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TheProphetsMethodsforCorrectingPeoplesMistakes
SheikhMuhammedSalihAlMunajjid
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Introduction
BismillaahilRahmaanilRaheem.IntheNameofAllaah,
MostGracious,MostMerciful
Praise be toAllaah, Lord of theWorlds,Master of the
DayofJudgement,Godofthefirstandthelast,Sustainerof heaven and earth, and peace and blessings be upon
HistrustworthyProphet,theTeacherofmankind,sentas
aMercytotheworlds.
Teachingpeopleisoneofthegreatestgooddeedswhose
benefitsspreadtoothers.Itisthedaiahs1andeducators
shareoftheheritageoftheProphetsandMessengers.
Allaahandtheangels,andeventheantinitsnest
and thewhale in theseawillprayfor theonewho
teachespeople thewaysofgood. (Reportedbyal
Tirmidhi;SunanalTirmidhi,AhmadShaakiredn.,
no. 2685.Abu Eesa said, this is a saheeh ghareeb
hasanhadeeth).
Therearedifferenttypesandwaysofteaching,withdif
ferentmeans andmethods, one ofwhich is correcting
mistakes.Correctingmistakesisapartofeducation;they
arelikeinseparabletwins.
1Daiyah:OnewhocallstothereligionofIslam.(E)
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www.islamhouse.comDealingwithandcorrectingmistakesisalsoapartofsincerityinreligion(naseehah)whichisadutyonallMus
lims.Theconnectionbetweenthisandtheconceptofen
joiningwhat isgoodand forbiddingwhat isevil,which
isalsoaduty, isquiteobvious (butweshouldnotethat
the area of mistakes is broader than the area of evil
(munkar),so
amistake
may
or
may
not
be
evil
as
such).
Correctingmistakesalsoformedapartofthewahy(reve
lation)andthemethodologyoftheQur`aan.TheQur`aan
broughtcommandsandprohibitions,approvalsandde
nunciations and correction ofmistakes even those on
thepartoftheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
upon him). So it included rebukes and pointing out ofmistakes,forexample(interpretationofthemeaning):
(TheProphet) frowned and turned away.Because
there came tohim theblindman [AbdAllaah ibn
UmmMaktoom,whilsthewaspreaching tooneor
someof thechiefsofQuraysh].Butwhatcould tell
you that perchance he might become pure (fromsins).Orthathemightreceiveadmonition,andthat
the admonitionmightprofithim?As forhimwho
thinks himself selfsufficient. To him you attend.
What does itmatter to you if hewill not become
pure(fromdisbelief,youareonlyaMessenger,your
duty is toconvey theMessageofAllaah).Butas tohimwhocametoyourunning,Andisafraid(ofAl
laahandHisPunishment),Ofhimyouareneglect
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www.islamhouse.comful and divert your attention to another. [Abasa80:110]
Andrememberwhenyou(Muhammad)saidtohim
(ZaydibnHaarithahthefreedslaveoftheProphet)
onwhomAllaah has bestowedGrace (by guiding
himtoIslam)andyou (too)havedoneafavour(by
freeinghim), Keep yourwife to yourself and fearAllaah.Butyoudidhide inyourself (whatAllaah
hadalreadymadeknown toyou i.e. thatHewill
giveher toyou inmarriage) thatwhichAllaahwill
makemainfest,youdidfearthepeoplewhereasAl
laahhadabetterrightthatyoushouldfearHim
[alAhzaab33:38]
Not for you (O Muhammad) is the decision;
whether He turns in mercy to (pardons) them or
punishesthem;verily,theyarethezaalimoon(poly
theists, disobedient,wrongdoers, etc.). [Aali Im
raan3:128]
Qur`aan was also revealed to correct the mistakes of
someof the Sahaabah in some situations.WhenHaatib
ibnAbiBaltaah(mayAllaahbepleasedwithhim)made
themistakeofwritingtothekuffaarofQurayshand in
forming them of the direction in which the Prophet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)headedona
military campaign against them, Allaah revealed the
words(interpretationofthemeaning):
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www.islamhouse.comOyouwhobelieve!TakenotMyenemiesandyourenemies (i.e., disbelievers and polytheists, etc.) as
friends,showingaffectiontowardsthem,whilethey
have disbelieved inwhat has come to you of the
truth,andhavedrivenouttheMessengerandyour
selves(fromyourhomeland)becauseyoubelievein
Allaahyour
Lord!
Ifyou
have
come
forth
to
strive
in
MyCauseandtoseekMyGoodPleasure,(thentake
not thesedisbelievers andpolytheists,etc., asyour
friends). You show friendship to them in secret,
whileIamAllAwareofwhatyouconcealandwhat
you reveal.Andwhosoeverofyou (Muslims)does
that,
then
indeed
he
has
gone
(far)
astray,
(away)
fromtheStraightPath.[alMumtahinah60:1]
Concerningthemistakemadebythearchersatthebattle
ofUhud,wholeftthepositionwheretheProphet(peace
andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)had commanded
themtostay,Allaahrevealedthewords(interpretationof
themeaning): until (themoment) you lost your courage and
fell todisputingabout theorder,anddisobeyedaf
terHe showed you (of thebooty)which you love.
Among you are some that desire this world and
some that desire the Hereafter [Aali Imraan
3:152]
When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
uponhim)stayedawayfromhiswivesinordertodisci
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www.islamhouse.complinethem,andsomepeoplespreadrumoursthathehaddivorcedthem,Allaahrevealedthewords(interpretation
ofthemeaning):
When there comes to them somematter touching
(public)safetyor fear, theymake itknown (among
thepeople), ifonly theyhadreferreditto theMes
senger or to those charged with authority amongthem, the proper investigatorswould have under
stooditfromthem(directly)[alNisa4:83]
WhensomeoftheMuslimsfailedtomigratefromMak
kah toMadeenahwithno legitimate excuse,Allaah re
vealedthewords(interpretationofthemeaning):
Verily! As for those whom the nagels take (in
death)whiletheyarewrongingthemselves(asthey
stayedamongthedisbelieverseven thoughemigra
tionwasobligatroy for them), they (angels) say (to
them): Inwhat (condition)wereyou?They reply:
Wewereweakandoppressedonearth.They (an
gels) say: Was not the earth of Allaah spacious
enough for you to emigrate therein? [alNisa
4:97]
When someof the Sahaabahbelieved and repeated the
rumoursofthemunaafiqeenaccusingAa`ishahofsome
thing shewas innocent of,Allaah revealed aayaat concerningthislie,including(interpretationofthemeaning):
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www.islamhouse.comHad it not been for theGrace ofAllaah andHisMercyuntoyouinthisworldandintheHereafter,a
great torment would have touched you for that
whereofyouhadspoken.Whenyouwerepropagat
ing it with your tongues and uttering with your
mouths thatwhereof you had no knowledge, you
counteditalittle
thing,
while
with
Allaah
itwas
verygreat.[alNoor24:14]
ThenAllaahsaid(interpretationofthemeaning):
Andwhydidyounot,whenyouheardit,say It
isnotrightforus tospeakof this.Glorybe toYou
(OAllaah), this is a great lie?Allaah forbids you
fromitandwarnsyounottorepeatthelikeofitfor
ever,ifyouarebelievers.[anNoor24:1617]
When some of the Sahaabah argued in the presence of
theProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
andraisedtheirvoices,Allaahrevealed(interpretationof
the
meaning):
O youwho believe!Do not put (yourselves) for
wardbeforeAllaahandHisMessenger,andfearAl
laah.Verily!AllaahisAllHearing,AllKnowing.O
youwho believe!Raise not your voices above the
voiceoftheProphet,norspeakaloudtohimintalk
asyou speakaloud tooneanother, lestyourdeedsmaybe rendered fruitlesswhileyouperceivenot.
[alHujuraat49:12]
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www.islamhouse.comWhen the caravan cameat the timeof theFridaykhutbah, and some of the people left the khutbah and dis
persedtoengageintrade,Allaahrevealedthewords:
And when they see some merchandise or some
amusement, theydisperseheadlong to it,and leave
you (Muhammad) standing [while delivering the
Fridaykhutbah].Say:ThatwhichAllaahhasisbetterthananyamusementormerchandise!AndAllaah
istheBestofProviders.[alJumuah62:11]
Manyotherexamplesalsoindicatetheimportanceofcor
rectingmistakesandnotkeepingquietaboutthem.
TheProphet
(peace
and
blessings
of
Allaah
be
upon
him)
was guided by the Light of his Lord in following the
principle of denouncing evil and correcting mistakes
with no compromise. From this and other reports the
scholars (mayAllaahhavemercyon them)derived the
principle: it is not permitted for the Prophet to delay
speaking
up
and
explaining
mistakes
from
its
appropri
atetime.
Understanding the Prophets methodology in dealing
withthemistakesofthepeoplehemetisofgreatimpor
tance,becausetheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaah
beuponhim)wasguidedbyhisLord,andhiswordsand
deedswere supported by revelation, and confirmed orcorrectedasneeded.Hismethodsarewiserandmoreef
ficacious,andusinghisapproach is thebestway toget
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www.islamhouse.compeopletorespondpositively.Iftheonewhoisinapositiontoguideandteachothersadoptsthesemethodsand
thisapproach,hiseffortswillbesuccessful.Followingthe
method and approach of theProphet (peace and bless
ingsofAllaahbeuponhim)also involves followinghis
example, forhe is thebestexample forus,and thiswill
leadus
to
agreat
reward
from
Allaah,
ifour
intention
is
sincere.
Knowing themethods of theProphet (peace and bless
ings ofAllaah beupon him) exposes the failure of the
manmademethodologywhichisfollowedeverywhere
onthisearthandprovestothefollowersofthatmeth
odologythat it isafailure.Muchof it isclearlyadeviation that is based on corrupt theories such as absolute
freedom,oritisderivedfromfalseheritagessuchablind
imitationofonesfathersandforefathers.
