Muhammad Ma’thûm Fârûqî[1] ‘rahmatullâhi aleyh’, who was one of the great ’Ulamâ of India
and a Murshid-i-kâmil, states as follows in the hundred and forty-seventh
letter of the first volume of his book, (Mektûbât):
May Allâhu ta’âlâ bless you and us with the
honour of adapting ourselves to Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’, who is His beloved
one and the highest of Prophets! O my merciful brother! Life in the world is very short. In the hereafter, where life will be eternal and everlasting, we shall be paid for what we have done in the world. The most fortunate person in this world is the person who spends his short lifetime doing things that will do him good in the hereafter and making preparations for his long trek to the world to come. Allâhu ta’âlâ has bestowed on you a rank, a position whereby to meet people’s needs and to make them attain justice and peace. Show much gratitude for this blessing! And showing gratitude in this sense means meeting the needs of the born slaves of Allâhu ta’âlâ. Serving the born slaves will cause you to attain high grades in this world and the next. Therefore, try to do good to the born
slaves of Allâhu ta’âlâ and to make things easy for them by treating them with a smiling face, soft words and mild behavior! This effort of yours shall make you attain love of Allâhu ta’âlâ and high grades in the hereafter. It is stated in a hadîth-i-sherîf, “People are household, born slaves of Allâhu ta’âlâ. He loves those
who do good to His born slaves.” There are many hadîth-i-sherîfs telling about the virtues of and the rewards for meeting Muslims’ needs, pleasing them, and treating them tenderly, mildly, and with patience. I am writing some of them. Read carefully. If you have difficulty understanding them, ask people who are learned in Islam and truly devoted. It is declared in a hadîth-i-sherîf: “(Every) Muslim is (another) Muslim’s brother. He will not be cruel to him. He will not leave
him in a difficult position. If a person helps his brother, Allâhu ta’âlâ will
help him. If a person saves his brother from a difficult position,
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[1] Muhammad
Ma’thûm passed away in Sirhind city in 1079 [A.D. 1668].
Allâhu ta’âlâ will save him from a difficult position on the Day of
Judgement. If a person pleases his brother, Allâhu ta’âlâ will please him on
the day of Judgement;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “He who helps his brother-in-Islam will
be helped by Allâhu ta’âlâ;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “Allâhu ta’âlâ has created some of His born slaves for the purpose
of meeting people’s needs. These people are the refuge of the distressed. These
people will be safe against the torture of the Day of Judgement;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “Allâhu ta’âlâ has bestowed many blessings on some of His
born slaves and made them means for relieving His distressed born slaves. If
they do not give these blessings to those who need them, He will take the
blessings away from them and give them to others;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “If a person helps his brother in need, he will be given
thawâb as if he performed i’tikâf[1] for ten years. And if a person performed i’tikâf during
only one whole day for the sake of Allâhu ta’âlâ, there would be a distance of
three trenches between him and Hell. The distance between two trenches is as
large as the distance between east and west;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “If a person relieves his brother-in-Islam from a position of
privation, Allâhu ta’âlâ will send down seventy-five thousand angels, who will
pray for him from morning till evening. If it is evening time, they will pray
for him till (the following) morning. For each step he takes, one of his sins will be
forgiven and he will be given an extra promotion;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “If a person goes to help his Believer brother in need, he
will be given seventy thawâbs for each of his steps and seventy of his sins
will be pardoned. When he relieves his brother of distress, he will be purified
of his sins (and will become as innocent) as he was when he was born. If he dies
while helping his brother, he will enter Paradise without any interrogation;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “If a person goes to the court of justice in order to save
him from a difficult position, he shall be one of those who will pass the Sirat
Bridge without slipping;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “The most virtuous, the most valuable of
deeds and worships is to please a Believer, to give him clothes or to give him
food if he is hungry or to give him something else he needs;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “After the farz (compulsory
worships, such as namâz, fasting in Ramazân etc.), the most valuable deed is to please a Muslim;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “When a person pleases his Muslim brother,
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[1] Secluding
one’s self for one or more whole days for fasting or prayer.
