reading Quran it means you finished a chapter and your starting a new one. Something else that is in the Quran areparas. There are thirty paras in the holy Quran. Paras are sections of the Quran divided in to thirty parts. Another thing in the Quran is a manzil. A manzil is a collection of ayats and short surahs from the Quranthat are recited as means of protection. Two major subjects explained in the Quran are about God and Prophet-hood. For more details about Quran please visit http://islam.about.com/od/quran/a/Compilation-Of-The-Quran.htm The Background of Ayat-ul-ShahadahImam al-Baghawi reports that two leading Jewish scholars came to Madinah from Syria. With the township of Madinah before them, they started talking to each other about the looks of the place which matched the prophecy in Torah that the last of the prophets would be living here. Later, they came to know that someone very pious lives here and whom people refer to as the prophet. They went to see the Holy Prophet (saw). Their very first sight of him reminded them of all attributes which Torah had predicted he would have. They presented themselves before him and said: "You are Muhammad?" He said: "Yes." Again, they said: "You are Ahmad?" He said: "Yes, I am Muhammad, and Ahmad." Then they said: "We are going to ask you a question. If you answer it correctly, we shall embrace Islam." He said: "Go ahead and ask." They asked: "Which is the greatest witness in the Book of Allah?" The verse of 'shahada' (witness)* was revealed as an answer to this question. He recited it for them. Both of them embraced Islam immediately.
* aayat # 18-19 of Surah aal-e-Imran. The aayat and their meaning can be seen here http://quran.com/3/18-19 The Hijri calendar is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 months in a year. According to the Hijri calendar, there are 354 or 355 days in a year. It is called the Hijri calendar, because Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) immigrated from Makkah to Madinah, which was called Hijra. When the Prophet (S.A.W) immigrated to Madinah, was the day the Islamic calendar officially began.The 12 months in the Islamic calendar are Muharram, Safar, Rabi-al-Awwal, Rabi-uth-Thani, Jumadul-ula, Jumadul-ukhra, Rajab, Shaban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Dhul-Qa-da and Dhul-Hijja. Each Islamic month officially begins when the lunar crescent is first seen after a new moon. Many people rely on many Islamic authorities on when each month officially began. In Islam, there are a few major holidays including, Eidul-Fitr, the feast of breaking the fast, Eidul-Adha, the feast of sacrifice, and Ramadan, the month-long period of fasting.
To conclude, these months are truly significant to all Muslims, because each one individually serves a vital importance. Link to Umm-ul-Qura Lunar Calender (Saudi Arabia Luner Calender) http://www.staff.science.uu.nl/~gent0113/islam/ummalqura.htm A man once came to the learning-circle of Imām Abū Hanīfah (may God have mercy on his soul) and asked the great Imam whether or not his neighbor was a Muslim. He asked the Imam that if his neighbor died, if he had to wash his body, bury him, and pray the janāzah prayer over him.
Imam Abu Hanīfah asked him, “Why do you think that he is not a Muslim?” The man replied, “My neighbor says the following seven things, and because of this, I do not know whether or not he is still a Muslim. The first thing is that he says he has no imān (faith) in the signs of Allah that he sees. The second is that he says that he does not fear Allah. The third is that he says he does not have any hope for Paradise. The fourth is that he says he does not fear the Hell-Fire. The fifth is that when he prays, we see him praying without any bowing (rukū`) or prostration (sajdah). The sixth is that he says he eats meat that he already finds dead. The seventh, and last statement, is that he says that he doesn’t like truth (haqq) and he loves corruption/chaos (fitnah).” Truthfulness is a matter of such supreme consequence in Islam that in addition to speaking the truth always a Muslim is exhorted also to keep company only with those that are truthful. The Quran states: “O ye who believe! Fear God and be only with those who are true (in words and deed). ” (IX: 119) Says the Prophet: “He who wishes to love God and His Apostle, or wishes God and His Apostle to love him, must take care to speak nothing but the truth whenever he speaks.” “Speak the truth even if you see your ruin or death in it for, surely, salvation and life lie alone in truth, and avoid falsehood even if it may hold out to you the promise of success and salvation for the end of falsehood is nothing but failure and frustration.” Once the Prophet was asked, “What is the hallmark of the dwellers of Paradise?” The Prophet replied, “Truthfulness.” Conversely, another Tradition reads: “To be a liar is one of the special sings of a hypocrite.”
Sincerity is the life and soul of entire moral edifice of Islam, nay, of Islam itself. By sincerity we mean that all our deeds and actions should solely be for the sake of God and prompted by no other urge than to earn His approbation. Apart from it, there must be no other desire, motive or intention behind whatever we do.
Monotheism, which is the arch-stone of Islam, attains fulfillment through sincerity. Faith in Divine Unity remains imperfect unless all our acts are performed wholly for the sake of God, and we have no other objective before us while carrying them out except and winning of Divine pleasure and reward. States the Prophet: “He who loves or hates, offers favours or withholds them, and whatever he does, does so for the sake of God, he perfects his faith.” It shows that a perfect Muslim in the sight of God is only he who succeeds in subordinating his entire conduct, his social relations and all his other affairs to the Will of God and is not influenced in them by his personal desire or likes or dislikes or by any other urges or impulsions. Another Tradition reads:“God is not regardful of your fine visages or your wealth. He is regardful only of your hearts and intentions.” The idea of the above Tradition is that God will judge and requite on the basis of our motives and intentions. Now, here is a Tradition with which we propose to round off the present discussion. About this Tradition it is reported that Abu Huraira often used to faint while he related it. It says: |
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Nothing will be heavier on the Day of Resurrection in the scale of a believer than good manners. |