Wemustpointout that thepractical applicationof this
methodologyinreallifereliesheavilyonijtihaad(study
ing the situation and attempting to determine the bestapproach) to a great extent. This involves selecting the
bestmethods foraparticularsituation.Whoeverunder
standspeoplesnaturewillbeable tonotice similarities
between real life situations and situations described in
thetexts,sohewillbeabletochoosethemostappropri
ate method from among the methods of the Prophet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim).
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www.islamhouse.comThis book is an attempt to study the methods of theProphet (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim) in
dealingwithmistakesmadebypeopleofdifferentlevels
andbackgrounds,amongthosewholivedwithhimand
withwhomheinteracted.IaskAllaahtomakeitsuccess
fuland freeofmistakes, tobenefitmyMuslimbrothers
andme
through
it,
for
He
isin
control
of
all
things
and
Heisabletodothis,andHeistheGuidetotheStraight
Path.
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www.islamhouse.comPointstobeNotedwhenDealingwithMis
takes
Before we embark on our discussion we should note
some issues and considerations thatwe should bear in
mind before andwhendealingwith and correcting themistakesofothers.
SinceritytowardsAllaah
Whencorrectingthemistakesofothers,itisessentialthat
ones intentionbe toearn thepleasureofAllaah,not todemonstrateonessuperiorityortoventonesangerorto
impressothers.
AlTirmidhi (mayAllaahhavemercyonhim)reported
fromShufayyalAsbahi thatheenteredMadeenahand
sawamanwithpeoplegatheredaroundhim.Heasked,
Who is this? They said, AbuHurayrah. [Shufayysaid:] So I approachedhim and satdown in front of
him.Hewasspeaking to thepeople,andwhenhe fin
ishedandtheyhadgoneaway,Isaidtohim,Iaskyou
byAllaah, to narrate tome a hadeeth that you heard
from theMessenger ofAllaah (peace and blessings of
Allaahbeuponhim)andunderstoodfully.AbuHurayrahsaid,Iwilldothat,IwilltellyouahadeethIheard
from theMessenger ofAllaah (peace and blessings of
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www.islamhouse.comAllaahbeuponhim)andunderstood fully.ThenAbuHurayrahbegantogasp,andremainedinthiscondition
until he recovered, then he said, I will tell you a
hadeeth that theMessengerofAllah (peace andbless
ingsofAllaahbeuponhim)toldmeinthishousewhen
therewasnooneelsepresentexceptmeandhim.Then
AbuHurayrah
began
to
gasp
again,
then
he
recovered
andwipedhis face,andsaid, Iwill tellyouahadeeth
thattheMessengerofAllah(peaceandblessingsofAl
laahbeuponhim)toldmeinthishousewhentherewas
no one else present except me and him. Then he
gasped,thenherecoveredandwipedhisfaceandsaid,
I
will
tell
you
a
hadeeth
that
the
Messenger
of
Allah
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)toldmein
thishousewhen therewasno one elsepresent except
me and him. ThenAbuHurayrah began to gasp se
verely,andhishead fell forward,and Isupportedhim
withmy shoulder for a long time, then he recovered,
andsaid:TheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessings
ofAllaahbeuponhim)toldme:
When the Day of Judgement comes, Allaah will
comedowntojudgebetweenthepeople.Andevery
nation will be kneeling in submission. The first
people to be called forthwill be amanwho had
learnedthe
Qur`aan
by
heart,
aman
who
was
killed
for the sakeofAllaahandamanwhohada lotof
wealth. Allaah will say to the reciter [of the
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www.islamhouse.comQur`aan], Did Inot teachyou thatwhich Ihad revealed toMyMessenger?Hewill say, Of course,
My Lord.Allaahwill say, What did you dowith
whatyouwere taught?Hewillsay, Istayedupat
nightandduring theday (to recite it).Allaahwill
say, You have lied, and the angelswill say, You
havelied.
Allaah
will
say,
You
only
wanted
itto
be
saidthatsoandsoisareader,anditwassaid.The
onewhohadalotofwealthwillbebroughtandAl
laahwill say tohim, Did Inotgivegenerously to
yousothatyouwerenotinneedofanyone?Hewill
say, Ofcourse,OLord.Allaahwillsay, Whatdid
you
do
with
what
I
gave
you?
He
will
say,
I
used
to
give it tomy relatives and in charity.Allaahwill
say, You have lied, and the angelswill say, You
havelied.Allaahwillsay,Youonlywantedittobe
said that soandso is generous, and it was said.
ThentheonewhowaskilledforthesakeofAllaah
willbebrought andAllaahwill say tohim, What
wereyoukilledfor?Hewillsay,Iwascommanded
to fight in jihaad forYour sake so I foughtuntil I
waskilled.Allaahwillsay,Youhavelied,andthe
angels will say, You have lied. Allaah will say,
Youonlywantittobesaidthatsoandsowascou
rageous,anditwassaid.ThentheMessengerofAl
laah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be upon him)
struckmykneesand said, OAbuHurayrah, these
threeare thefirstpeopleforwhom theFirewillbe
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www.islamhouse.comheated on the Day of Resurrection. (Sunan alTirmidhi,no.2382,Shaakiredn.AbuEesasaid:this
isaghareebhasanhadeeth).
Iftheintentionofthepersongivingadviceissincere,he
will earn reward and his advicewill be accepted and
actedupon,bythepermissionofAllaah.
MakingMistakesisPartofHumanNature.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
said:
EverysonofAdammakesmistakes,andthebestof
those whomakemistakes are those who repent.
(ReportedbyalTirmidhi,no.2499,andbyIbnMaa
jah, who narrated this version alSunan, ed. by
AbdalBaqi,no.4251)
Bearingthisfactclearlyinmindwillputthingsintotheir
properperspective,
so
the
educator
should
not
expect
peopletobeperfectorinfallibleorjudgethemaccording
towhathethinkstheyshouldbe,andthenconsiderthem
tohave failed if theymakeabigmistakeorerr repeat
edly.He should dealwith them in a realisticmanner,
basedonhisknowledgeofhumannaturewhich issub
ject to ignorance, negligence, shortcomings,whims and
desiresandforgetfulness.
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www.islamhouse.comUnderstanding this fact will also prevent an educatorfrombeinggreatly shockedby thekindof suddenmis
takethatcouldleadhimtoreactinaninappropriatefash
ion. Thiswill remind the daiyah and educatorwho is
striving to enjoinwhat is good and forbidwhat is evil
thathe too is ahumanbeingwho could alsomake the
samemistake,
so
he
should
deal
with
him
on
afooting
of
compassionratherthanharshness,becausethebasicaim
istoreform,nottopunish.
Butthisdoesnotmeanthatweshouldleavepeoplewho
aremakingmistakesalone,orfindexcusesforthosewho
are committing sinson thebasis that they areonlyhu
manorthattheyare justyoungsters,orthatthemodernage is fullof temptationsandsoon.Wemustdenounce
theactionsandcallthepeopletoaccount,butatthesame
timewemustevaluatetheiractionsaccordingtoIslam.
Saying
that
someone
is
wrong
should
be
based
on
shari
evidence and proper understanding, not on ignorance
andthatfactthatonehappensnottolikeit.Muhammad
ibn alMunkadir reported that Jaabir prayed wearing
onlyan izar (lowergarmentwrappedaround thewaist)
tiedat theback [the reason for this is that theydidnot
havetrousers,andtheywouldweartheirizartiedatthe
back because thiswasmore concealingwhen they did
rukoo and sujood. [Fath alBaari, alSalafiyyah edn.,
1/467], and his other clothes were on a clothes hook.
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www.islamhouse.comSomeonesaidtohim,Areyouprayinginonegarment?Hesaid,Ionlydiditsothatsomefoolishpersonlikeyou
wouldseeme.Whoamongushad twogarmentsat the
timeof theMessengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsof
Allaah be upon him)? (Reported by alBukhaari, al
Fath,no.352).IbnHajar(mayAllaahhavemercyonhim)
said:What
is
meant
by
foolish
here
is
ignorant
The
purpose was to explain that it is permissible to pray
wearing only one garment, althoughwearing two gar
ments ispreferable.It isas ifhewassaying, Idid iton
purpose to show that it ispermissible, so thatonewho
doesnotknow could followme in thatorhe could re
buke
me
so
that
I
could
teach
him
that
it
is
permissible.
Thereasonwhyhisanswerwassoharshwassothathe
couldteachthemnottorebukethescholarsandtourge
them to look into sharimatters themselves. (alFath,
1/467)
Themoreseriousamistakeis,themoreeffortshouldbemadetocorrectit.
Effortstocorrectmistakesthathavetodowithaqeedah
shouldbegreaterthanthosetocorrectmistakesthathave
todowithetiquette,forexample.TheProphet(peaceand
blessings of Allaah be upon him) was intensely con
cerned aboutdealingwith and correctingmistakes that
hadtodowithshirkinallitsforms,becausethiswasthe
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www.islamhouse.commost important matter. Examples of this follow. AlMugheerahibnShubahsaid:
Therewasaneclipseofthesunonthedaythat[the
Prophets infant son] Ibraaheemdied,and thepeo
ple said, This eclipse is because of the death of
Ibraaheem. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)said:ThesunandthemoonaretwoofthesignsofAllaah,theydonot
become eclipsed for thedeathor lifeof anyone. If
youseethem(eclipsed)thencallonAllaahandpray
toHimuntil the eclipse isover. (Reportedby al
Bukhaari,Fath,1061).
AbuWaaqidalLaythireported thatwhen theMes
sengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
uponhim)wentouttoHunayn,hepassedbyatree
belonging to themushrikeen thatwascalledDhaat
Anwaat,onwhichtheyusedtohangtheirweapons.