Allâhu ta’âlâ will create an angel. (This angel) will pray until that person dies. When he is dead and is put into
the grave, the angel will come to him and ask, ‘Do you know me?’ When the
person says, ‘No. Who are you?’, the angel says, ‘I am the pleasure you
afforded to a Muslim. Today I have been sent to please you, to help you answer
the angels of interrogation and testify to your answers. I shall intercede for
you in the grave and on the Day of Rising. I shall show you your rank in
Paradise.’ ” When he (our Prophet ‘sall-Allâhu alaihi wasallam’) was asked what would cause many
people to enter Paradise, he said, “Taqwâ, (that is, avoiding the harâms and
being good mannered).” And when he was asked what would be the reason for which
many people would enter Hell, he said, “The tongue, and the vulva, (that is, sex organ).” It is stated in a hadîth-i-sherîf: “Of Believers, the one with perfect îmân
is the one who has beautiful manners and who treats his wife mildly;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “A born slave will attain high grades and will be given
many more thawâbs (than he would otherwise attain) owing to his beautiful manners. Bad
manners will drag a person down to the depths of Hell;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “The easiest and lightest worship is to talk little and to
have beautiful manners.” When a person stood before Rasûlullah
‘sall-Allâhu alaihi wasallam’ and asked what the deed Allâhu ta’âlâ liked best
was, he said, “Having beautiful manners.” When the
person asked the same question once again, this time approaching from the Prophet’s left hand side, the Prophet said, once again, “Having beautiful manners.” Then the person walked behind him and repeated the same question
from behind the Prophet, Rasûlullah
‘sall-Allâhu alaihi wasallam’ turned his blessed face towards him and said, “Why don’t you understand? Beautiful
manners means to do one’s best not to become angry.” It is stated in a hadîth-i-sherîf: “A person who does not quarrel even when he is right shall
be given a villa at one side of Paradise. A person who does not lie even as a
joke shall be given a villa in the middle of Paradise. A person with beautiful
manners shall be given this villa at the highest place of Paradise.” It was declared in a hadîth-i-qudsî:[1] “Of all religions. I have chosen this
religion (Islam), This religion is completed with generosity and beautiful
manners. Complete this religion daily
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[1] The blessed statements of our beloved Prophet ‘sall-Allâhu alaihi wasallam’ are called (Hadîth). When these statements of our Prophet’s are inspired by Allâhu ta’âlâ they are called (Hadîth-i-qudsî).
with these two!” It is stated in a hadîth-i-sherîf:
“Beautiful manners will melt sins, as lukewarm water melts ice. Bad
manners will decompose worships, as vinegar decomposes honey;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “Allâhu ta’âlâ is Refîq. He loves a person who carries on
his daily communications in a tender way;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “Allâhu ta’âlâ likes mild behaviour and always helps mild people.
On the other hand, He does not help people with harsh manners;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “The person who shall not enter Hell and whom the fire of
Hell will not burn, is the person who behaves mildly and who makes things easy
for others;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “Allâhu ta’âlâ likes a person who does
not haste. Hastiness is caused by Shaytân (Satan). Allâhu ta’âlâ likes hilm, that is,
soft temper;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “A person with hilm shall attain the
grade of a person who fasts during the day and performs namâz at night;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “Allâhu ta’âlâ loves very much a person who behaves mildly when
he is angry;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “If a person shows a mild reaction to
someone who behaves harshly or forgives someone who has been cruel to him or
reacts kindly to someone who has wronged him or visits people (his friends, relatives, etc.) who do not visit him, (call him or write
to him), Allâhu ta’âlâ
shall make him attain high grades and bless him with villas in Paradise;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “The (real) hero is not the winner of a wrestling or speed contest. He
is the person who controls his nafs at times of anger;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “He who greets with a smiling face will be given the
thawâb of alms;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: (Such acts as) smiling to your
brother-in-Islam when you meet him, performing emr-i-ma’rûf and
nehy-i-anil-munker,[1] saving a person from heresy at a time when religious
teachings have fallen into oblivion and heresy has become widespread, removing
stones, thorns, bones, and other waste stuff from streets and squares, filling
the bucket of a person who needs water, are all (equivalents for) alms;” in another hadîth-i-sherîf: “In Paradise there are villas where one
can see outside when one is inside, and inside when one is outside. These
villas will be given to those who talk softly, to those who give food to hungry
people, and to those who perform namâz when others are asleep.” These hadîth-i-
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[1] Teaching, promulgating, spreading the commandments of Allâhu ta’âlâ and admonishing people about His prohibitions.
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sherîfs have been derived from the book (Terghîb-at-terhîb),[1] which is one of the
valuable books of Hadîth. May Allâhu ta’âlâ bless us all with the fortune of
following these hadîth-i-sherîfs. A person
whose manners and actions are compatible with (the advice given in) these hadîth-i-sherîfs should be very thankful to Allâhu
ta’âlâ. Conversely, if a person’s behaviours are not in agreement with them, he
must supplicate to Allâhu ta’âlâ for (the blessing of) concordance with these hadîth-i-sherîfs. If a person with incompatible manners
is conscious of this shortcoming of his, this is still a great blessing. If a
person is unaware of his fault or who does not feel sorry for it, he is most
probably slack in faith and îmân.
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[1] Author of the book, Abd-ul-azîm Munzirî Qayrawânî Shâfî’î, passed away in 656 [A.D. 1258].