An explanation
of the hadeeth of Mu’aadh Ibn Jabal by Imaam Muhammad Ibn Saalih al-’Uthaymeen,
showing what benefits can be taken from it.
For example
that you establish the greatest obligation that Allaah has imposed upon you
after the
Mu’aadh bin
Jabal reported from the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam)
that he said,
"Fear
Allaah wheresoever you may be, and follow up and evil deed with a good one, it
will efface it (the evil deed). And deal with mankind with good manners."
Reported by at-Tirmidhee and he said that it was a Hasan hadeeth.
Reported by
at-Tirmidhee and he said that it was a Hasan hadeeth.
[al-Haakim
reports it in al-Mustadrak and states that it meets the conditions of Bukhaaree
and Muslim. Adh-Dhahabee agreed.]
This hadeeth is
one of the Forty Ahaadeeth of the author, may Allaah have mercy upon him, and
in it is that the Prophet (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) gave three great and
important pieces of advice:
THE FIRST: He
said, "have taqwaa of Allaah wheresoever you may be." Taqwaa means to
stay away from the forbidden matters and to enact the obligatory matters – this
is taqwaa! That you enact what Allaah has commanded you, sincerely for Allaah
and in compliance to the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam),
and that you leave what Allaah has forbidden due to His prohibiting it and to
steer clear of it.
For example
that you establish the greatest obligation that Allaah has imposed upon you
after the testimony of faith – the prayer, and you establish it completely -
fulfilling all of its conditions and pillars and obligations, fulfilling all of
these perfectly. So whosoever leaves off any of these conditions, pillars or
obligations then he has not feared Allaah (to the best of his ability), rather
he has been deficient in this to the extent of what he left out.
In Zakaah, the
Taqwaa of Allaah lies in your calculating all of your property on which the
zakaah is due, and your giving the zakaah as a means of purifying yourself
without any miserliness or tightfistedness, or delay. And whosoever does not do
this than he has not feared Allaah.
In fasting, the
Taqwaa of Allaah lies in your establishing the fast as you have been commanded,
distancing yourself from idle speech, obscene words and mannerisms, boisterous
behaviour, backbiting and spreading tales and other such things that would make
the fast deficient and remove the spirit of fasting. The true meaning of
fasting is to fast from that which Allaah, Azza wa Jall, has made forbidden.
The same
applies to all of the obligations that are used to establish obedience to
Allaah, and compliance to His command, sincerely for Him and in following His
Messenger. Likewise all the forbidden actions are to be left in compliance to
His prohibition.
THE SECOND:
"and follow up and evil deed with a good one, it will efface it (the evil
deed)." Meaning that when you perform an evil action then follow it up
with a good action for the good action effaces the evil. And from the good
actions to be performed after the evil is that you repent to Allaah for this
evil action, for indeed repentance is from the most noble and excellent of the
good actions as Allaah has said, "indeed Allaah Loves those who repent and
those who purify themselves." (2:222) And He said, "and repent to
Allaah all of you, O believers so that you may be successful." (24:31)
Similarly
righteous actions expiate the evil actions as the Prophet (sallallaahu ’alayhi
wa sallam) said, "the five daily prayers and one Jumu’ah to the next
Jumu’ah, and one Ramadaan to the next Ramadaan, is an expiation for what lies
between them as long as one refrains from the major sins." [Muslim], and
he said, "one Umrah to the next is an expiation for what is between
them." [Bukhaaree].
Therefore the
good actions efface the evil.
THE THIRD:
"and deal with mankind with good manners." The first two pieces of
advice were those related to relationship with the Creator, this third relates
to relationship of the creation to the creation. This being to deal with
mankind with the best manners such that you will be praised and not blamed.
This by having a cheerful complexion, being truthful in speech, speaking to
others nicely and other such good manners.
There are a
large number of texts concerning the excellence of having good manners to the
extent that the Messenger (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said, "the most
complete believer with respect to faith is the one with the best manners."
And he informed us that the most deserving of mankind to him (sallallaahu
’alayhi wa sallam) and the closest to him in ranking on the Day of Judgement
would be those with the best manners.
So noble
manners, along with their being a way to beautify gatherings and the person who
possesses them being beloved to the people, contain a huge reward which will
bestowed upon the person on the Day of Judgement.
So preserve
these three pieces of advice from the Prophet (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam)
and Allaah is the Grantor of Success.