They said, OMessenger ofAllaah,make forus a
DhaatAnwaat like theyhave.TheProphet (peaceand blessings ofAllaah be upon him) said, Sub
haanAllaah!ThisislikewhatthepeopleofMoosa
said,Makeforusagodastheyhavegods.Bythe
OneinWhosehandismysoul,youwillfollowthe
ways of the peoplewho came before you. (Re
portedby alTirmidhi,no.2180.He said: This isasaheehhasanhadeeth)
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www.islamhouse.comAccording to another report narrated byAbuWaaqid,theywentout fromMakkahwith theMessengerofAl
laahtoHunayn.Hesaid:
Thekuffaarhadalotustreetowhichtheywerede
votedandonwhich theyused tohang theirweap
ons; itwas calledDhaatAnwaat.We passed by a
big,green lotustree,andwesaid, OMessengerofAllaah,make thisaDhaatAnwatforus.TheMes
sengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
uponhim) said: By theOne inWhosehand ismy
soul,youhavesaidwhatthepeopleofMoosasaidto
him,Makeforusagodastheyhavegods,andhe
said,Verily,youareapeoplewhoknownot.Itisthesamething,andyouwillfollowthewaysofthe
peoplewho camebefore you, stepby step. (Re
portedbyAhmad,alSunan,5/218)
ZaydibnKhaalidalJuhanisaid:
TheMessenger ofAllaah (peace andblessings of
Allaahbeuponhim)ledusinSubh(Fajr)prayerat
alHudaybiyah justafter ithadrained in thenight.
Whenhefinished,heturnedtothepeopleandsaid,
DoyouknowwhatyourLordsays?Theysaid,Al
laahandHisMessengerknowbest.Hesaid, This
morningoneofMyslavesbecameabelieverinMe,
andoneadisbeliever.Asfor theonewhosaid,we
havebeengivenrainbytheGraceandMercyofAl
laah,heisabelieverinMeandadisbelieverinthe
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www.islamhouse.comstars;andasforhimwhosaid,wehavebeengivenrainby suchandsuch a star,he is adisbeliever in
Me and abeliever in the stars. (Reportedby al
Bukhaari,Fath,no.846)
IbnAbbaasreportedthatamansaid,
OMessengerofAllaah,whateverAllaah andyou
will.Hesaid,AreyoumakingmeequaltoAllaah?
[Say instead:]WhatAllaah alonewills. (Reported
byAhmad,alMusnad,1/283)
Ibn Umar (mayAllaahbepleasedwith themboth) re
ported that he caught up with Umar ibn alKhattaab
whowas
with
agroup
of
people
and
was
swearing
by
his
father.TheMessengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)calledthemandtoldthemthatAl
laah had forbidden them to swear by their forefathers;
theonewhowanted to swearanoath should swearby
Allaahorelsekeepquiet.(ReportedbyalBukhaari,Fath,
6108)
Note: Imaam Ahmad reported in hisMusnad:Wakee
toldus that alAmash toldus from Sad ibn Ubaydah
whosaid:IwaswithIbnUmarinacircleandheheard
amaninanothercirclesaying,No,bymyfather.SoIbn
Umarthrewpebblesathimandsaid,ThisishowUmar
used to swear, and theProphet (peace andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)forbadehimtodothisandsaidthat
itwasshirk.(alFathalRabbaani,14/164).
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www.islamhouse.comAbuShurayhHaaniibnYazeedsaid: AdelegationofpeoplecametotheProphet(peace
andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)andheheard
themcallingoneofthemAbdalHajar(slaveofthe
stone). He asked him, What is your name? He
said, Abd alHajar. The Messenger of Allaah
(peace andblessings ofAllaahbeuponhim) said,No, you are AbdAllaah (slave of Allaah). (Re
portedbyalBukhaariinalAdabalMufrad,no.813.
AlAlbaanisaidinSaheehalAdabalMufradthatit
issaheeh,no.623).
Taking intoaccount thepositionof thepersonwho is
strivingtocorrectthemistake.Somepeoplesadvicemay
bemorereadilyacceptedthanothersbecausetheyhave
astatusthatothersdonot,orbecause,unlikeothers,they
have authorityover thepersonwhohasmade themis
take,forexample,afatherwithhischildorateacherwith
hisstudentoragovernmentofficialwith theonewhomheisinspecting.Onewhoisolderisnotlikeonewhois
younger,a relative isnot likea stranger, apersonwith
authority isnot likeonewithnoauthority.Understand
ing thesedifferenceswillmake the reformerput things
intoperspectiveandevaluate themproperly,so thathis
rebukeor correctionwillnot lead toagreater evil.Theposition of the onewho is rebuking and the esteem in
whichhe isheldby theonewhohasmade themistake
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www.islamhouse.comare very important in judging how strong the rebukeshould be and deciding how harsh or gentle the tone
shouldbe.Fromthiswelearntwothings:
Firstly,thatthepersontowhomAllaahhasgivenstatus
orauthorityshoulduse that toenjoinwhat isgoodand
forbidwhat is evil,and to teachpeople.He shouldun
derstandthathehasagreatresponsibilitybecausepeoplewillacceptmorefromhimthanfromotherpeopleusu
allysohecandomorethanotherscan.
Secondly, thepersonwho seeks to enjoinwhat isgood
andforbidwhatisevilshouldnotmisjudgethesituation
andputhimself in ahigherposition than is in fact the
case and behave as ifhehasqualities thathedoesnot
have,becausethiswillonlyputpeopleoff.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
madethemostofthepositionofrespectthatAllaahhad
givenhimwhenhewas rebuking and teachingpeople.
He
did
things
that
would
not
have
been
appropriate
if
theyweredonebyanyone else, examplesofwhich fol
low.YaeeshibnTihfahalGhiffaarireportedthathisfa
thersaid:
IwasaguestoftheMessengerofAllaah(peaceand
blessingsofAllaahbeuponhim),oneofthepoorto
whom he played host. The Messenger of Allaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim) came
outtocheckonhisguestsduringthenight,andsaw
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www.islamhouse.comme lying onmy stomach.He kickedme and said,Dontlielikethis;thisisthekindoflyingthatAl
laahhates.
Accordingtoanotherreport:
Hekickedhimandwokehimup,andsaid,Thisis
how thepeopleofHell lie. (ReportedbyAhmad,
alFathalRabbaani,14/244245.Alsoreportedbyal
Tirmidhi,no.2798,Shaakired.;byAbuDawood in
Kitaab alAdab in his Sunan, no. 5040, adDaaas
edn.Thehadeeth isalso inSaheehalJaami,2270
2271)
Thismethod
of
rebuking
was
appropriate
for
the
Prophet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)becauseof
hispositionandstatus,butitisnotappropriateforordi
narypeople.Itisnotalrightforanypersonwhowantsto
rebukeanother for sleepingonhis stomach tokickhim
whilst he is asleep andwake him up, and then expect
him
to
accept
this
advice
and
thank
him
for
it.
The
same
applies tohitting apersonwho ismaking amistakeor
throwingsomethinglikepebblesorwhateverathim.Al
thoughsomeofthesalafdidthat,itwasbecauseoftheir
particular status.Some storiesof thisnature follow.Al
Daarimi(mayAllaahhavemercyonhim)reportedfrom
Sulaymaan ibnYassaar thatamancalledSabeeghcame
toMadeenah and started to ask about the ambiguous
textsoftheQur`aan.Umarsentforhim,andhehadpre
paredsomedatepalmbranchesforhim(tohithimwith).
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www.islamhouse.com[Umar]askedhim,Whoareyou?Hesaid,Iam theslaveofAllaah,Sabeegh. Umar tookholdofoneof
thepalmbranchesandhithim,saying,Iamtheslave
ofAllaah, Umar.Hekepthittinghimuntilhishead
began tobleed,andhesaid,OAmeeralMumineen,
enough! [The ideas that]were inmyheadhavegone!
(Sunanal
Daarimi,
ed.
by
Abd
Allaah
Haashim
Ya
maani,1/51,no.146).
AlBukhaari (mayAllaahhavemercy onhim) reported
thatIbnAbiLaylasaid:HudhayfahwasinalMadaa`in
andaskedforadrink,andagrandeegavehimavesselof
silver.He threw it at him and said, Iwould not have
thrownit,butItoldhimnottodoitandhedidntstop.TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
forbade us from wearing silk and brocade, and from
drinkingfromvesselsofgoldandsilver.Hesaid:
Thesearefortheminthisworldandforyouinthe
Hereafter.(alFath,no.5632)
AccordingtoareportnarratedbyAhmad,describingthe
same incident, AbdalRahmaan ibnAbiLaylaasaid:I
wentoutwithHudhayfah tooneof theseareas,andhe
asked forsomething todrink.Agrandeebroughthima
vesselofsilverandhe (Hudhayfah) threw it inhis face.
Wesaid, Bequiet,bequiet, ifweaskwhyhedid it,he
might not tellus. Sowewerequiet, and a littlewhile
laterhesaid, Doyouknowwhy I threw it inhis face?
Wesaid, No.Hesaid, Ihad toldhimnot todo it.The
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www.islamhouse.comMessenger ofAllaah (peace and blessings ofAllaah beuponhim)said:
Donotdrinkfromvesselsofgold.
andMuaadhsaid, Donotdrinkfromvesselsofgold
orsilver,anddonotwear silkorbrocade; theseare for
them in thisworld and foryou in theHereafter. (al
Musnad,5/396)
AlBukhaari narrated that Seereen askedAnas towrite
him a contract of manumission, as he had plenty of
money,butAnas refused. Seereenwent to Umar (may
Allaahbepleasedwithhim),whotoldAnastowritethe
document,and
Anas
still
refused,
so
Umar
hit
him
with
awhipwhilst reciting thewords (interpretation of the
meaning):
give them [slaves seeking emancipation] such
writing [of a document of manumission], if you
know that they are good and trustworthy [an
Noor24:33]
sohewrotethedocumentforhim.(AlFath,5/184).
AlNisaa`i reported fromAbu Saeed alKhudri that he
was prayingwhen a son ofMarwaan came in front of
him,sohecheckedhim,andwhenhedidnotgoback,he
hithim.Theboywentoutcrying,andwenttoMarwaan
and toldhimwhathadhappened.MarwaanaskedAbu
Saeed,Whydidyouhit the sonofyourbrother?He
said, Ididnothithim, Ihit the Shaytaan. Iheard the
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www.islamhouse.comMessenger ofAllaah (peace and blessings ofAllaah beuponhim)say:
Ifanyoneofyouisprayingandsomeonewantsto
passinfrontofhim,lethimstophimasmuchashe
can, and if he refuses then fight him, for he is a
devil.(alMujtabaminSunanalNisaa`i,8/61;Sa
heehSunanalNisaa`i,no.4518)
Ahmad (mayAllaahhavemercyonhim)reported from
AbulNadr that Abu Saeed alKhudri was suffering
fromasoreleg,andhisbrothercameinandsawhimly
ingwithonelegcrossedovertheother,sohehithimon
the sore leg,making it hurt evenmore.He said, You
hurtmy leg!Didntyouknow it is sore?He said,Of
courseIknew.Hesaid,Whatmadeyoudothat?He
said, Did you not hear that the Prophet (peace and
blessings ofAllaah beuponhim) forbadeus to sit like
this?(alMusnad,3/42)
Maalik
reported
from
Abul
Zubayr
al
Makki
that
a
man
proposedmarriage to anothermans sister, andhe [the
brother]toldhimthatshehadcommittedzinaa.Newsof
this reached Umar ibn alKhattaab, so he hit him or
nearlyhithim,andsaid,Whydidyou tellhim? (Mu
waaMaalik,no.1553, reportofAbuMusabalZuhri,
ed. by Bashshaar Maroof and Mahmood Khaleel.
Mu`asaasatalRisaalah).
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www.islamhouse.comMuslim reported in his Saheeh from Abu Ishaaqwhosaid: I was with alAswad ibn Yazeed in the Great
Mosque, and alShabi was with us. AlShabi told us
aboutwhatFaatimahbintQayshadsaidabouttheMes
sengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeupon
him) not providing housing or an income for her.Al
Aswadtook
ahandful
of
pebbles
and
threw
them
at
him,
saying,Woetoyou!Youtalkaboutsomethinglikethis?
Umarsaidthatweshouldnot leave theBookofAllaah
and the SunnahofourProphet (peace andblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)forthewordsofawomanwhowe
cannotbe surehas remembered thingsproperlyornot.
Women
have
the
right
to
accommodation
and
an
income.
Allaahsays:
andturnthemnotoutoftheirhomes,notshallthey
(themselves) leave, except in case they are guilty of
some open illegal sexual intercourse [alTalaaq
65:1].(SaheehMuslim,no.1480)
AbuDawoodreported,withanisnaadinwhichtwomenaremaqbool, that twomen entered from the doors of
Kindah,whenAbuMasood alAnsaariwas sitting in a
circle. The twomen said, Is there anymanwhowill
judge between us?Aman in the circle said, Iwill.
AbuMasoodtookahandfulofpebblesandthrewthem
at him, saying, Shut up! It is disliked to hasten tojudgement. (Reported by Abu Dawood, Kitaab al
Aqdiyah,Babfitalabalqadawaaltasarruilayhi)
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www.islamhouse.comWeshouldalsonotethattheProphetsrebukingofsomeof his closest Companions was, on occasions, harsher
than his rebuking of a bedouin, for example, or a
stranger.Allof thishas todowithwisdomandproper
evaluationinrebuking.
Makingadistinctionbetweenonewhoerrsoutofigno
rance and onewho errsdespitehisknowledge.One of
thestoriesthatillustratethisclearlyiswhathappenedto
Muaawiyah ibn alHakam alSalamiwhen he came to
Madeenahfromthedesert,andhedidnotknowthatitis
forbiddentospeakduringthesalaah.Hesaid:
WhilstIwasprayingbehindtheMessengerofAl
laah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim),a
man sneezed, so Isaid YarhamukAllaah (mayAl
laahhavemercyonyou).Thepeopleglaredatme,
so Isaid, Maymymother loseme!What iswrong
withyouthatyouarelookingatme?Theybeganto
slap their thighswith theirhands,andwhen Isaw
that theywere indicating that I should be quiet, I
stoppedtalking(i.e.,Inearlywantedtoanswerthem
back,butIcontrolledmyselfandkeptquiet).When
theMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAl
laahbeuponhim)had finishedprayingmaymy
fatherandmotherbesacrificedforhim,Ihavenever
seenabetter teacher thanhimbeforeor sincehe
didnotrebukemeorhitmeorputmetoshame.He
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www.islamhouse.comjustsaid,Thisprayershouldcontainnothingofthespeech ofmen; it is only tasbeeh and takbeer and
recitationof theQur`aan. (SaheehMuslim, Abd
alBaaqiedn.,no.537).
Theignorantpersonneedstobetaught;theonewhohas
doubtsneedstohavethingsexplainedtohim;thenegli
gentpersonneedstobereminded;andtheonewhowillfullypersistsinerrorneedstobewarned.Itisnotrightto
treatonewhoknowsaboutarulingandonewhoisigno
rantofitinthesamemannerwhenrebukingthem.Treat
ingonewhodoesnotknowtooharshlywillonlyputhim
off andmake him refuse to follow your advice, unlike
teaching himwithwisdom and gentleness, because anignorantpersonsimplydoesnotrealizethatheismaking
amistake.Itisasifheissayingtotheonewhoisrebuk
inghim:Whydontyouteachmebeforeyoulaunchan
attackonme?
The onewho ismaking amistakewithout realizing it
maythinkthatheisright,soweshouldtakethisintoaccountanddealwithhim tactfully. ImaamAhmad (may
Allaahhavemercyonhim)reported inalMusnad from
alMugheerahibnShubah:
TheMessenger ofAllaah (peace andblessings of
Allaahbeuponhim)atesomefood, thengotup to
pray.Hehadalreadydonewudoobeforethat,butI
brought somewater for him to dowudoo,He re
buffedmeandsaid, Goaway! I feltupset,byAl
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www.islamhouse.comlaah.Heprayed, and I complained to Umar aboutwhathadhappened.Hesaid, OProphetofAllaah,
alMugheerah feelshurt by your rebuff, and he is
worried thatyoumaybe angrywithhim for some
reason.TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaah
beuponhim)said: Iseeonlygood inhim,buthe
broughtme
water
to
do
wudoo
after
Ihad
eaten
somefood,andifIhaddonewudoothen,thepeo
plewouldhavefollowedsuit[i.e.,theywouldhave
thoughtthattheyhadtodowudooeverytimethey
hadeatensomething].(alMusnad,4/253)
We shouldnotehere thatwhen theProphet (peaceand
blessings ofAllaah be upon him) pointed out themistakesofthesegreatSahaabah,itdidnothaveanegative
impactonthemorputthemoff;rather,ithadapositive
effectonthem,andhavingbeencorrectedinthismanner
by theProphet (peace andblessingsofAllaah beupon
him),theywouldremainanxiousandworried,watching
theirbehaviourandfeelingconcerneduntiltheycouldbesurethattheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)waspleasedwiththem.
WemayalsonotefromthisstorythatwhentheProphet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)pointedout
alMugheerahs mistake, he was not angry with al
Mugheerahhimself;hedidthisoutofmercytothepeople and to explain things clearly to them, so that they
wouldnotimposesomethingonthemselvesthatwasnot
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www.islamhouse.comwaajiband thatwouldcause themagreatdealofhardship.
Makingadistinctionbetweenmistakesstemmingfrom
anhonesteffort to findoutwhat is right (ijtihaad),and
mistakesdonedeliberately,outofnegligenceorbecause
ofshortcomings.Thereisnodoubtthatinthefirstcase,a
person isnot tobeblamed; indeedhewillearnone re
wardevenifheismistaken,solongashisintentionwas
sincereandhetriedtoreachtherightconclusion,because
theProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
said:
Ifarulerjudgesandstrivestomaketherightdeci
sion, and his decision is correct, hewill have two
rewards, and ifhisdecision iswrong,hewill still
have one reward. (Reported by alTirmidhi, 1326,
Shaakir edn. Abu Eesa alTirmidhi said it is a
ghareebhasanhadeethinthisversion.)
Thisisadifferentcasefromonewhoerrsdeliberatelyor
becauseofshortcomings.Inthefirstinstance,theperson
shouldbe taughtandadvised; in thesecond,heshould
bewarnedandrebuked.
The ijtihaadwhichmay be excused should bedone on
thepartofonewho isqualified,notonewhogives fatwas without knowledge and without taking circum
stances into account. This iswhy the Prophet severely
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www.islamhouse.comdenouncedthepeoplewhomadethemistakeinthecaseofthemanwiththeheadwound.AbuDawoodnarrated
in his Sunan from Jaabir (mayAllaah be pleasedwith
him)whosaid:
Wewentoutonajourney,andoneofthemenwith
uswas struck in theheadwitha stoneand started
bleeding.Thenhe slept andwhenhewokeupheneeded todoghusl (hewas instateof janaabahor
impurity).Heaskedhiscompanions, Doyouthink
Icouldgetawaywithdoingtayammum?Theysaid,
Wedontthinkyouhaveanyexcusebecausewater
isavailable.Sohedidghusl,andhedied.Whenwe
came to theProphet (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim) andhewas told about this,he said,
Theyhavekilledhim,mayAllaahkill them!Why
did theynotask if theydidnotknow?Thecureof
theonewhodoesnotknowistoask(SunanAbi
Dawood,KitaabalTahaarah,Baabalmajroohyata
yammam; alAlbaani classed it ashasan inSaheehAbiDawood,325,andindicatedthattheextramate
rial[notmentioned]addedattheendofthehadeeth
isdaeef)
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
saidthatjudgesareofthreetypes,onewillbeinParadise
andtheothertwoinHell.ThetypethatwillbeinParadise is amanwhoknows the truth and judges accord
ingly.Amanwhoknows the truth but judgesunjustly
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www.islamhouse.comwillbe inHell,and amanwho judgesbetweenpeoplewithoutproper knowledgewill also be inHell. (Sunan
AbiDawood,no.3573;classedassaheehbyalAlbaaniin
alIrwa,2164).The third type isnotregardedashaving
anyexcuse.
Anotherfactoringaugingthedegreeofrebukingispay
ing attention to the environment inwhich themistakeoccurred, such as whether it was an environment in
whichtheSunnahisfollowedorbidahiswidespread,or
howprevalent evil is, orwhether there are ignorant or
overly lenient people, whose opinions are widely fol
lowed,issuingfatwastosaythatitispermissible.
Agoodintentiononthepartoftheonewhomakesthe
mistakedoesnotmeanthatheshouldnotberebuked
Amr ibnYahyasaid:Iheardmy fathernarrating from
hisfatherwhosaid:WewereatthedoorofAbdAllaah
ibnMasoodbefore theearlymorningprayer.Whenhecame out we walked with him to the mosque. Abu
MoosaalAsharicameuptousandsaid,DidAbuAbd
alRahmaancomeouttoyouyet?Wesaid,No.Hesat
downwith us until [Abu Abd alRahmaan] came out.
When he came out,we all stood up to greet him, and
AbuMoosasaid tohim:OAbu AbdalRahmaan,earlierIsawinthemosquesomethingthatIhaveneverseen
before, but it seems good, alhamdu Lillaah.He said,
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www.islamhouse.comAndwhatwasit?Hesaid,ifyoulive,youwillseeit.Isawpeopleinthemosquesittingincircleswaitingforthe
prayer. In every circle therewas aman, and they had
pebblesintheirhands.Hewouldsay,SayAllaahuakbar
onehundred times,and theywould sayAllaahuakbar
onehundred times; thenhewould say, SayLaa ilaaha
illAllaah
one
hundred
times,
and
they
would
say
Laa
ilaaha illAllaahonehundred times; thenhewouldsay,
Say Subhaan Allaah one hundred times, and they
would say Subhaan Allaah one hundred times. He
asked,Whatdidyousaytothem?Hesaid,Ididnotsay
anythingtothem;Iwaswaitingtoseewhatyouropinion
would
be
and
what
you
would
tell
me
to
do.
He
said,
Whydidyounottellthemtocounttheirbaddeedsand
guarantee them thatnothingof theirgooddeedswould
bewasted?Thenheleft,andwewentwithhim,untilhe
reached one of those circles.He stood over them and
said, What is this I seeyoudoing?They said, OAbu
Abd alRahmaan, these are pebbles we are using to
countour takbeer, tahleeland tasbeeh.Hesaid, Count
your bad deeds, and I guarantee that nothing of your
good deedswill bewasted.Woe to you,O ummah of
Muhammad,howquicklyyouaregettingdestroyed!The
CompanionsofyourProphet(peaceandblessingsofAl
laahbeuponhim)are stillalive,hisgarment isnotyet
wornoutandhisvesselsarenotyetbroken.BytheOne
inWhosehandismysoul,eitheryouarefollowingaway
thatismoreguidedthanthatofMuhammadoryouhave
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www.islamhouse.comopenedthedoorofmisguidance!Theysaid, ByAllaah,OAbu AbdalRahmaan,weonlywanted todogood.
He said, Howmany of thosewhowanted todo good
failedtoachieve it!TheMessengerofAllaah(peaceand
blessingsofAllaahbeuponhim) toldus thatpeoplere
citeQur`aan and it does not go any further than their
throats.By
Allaah,
Ido
not
know,
maybe
most
of
them
are people like you. Then he turned away from them.
Amr ibn Salamah said, I sawmostof themembersof
thosecirclesfightingalongsidetheKhawaarijontheday
ofNahrawaan.(ReportedbyalDaarimi,alSunan,no.
210,ed.byAbdAllaahHaashimalYamaani.AlAlbaani
classed
its
isnaad
as
saheeh
in
al
Silsilat
al
Saheehah
un
der hadeeth no. 2005. See Majma alZawaaid by al
Haythami,1/181).
Being fairandnotbeingbiasedwhencorrecting those
whomakemistakes
Allaahsays(interpretationofthemeanings):
Andwheneveryougiveyourword (i.e., judgebe
tweenmen or give evidence), say the truth [al
Anaam6:152]
andwhenyoujudgebetweenmen,you[should]
judgewithjustice[alNisa4:58]
The fact thatUsaamah ibnZaydwas thebelovedof the
Prophet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)and
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www.islamhouse.comthe sonofhisbeloved [Zayd]didnot stop theProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)fromrebuk
inghimmoststernlywhenhe tried to intercederegard
ingoneof thepunishments (hudood)prescribedbyAl
laah. Aa`ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) re
ported that Quraysh were concerned about a woman
whostole
at
the
time
of
the
Prophet
(peace
and
blessings
ofAllaahbeuponhim),at the timeof theConquestof
Makkah.Theysaid,
Whowillspeak to theMessengerofAllaah (peace
and blessings ofAllaah be upon him) about her?
Whowill dare to do this other thanUsaamah ibn
Zayd,thebelovedoftheMessengerofAllaah(peaceand blessings of Allaah be upon him)? She was
brought to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessingsofAllaahbeuponhim),andUsaamahibn
Zayd spoke tohim concerningher.The faceof the
MessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaah
beuponhim)changedcolourandhesaid: Areyouintercedingconcerningoneofthepunishmentspre
scribedbyAllaah?Usaamah said tohim, Pray for
forgiveness forme,OMessengerofAllaah.When
evening came, theMessengerofAllaah (peace and
blessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)stoodupandad
dressedthe
people.
He
praised
Allaah
as
He
de
serves tobepraised, thenhesaid: Thepeoplewho
camebefore youweredestroyedbecause if one of
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www.islamhouse.comtheirnoblesstole,theywouldlethimgo,butifoneoftheweakamongthemstole,theywouldcarryout
thepunishmentonhim.BytheOneinWhosehand
ismysoul,ifFaatimahthedaughterofMuhammad
weretosteal,Iwouldcutoffherhand.Thenheor
dered that thewomanwhohadstolenshouldhave
herhand
cut
off.
(The
hadeeth
was
reported
by
al
BukhaariandMuslim;thisversionwasnarratedby
Muslim,no.1688).
According to a report narrated by alNisaa`i from
Aa`ishah (mayAllaahbepleasedwithher),shesaid:
Awomanborrowed some jewellery, claiming that
shewantedtolendittosomeoneelse,butshesoldit
andkept themoney.Shewasbrought to theMes
sengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
uponhim).Her familywent toUsaamah ibnZayd,
who spoke to theMessenger ofAllaah (peace and
blessings ofAllaah be upon him) concerning her.
The face of the Messenger of Allaah (peace andblessings of Allaah be upon him) changed colour
whilstUsaamahwas speaking, then theMessenger
ofAllaah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be upon
him) said to him: Are you interceding concerning
one of the punishments prescribed by Allaah?
Usaamahsaid, Prayforforgivenessforme,OMessengerofAllaah.In theevening, theMessengerof
Allaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
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www.islamhouse.comstood up, praised Allaah as He deserves to bepraised,thensaid,Thepeoplewhocamebeforeyou
weredestroyedbecause ifoneof theirnoblesstole,
theywouldlethimgo,butifoneoftheweakamong
themstole,theywouldcarryoutthepunishmenton
him.BytheOneinWhosehandismysoul,ifFaati
mahthe
daughter
of
Muhammad
were
to
steal,
I
would cutoffherhand.Thenhe ordered that the
womanshandshouldbecutoff.(SunanalNisaa`i,
alMujtabaa,Dar alFikr edn., 8/73. Classed as sa
heehbyalAlbaani inSaheehSunanalNisaa`i,no.
4548).
TheProphetsattitudetowardsUsaamah(mayAllaahbepleasedwithhim)indicatesthathewasfairandjust,and
thatIslamcamebeforeloveofpeopleinhisview.Aper
sonmayputupwith thepersonal faultsofwhoeverhe
wishes,buthehasno right to be tolerantor biased to
wards thosewhosemistakes transgress the limitssetby
Islam.Sometimes,whenarelativeorfriendmakesamistake,a
persondoesnotrebukehimashewouldapersonwhom
hedoesnotknow,soonemayseeunIslamicbiasordis
criminationinhisdealingsbecauseofthis,andaperson
mayturnablindeyetohisfriendsmistakewhileharshly
criticizinganotherperson.
[AnArabpoetoncesaid:]
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www.islamhouse.comIfyouarehappywithaperson,youdonot seehismistakes,butifyouareangrywithhim,youseethem
all.
Thismayalsobereflectedinthewayinwhichactionsare
interpreted.Anactionon thepartofapersonone loves
willbetakenoneway,andthesamedeedonthepartof
anotherpersonwillbetakenquitedifferently.
Alloftheaboveappliesonlywhencircumstancesarethe
same, otherwise there could bedifferent considerations
aswewillseebelow.
Being careful lest correcting onemistake leads to abiggermistake.ItisawellestablishedfactthatIslamal
lows the lesser of two evils in order to repel a greater
evil.Soadaiyahmaykeepquietaboutonemistakelest
sayingsomethingleadtoamoreseriousmistake.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
kept quiet about themunaafiqeen and did not execute
them, even though their kufrwaswellestablished.He
bore their insultswith patience, lest people say, Mu
hammadiskillinghiscompanions,especiallysincetheir
true nature was not known to everyone. The Prophet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)didnotde
stroytheKabahinordertorebuilditonthefoundationslaidbyIbraaheem,outofconsiderationtowardsQuraysh
whowerestillnewinIslamandtooclosetotheirrecent
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www.islamhouse.comjaahiliyyah.He (peace andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)fearedthatitmightbetoomuchforthem,soheleft
itas itwas,withpartmissing,and thedoorsethighup
and closed to themasses, even though this contains an
elementofzulm(wrongdoingoroppression).
Beforethis,AllaahhadtoldtheMuslimsnottoinsultthe
gods of themushrikeen, even though this is a form ofworship,because thiscould lead topeople insultingAl
laah,whichistheworstofevil.
Adaiyahmaykeepquietaboutawrongaction,ordefer
rebuking,orchangehisapproach,ifhethinksthatbydo
ingsohewillavoidagreaterevilormistake.Thisisnot
consideredtobeshortcomingornegligencesolongashis
intention is sincere andhedoesnot fear anyone except
Allaah,and itwasonlyconcern for thebest interestsof
Islam,notcowardice,thatstoppedhimfromsayingany
thing.
We
may
note
that
what
causes
a
greater
evil
when
rebuk
ing foronemistake iszealousnesswhich isnotchecked
orcontrolled.
Understandingthehumannaturefromwhichthemis
takesprang.Therearesomemistakeswhichcanneverbe
fully eradicated,because theyhave todowith thewayAllaahhascreatedpeople.Itispossibletoreducethema
little, but going to extremes in dealingwith themwill
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www.islamhouse.comleadtoadisaster.Suchisthecaseofwomen.TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)said:
Womanwas created from a rib, and shewill not
behave consistently towards you. If you enjoy her
company, then enjoy itdespiteher crookedness. If
youtrytostraightenheryouwillbreakher,andher
breakingisherdivorce.(ReportedbyMuslimfromAbuHurayrah (mayAllaah be pleasedwith him),
no.1468).
Accordingtoanotherreport:
Bekindtowomen,fortheywerecreatedfromarib,
andthe
most
crooked
part
of
the
rib
isthe
top.
Ifyou
trytostraightenit,youwillbreakit,andifyouleave
italone,itwillstaycrooked.Sobekindtowomen.
(Reported by alBukhaari fromAbuHurayrah.Al
Fath,no.5186).
IbnHajar (mayAllaah havemercy on him) said: The
wordstreatwomenkindlyindicatethatyoushouldtrytoputthemrightgently,becauseifyougotoextremes
intryingtostraightenthemyouwillbreakthem,andif
you leave them theywill remain crookedWhatwe
learn from this is that we should not leave them
crooked if theygobeyond thenatural expected short
comings and commit sins or neglect duties.What ismeantisthatwecanleavethemcrookedwithregardto
permissiblematters.We also learn from the hadeeth
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www.islamhouse.comthat a gentle approach wins people over and openstheirhearts.Italsotellsus todealwithwomenbybe
ingeasygoingwiththem,andtobeartheircrookedness
with patience.Whoever insists on putting them right
will not benefit from them, and as aman cannot do
withoutawoman toenjoy thepleasureof livingwith
herand
to
be
his
support
in
life,
itisas
ifhe
said:
you
cannotenjoyhercompanyunlessyouputupwithher.
(Fath,9/954).
Makingadistinctionbetweenmistakesthattransgress
the limitsof Islamandmistakes thatonlyaffectother
people.IfIslam isdearer tous thanourownselves,we
mustdefend itandprotect itandgetangry for its sake
more thanwegetangry forourown sakes anddefend
ourown selves. It isa signofnothaving religious feel
ings ifwe see aman getting angry forhis own sake if
someone insultshim,butnotgettingangry for the sake
ofAllaahsreligionifanybodyinsultsit;atmost,wemayseehimfeeblydefendingitinanembarrassedmanner.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
oftenused to forgive thosewhomademistakes in their
interactionswith him, especially the hardhearted Bed
ouin, in order to soften their hearts.AlBukhaari (may
Allaahhavemercyonhim) reported inhisSaheeh that
AnasibnMaaliksaid:
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www.islamhouse.comIwaswalkingwiththeMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim),andhewas
wearingaNajraanicloakwithastiffcollar.ABed
ouin accosted him, grabbing his cloak in such a
manner that thecollar leftamarkon theProphets
neck,andsaid,OMuhammad!Givemesomeofthe
wealthof
Allaah
that
you
have!
The
Messenger
of
Allaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
turned to him and smiled, then ordered that he
shouldbegivensomething.(alFath,5809).
Butifthemistakehadtodowithsomeissueofreligion,
thentheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeupon
him)wouldbecomeangryforthesakeofAllaah.Examplesofthiswillbegivenbelow.
Therearesomeothermatterswhichshouldalsobeborne
inmindwhendealingwithpeoplesmistakes,suchas:
Makingadistinctionbetweenmajormistakesandmi
nor
mistakes,
just
as
Islam
makes
a
distinction
between
majorsins(kabaair)andminorsins(saghaair).
Makingadistinctionbetweenapersonwhohasatrack
recordofmanygooddeeds,whichwillmoreorlesscan
celoutthesignificanceofhismistake,andasinnerwho
transgressesagainsthimself(bydoingevildeeds).People
mayputupwithactionsonthepartoftheonewiththegood trackrecord that theywillnotputupwithon the
partofothers.ThisiswhathappenedtoalSiddeeq(Abu
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www.islamhouse.comBakr), as the following story illustrates:AsmabintAbiBakrsaid:
Wewentoutwith theMessengerofAllaah (peace
andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim) aspilgrims,
andwhenwereachedalArj, theMessengerofAl
laah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be upon him)
stoppedtorest,andwestoppedwithhim.Aa`ishah(may Allaah be pleased with her) sat beside the
MessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaah
beuponhim),andIsatbesidemyfather.Theriding
beastsharedbyAbuBakrandtheMessengerofAl
laah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be upon him)
waswithaslavebelonging toAbuBakr.AbuBakrsatdown,waitingforhimtocatchup,andwhenhe
caughtup, the camelwasnotwithhim.AbuBakr
said, Where is the camel? The slave answered, I
lost it yesterday.Abu Bakr said, One camel, you
lostit?andstartedtohithim.TheMessengerofAl
laah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be upon him)smiledandsaid,Lookatwhatthismuhrim(person
in a state of ihraam forHajj) is doing. Ibn Abi
Rizmah said, TheMessengerofAllaah (peace and
blessings ofAllaah be upon him) did not do any
morethansaying, Lookatwhatthismuhrimisdo
ing,and
smiling.
(Reported
by
Abu
Dawood
in
his
Sunan, Kitaab alManaasik, Baab alMuhrim
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www.islamhouse.comyuaddib ghulaamahu. Classed as hasan by alAlbaaniinSaheehSunanAbiDawood,no.1602)
Makingadistinctionbetweentheonewhomakesmis
takesrepeatedlyandtheonewhoismakingamistakefor
thefirsttime.
Making adistinctionbetween theonewho frequently
makesmistakesandtheonewhorarelydoesso.
Makingadistinctionbetweentheonewhomakesmis
takesopenlyandblatantly,andonewhotriestocoverup
hismistakes
Payingattentiontocaseswhereapersonsadherenceto
Islammaynotbestrongandhisheartneedstobeopenedtothereligion,soweshouldnotbetooharshwithhim.
Taking into account a persons situation as regards
statusandauthority.
Theconsiderationsthatwehavementionedabovedonot
contradictthe
fairness
and
justice
referred
to
earlier.
Rebukingayoungsterwhomakesamistakeshouldbe
done in a manner appropriate to the childs age. Al
Bukhaari(mayAllaahhavemercyonhim)reportedthat
alHasan ibn Ali took one of the dates that had been
given in charity, and put it in hismouth. The Prophet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)saidinPersian,
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www.islamhouse.comKakh,kakh,doyounotknow thatwedonot eatthesadaqah(thingsgivenincharity)?(Fath,3072).
AlTabaraani (mayAllaahhavemercyonhim)reported
fromZaynabbintAbiSalamahthatsheentereduponthe
Messenger ofAllaah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be
uponhim)whilsthewasperformingghusl.Shesaid,
Hetookahandfulofwaterandthrewitinmyface,
saying, Go away, foolish girl! (alMujam al
Kabeer, 24/281. AlHaythami said, its isnaad is
hasan,alMajma,1/269)
From this it is clear that a childs tender years do not
meanthat
his
mistakes
should
not
be
corrected;
indeed,
correctinghismistakesisgivinghimthebestupbringing,
as itwill be imprinted in hismemory andwill benefit
himinthefuture.Thefirsthadeethshowshowachildis
taughttofearAllaahandrestrainhimself,andthesecond
hadeethshowshowhe is taughtgoodmanners,how to
seek
permission
to
enter,
and
to
refrain
from
looking
at
theawrah(thatwhichshouldbecovered)ofothers.
Another brilliant example of correcting children is the
story of the young boy Umar ibn Abi Salamah. Al
Bukhaarireportedthathesaid:
IwasayoungboyunderthecareoftheMessenger
ofAllaah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be uponhim),andmyhandusedtowanderallovertheplate
(atmealtimes).TheMessengerofAllaah(peaceand
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www.islamhouse.comblessings of Allaah be upon him) said to me: Oyoungboy!SayBismillah,eatwithyourrighthand,
andeat fromwhat isdirectly in frontofyou.This
remainedmywayofeatingfrom thattimeon. (al
Fath,no.5376)
WemaynotethatwhentheProphet(peaceandblessings
of Allaah be upon him) advised that young boy whomade themistakeof lettinghishandgo everywhere in
the food, hiswordswere short, brief and clear,which
made iteasyforthechildtorememberandunderstand;
the effecton the boysheart lasted for a lifetime, ashe
said,This remainedmywayofeating from that time
on.
Exercising caution when advising nonmahram
women,sothattheadviceisnottakenwrongly,andso
that fitnah (temptation, trouble) is avoided.Noyoung
man
should
use
the
excuse
of
speaking
to
young
women
inordertocorrecttheirmistakesorteachthem.Howof
tenhasthisledtodisasters!Whenitcomestocorrecting
women,alargeroleshouldbegiventoahlalhisbah(re
ligiouspolice)andolderpeoplewhocouldhelpthemin
thisregard.Thepersonwho isseekingtoenjoinwhat is
goodandforbidwhatisevilmustactinaccordancewith
whathethinkswillbetheoutcomeofhisrebuking.Ifhe
thinksthatitislikelytobeofbenefit,heshouldspeakup,
otherwise he should refrain from speaking to ignorant
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www.islamhouse.comwomen who may make false accusations against himwhilst still persisting in theirwrongdoing.The state of
thesocietyatlargeandthestatusoftheonewhoisseek
ingtoenjoinwhatisgoodandforbidwhatisevilplaya
fundamental role in the successofhisefforts to rebuke,
conveythemessageorestablishevidence.Thefollowing
storyillustrates
this:
ThefreedslaveofAbuRaham,whosenamewasUbayd,
reported that Abu Hurayrah met a woman who was
wearingperfume,heading for themosque.He said,O
femaleslaveofalJabbaar(theCompeller),whereareyou
going?She said,To themosque.He said,Andyou
haveputonperfumeforthis?Shesaid,Yes.Hesaid,IheardtheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)saying,
Ifanywomanputsonperfumeand thengoesout
to themosque,Allaahwill not accept her prayers
untilshedoesghusl.(ReportedbyIbnMaajah,no.
4002;seealsoSaheehIbnMaajah,2/367).
According toSaheeh IbnKhuzaymah:Awomanpassed
byAbuHurayrahandherperfumewasoverwhelming.
Hesaidtoher,
Where are you going, O female slave of al
Jabbaar?Shesaid,Tothemosque.Hesaid,Areyou wearing perfume? She said, Yes. He said,
Gobackanddoghusl,forIheardtheMessengerof
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www.islamhouse.comAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)sayingthatAllaahdoesnotaccepttheprayerofany
woman who goes out to the mosque with over
whelming perfume, until she goes back and does
ghusl. (Saheeh Ibn Khuzaymah, no. 1682. In his
footnote,alAlbaanisaid, it isahasanhadeeth.See
alsoal
Musnad,
2/246.
Ahmad
Shaakir
classed
itas
saheeh with this isnaad in his footnote to al
Musnad,no.7350)
Notoccupyingoneselfwithputtingthesymptomsright
whilstneglectingtodealwiththecauseofthemistake
Notexaggeratingaboutthemistake
Notgoing toextremes toprove themistakehappened
ortryingtoforceanadmissionofguiltfromtheonewho
madethemistake
Allowingenoughtimeforcorrectingthemistake,espe
ciallyinthecaseofonewhohasbeenaccustomedtodo
ingitforalongtime,whilststillfollowingupthematter
andcontinuingtoadviseandcorrect
Notmakingtheonewhomakesthemistakefeellikean
enemy,because theaim is towinpeopleover,notscore
pointsagainstthem
Nowwewillmoveon toourdiscussionof themethods
used by the Prophet (peace and blessings ofAllaah be
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www.islamhouse.comuponhim)whendealingwiththemistakesofpeople,asrecorded in thesaheehahaadeethnarratedby theschol
ars.
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www.islamhouse.comTheProphetsMethodsofDealingwithPeo
plesMistakes
1 Hastening to dealwith peoplesmistakes and not
puttingitoff.TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaah
beuponhim)used tohasten todealwithpeoplesmistakes,especiallywhen itwasnot right forhim todelay
doingsoatthemomentwhenthiswasneeded.Histask
was to explain the truth to people, teach them to do
good,andwarnthemofffromdoingevil.Sohehastened
tocorrectpeopleonmanyoccasions,asisseeninthesto
riesof themanwhowasnotdoinghissalaahproperly,theMakhzoomiwoman,IbnalLatbiyyah,Usaamah,the
threewhowantedtogotoextremesinworship,andoth
ers.Thesestorieswillberelatedinthecourseofthisdis
cussion,inshaAllaah.
Nothasteningtodealwithmistakesgoesagainstthein
terests of Islam andmisses out on the opportunity tostrikewhiletheironishot,asitwere.
2 Dealing with mistakes by explaining the ruling
(hukm). Jarhad (may Allaah be pleasedwith him) re
portedthattheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
uponhim)passedbyhimwhenhisthighwasuncovered.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
said,
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www.islamhouse.comAllaah be upon him) came out and said, What isthis call of the people of Jaahiliyyah all about?
Thenhesaid,Whatisthematterwithhim?Hewas
told about how theMuhaajir had shoved theAn
saariinjest.TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAl
laahbeuponhim)said,Leaveit,forit(tribalism)is
evil.(al
Fath,
3518).
AccordingtoareportnarratedbyMuslim,hesaid:
Letamanhelphisbrotherwhetherheisanwrong
doeror thevictimofwrongdoing.Ifheisawrong
doer,heshouldstophim,andifhe is thevictimof
wrongdoing, he should come to his aid. (Saheeh
Muslim,no.2584).
4 Correctingmisconceptionsthatareduetosomething
not being clear in peoples minds. In Saheeh al
Bukhaari,Humayd ibnAbiHumayd alTaweel reports
thatheheardAnas ibnMaalik (mayAllaah bepleasedwithhim)saying:
Threepeoplecametothehousesofthewivesofthe
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him), asking about how the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) worshipped.
When theywere told about it, they thought that itwaslittle.Theysaid,Whoarewe,comparedtothe
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
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www.islamhouse.comhim)?Allhis sins,past and future,havebeen forgiven. (They thought that the onewho does not
knowthathissinshavebeenforgivenneededtogo
to extremes inworship and do farmore than the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him),inthehopethattheirsinsmightbeforgiven).
Oneof
them
said,
As
for
me,
Iwill
pray
every
night
fromnowon.Anothersaid,Asforme,Iwillfast
fortherestofmylifeandwillneverbreakmyfast.
Thethirdsaid,Asforme,Iwillhavenothingtodo
withwomenand Iwillnevermarry.TheMessen
gerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeupon
him)
came
to
them
and
said,
Are
you
the
people
who said suchandsuch? ByAllaah, I am the one
whofearsAllaahmorethananyone,butIfastandI
breakmyfast,IprayandIrest,andIgetmarried.
MuslimreportedfromAnasthatagroupoftheCompan
ions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) asked thewives of the Prophet (peace andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)aboutwhathedid in
secret.Oneof them (thoseSahaabah)said,Iwillnever
marrywomen.Another said, Iwill never eatmeat.
Anothersaid,Iwillneversleeponabed.[TheProphet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)]praisedand
thankedAllaah,
then
he
said,
Whatisthematterwithsomepeoplewhosaysuch
andsuch?But as forme, Ipray and I sleep, I fast
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www.islamhouse.comand Ibreakmy fast,and Imarrywomen.WhoeverturnsawayfrommySunnahhasnothingtodowith
me.(SaheehMuslim,no.1041).
Herewemaynotethefollowingpoints:
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) came to them and addressed them directly;
whenhewantedtoteachallthepeople,hedidnotrefer
tothembynameorexposethem,hemerelysaid,What
is thematterwithsomepeople? In thiswayhewas
gentlewith themandcoveredup for themwhilstat the
sametimeactinginthecommoninterestbyteachingeve
rybody.
Thehadeethdescribesfindingoutabouttheaction
ofgoodpeopleandseekingtoemulatethem.Investigat
ingsuchthingsisthesignofasoundmindandeffortsto
improveoneself.
Thisreportindicatesthatwhenitcomestouseful
mattersofreligion,ifitisnotpossibletolearnthemfrommen,itispermissibletolearnthemfromwomen.
There is nothing wrong with a person talking
abouthisdeedssolongasthereisnoelementofshowing
offanditisforthebenefitofothers.
We also learn thatgoing to extremes inworship
may cause a person to get bored,which in turn could
lead him to stop worshipping altogether; the best of
thingsarethosethataremoderate.(seealFath,9/104).
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www.islamhouse.com Mistakesgenerallycomeaboutasaresultofmisconceptions; if the ideasareput right,mistakeswillde
crease. It is clear from thehadeeth that the reasonwhy
thoseSahaabahadopted thoseconceptsofextremewor
shipandmonasticismwasthattheythoughttheyhadto
gobeyond theProphets actions inworship inorder to
attainsalvation,
because
he
had
been
told
that
all
his
sins
wereforgiven,buttheydidnothavethisadvantage.The
Prophet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)set
them straight, and told them that even though hewas
forgiven,hewasthemostfearingofAllaahamongman
kind,andhecommanded them to followhisSunnah in
worship.
A similar thing happened to another Sahaabi, whose
name was Kahmas alHilaali (may Allaah be pleased
withhim),whonarratedhisstory:
IbecameMuslim and came to theProphet (peace
andblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)andtoldhim
thatIhadbecomeMuslim.Istayedawayforayear,during which I became very skinny, and when I
cameback,he lookedmeupanddown. Isaid, Do
younotknowme?hesaid,Whoareyou?Isaid,I
amKahmasalHilaali.Hesaid, Whathappened to
you? I said, After I saw you, Inever spent aday
withoutfasting,andIneversleptatnight.Hesaid,Whotoldyoutotortureyourself?Fastthemonthof
patience [i.e., Ramadaan], and one day of every
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www.islamhouse.commarriagehedoesnotdeservetobeaccepted,ifheintercedeshedoesnotdeservetohavehisintercession
accepted,andifhespeakshedoesnotdeservetobe
heard. TheMessenger ofAllaah (peace and bless
ingsofAllaahbeuponhim)said,Thismanisbetter
thananearthfullofmen liketheotherman.(al
Fath,6447).
According to a report narrated by IbnMaajah: aman
passedby theMessengerofAllaah (peaceandblessings
of Allaah be upon him), and the Prophet (peace and
blessings ofAllaah beuponhim) said (tohisCompan
ions),
Whatdoyou thinkof thisman?They said, We
think thathe isoneof thenoblestofpeople. Ifhe
proposesmarriagehedeserves tobeaccepted, ifhe
intercedes he deserves to have his intercession ac
cepted, and ifhe speakshedeserves tobeheard.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeupon
him)saidnothing.Anothermanpassedbyand theProphet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him)asked,Whatdoyouthinkofthisman?They
said,ByAllaah,OMessengerofAllaah,he isone
of the poorMuslims. If he proposesmarriage he
doesnotdeservetobeaccepted,ifheintercedes,he
doesnotdeserve tohavehis intercession accepted,and ifhe speakshedoesnotdeserve tobeheard.
TheProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeupon
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www.islamhouse.comhim)said,Thisman isbetter thananearth fullofmen like theotherone. (Sunan IbnMaajah, Abd
alBaaqiedn.,no.4120)
5 Dealing with mistakes by repeatedly reminding
peopletofearAllaah
Jundub ibn AbdAllaahalBajali reported that theMes
sengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeupon
him)sentagroupofMuslimstofightsomemushrikeen,
and theymet inbattle.Oneof themushrikeenwasam
bushingindividualMuslimsandkillingthem.Oneofthe
Muslimswanted
to
catch
him
out
and
kill
him.
[Jundub
said:]WeusedtothinkthatthatmanwasUsaamahibn
Zayd.Whenhe raisedhis sword, themushrik said La
ilaaha illAllaah, buthe [Usaamah]killedhim.Ames
senger came to theProphet (peace andblessingsofAl
laahbeuponhim)andreported tohimaboutwhathad
happened
in
the
battle.
When
he
told
him
about
what
had happened to themushrikwho said Laa ilaaha ill
Allaah, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
uponhim)sentforUsaamahandaskedhim,
Whydidyoukillhim?He said, OMessengerof
Allaah,hehadcausedmuchgrieftotheMuslims,he
killedSoandsoandSoandso,andhenamedanumber of people I attacked him andwhen he
saw the sword he said Laa ilaaha illAllaah. The
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www.islamhouse.comMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe upon him) said, And then you killed him?
Usaamah said, Yes. He said, What will you do
whenLaaillahaillAllaahcomesontheDayofRes
urrection?Hesaid,OMessengerofAllaah,prayfor
forgivenessforme.TheProphet(peaceandbless
ingsof
Allaah
be
upon
him)
simply
said,
What
will
youdowhenLaailaahaillAllaahcomesontheDay
ofResurrection?Hedidnotsayanymorethanthat.
(ReportedbyMuslim,AbdalBaaqiedn.,no.97).
AccordingtoareportnarratedbyUsaamahibnZayd,he
said:
TheMessenger ofAllaah (peace andblessings of
Allaahbeuponhim)sentusoutonamilitarycam
paignandwereachedalHaraqaatnearJuhaynahin
themorning.[Duringthebattle]Icaughtamanand
he said, Laa ilaaha illAllaah, but I stabbed him.
ThenIfeltbadaboutthat,andImentionedittothe
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be uponhim).TheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessings
ofAllaahbeuponhim)said,HesaidLaailaahaill
Allaahandyoukilledhim?Isaid,OMessengerof
Allaah,heonlysaiditbecausehewasafraidofmy
weapon.Hesaid,Howcanyouknowwhatisinhis
heart?Howcanyoubesurewhetherhewassincereornot?HekeptrepeatingthisuntilIwishedthatI
hadnotbecomeMuslimuntilthatday[becauseem
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www.islamhouse.combracing Islamwipesoutall sins that camebefore Translator].(ReportedbyMuslim,no.69)
Oneissuethatmaybeincludedundertheheadingofre
mindersisremindingpeopleaboutthepowerofAllaah.
Anexampleofthisfollows:
Muslim (mayAllaahhavemercyonhim) reported that
AbuMasoodalBadrisaid:
Iwasbeating a slaveofminewith awhip, and I
heard a voice behind me saying, Listen Abu
Masood! but I did not pay any attention to the
voice because Iwas so angry.When the voice got
nearerto
me,
Irealized
that
itwas
the
Messenger
of
Allaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim),
andhewassaying,ListenAbuMasood,listenAbu
Masood! I dropped thewhip frommy hand (ac
cording to another report: the whip fell frommy
handoutof respect forhim).He said, ListenAbu
Masood,Allaahhasmorepoweroveryouthanyou
haveoverthisslave.Isaid, Iwillneverhitaslave
again.Accordingtoanotherreporthesaid:Isaid,
OMessengerofAllaah,heisfreeforthesakeofAl
laah.Hesaid,Ifyoudidnotdothis,theFireofHell
would blow in your face, or the Firewould touch
you.
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www.islamhouse.comAccording to another report also narrated byMuslim,theMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaah
beuponhim)said:
CertainlyAllaahhasmorepoweroveryouthanyou
haveoverhim.Sohefreedhim.(SaheehMuslim,
no.1659)
AbuMasoodalAnsaarisaid:
IwasbeatingaslaveofminewhenIheardsome
one saying frombehindme, Listen,AbuMasood,
listen,AbuMasood.I turnedaroundandsawthat
itwastheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessings
ofAllaah
be
upon
him).
He
said,
Allaah
has
more
poweroveryou thanyouhaveoverhim.Inever
beatanyslaveofmineafter that. (Reportedbyal
Tirmidhi,no. 1948.Abu Eesa said, this is ahasan
saheehhadeeth).
6 Showing compassion to the onewho ismaking a
mistake.This applies in the case of thosewhodeserve
compassion,who feel remorseandshow that theyhave
repented,asissometimesthecasewhenpeoplecometo
askquestionsandfindout,asinthefollowingstory.Ibn
Abbaasreportedthatamanwhohaddivorcedhiswife
byzihaarandthenhadintercoursewithhercametothe
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www.islamhouse.comProphet(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)andsaid,
OMessengerofAllaah, Idivorcedmywifebyzi
haarthenIhadintercoursewithherbeforeIoffered
kafaarah (expiation).Hesaid,Whatmadeyoudo
that,mayAllaah havemercy on you?He said, I
sawher anklets in themoonlight.He said,Thendonotgonearheruntilyouhavedone thatwhich
Allaahcommandedyoutodo.(AbuEesasaid,this
is a hasan ghareeb saheeh hadeeth. Saheeh Sunan
alTirmidhi,no.1199)
AbuHurayrah(mayAllaahbepleasedwithhim)said:
WhilstweweresittingwiththeProphet(peaceand
blessings ofAllaah be upon him), aman came to
him and said, O Messenger of Allaah, I am
doomed!Hesaid,Whatisthematterwithyou?He
said, Ihad intercoursewithmywifewhilst Iwas
fasting.TheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandbless
ingsofAllaahbeuponhim) said, Areyouable to
setaslavefree?Hesaid,No.Hesaid,Canyoufast
fortwoconsecutivemonths?Hesaid,No.Hesaid,
Do you have the wherewithal to feed sixty poor
persons? He said, No. The Prophet (peace and
blessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)saidnothingmore
aboutthematterforawhile,andwhilstweweresit
ting there like that,a largebasketfullofdateswas
brought to theProphet (peace andblessingsofAl
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www.islamhouse.comlaahbeuponhim).Hesaid, Where is theonewhowas asking? Theman said, Here I am.He said,
Take this and give it in charity. The man said,
Whoispoorerthanme,OMessengerofAllaah?By
Allaah,thereisnofamilyinMadeenahpoorerthan
mine.TheProphet (peace andblessings ofAllaah
beupon
him)
smiled
until
his
eyeteeth
were
visible,
thenhesaid, Feedyourfamilywith it. (Reported
byalBukhaari,Fath,1936).
Thispersonwhohadmade amistake and came to ask
about itwasnot jokingor taking thematter lightly.He
felt remorsefulandguilty,as isclear fromhissayingI
amdoomed.Forthisreason,hedeservedpityandcompassion. The report narrated by Ahmad (may Allaah
havemercyonhim)makesthemansstateevenclearer:
AbuHurayrahreportedthataBedouincame,hitting
his cheeks and tearing outhishair, and saying, I
am sure that Iamdoomed!TheMessengerofAl
laah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be upon him)saidtohim,Whatmakesyoudoomed?Hesaid,I
had intercoursewithmywife during Ramadaan.
Hesaid,Canyou freeaslave?Hesaid,No.He
said,Canyoufastfortwoconsecutivemonths?He
said, No.He said, Canyou feed sixtypoorper
sons?He said,No,andmentionedhowpoorhewas.A largebasketcontaining fifteensaaofdates
wasbroughttotheMessengerofAllaah(peaceand
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www.islamhouse.comblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim),and theProphet(peace andblessings ofAllaahbeuponhim) said,
Whereisthatman?Feedthepoorwiththis.He
said, OMessenger of Allaah, there is no one in
Madeenahwhoispoorerthanmyfamily.TheMes
sengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
uponhim)
smiled
until
his
eyeteeth
were
visible
andsaid,Feedyourfamily.(AlMusnad,2/516.Al
FathalRabaani,10/89)
7 Not hastening to tell someone he iswrong. Some
thinghappenedtoUmarwhichhehimselftoldabout:I
heardHishaam ibnHakeem ibnHizaam recitingSoorat
alFurqaanduringthelifetimeoftheMessengerofAllaah
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim).Ilistenedto
his recitation, and hewas reciting it differently to the
waythattheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)usedtoreciteit.Inearlyinterrupted
hisprayer,butIwaiteduntilhehadsaidthesalaam,thenIgrabbedhimbyhiscloakandsaid,Whotaughtyouto
recite this soorah I heard you reciting?He said, The
Messenger ofAllaah (peace and blessings ofAllaah be
uponhim) taughtme torecite it. Isaid, Youare lying!
TheMessengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsofAllaah
be upon him) taughtme to recite it differently. I tookhim to theMessengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsof
Allaah be upon him) and said, I heard him reciting
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www.islamhouse.comhe issaying,because thatopinionmay turnout tobeavalidscholarlyopinion.
Anotherrelevantpoint is thatoneshouldnothasten to
punishsomeonewhomakesamistake,aswesee in the
followingstory:
AnNisaa`i (may Allaah have mercy on him) re
portedfromAbbaadibnSharhabeel(mayAllaahbe
pleasedwithhim)who said: I camewithmy (pa
ternal)uncles toMadeenah,andweenteredoneof
thegardensofthecity.Irubbedsomeofthewheat,
and the owner of the garden came and took my
cloakandhitme.IcametotheMessengerofAllaah
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)asking
forhishelp.Hesentforthatmanandtheybrought
him to him.He said to him, Whatmade you do
that?Hesaid,OMessengerofAllaah,hewentinto
mygardenandtooksomeofmywheatandrubbed
it.TheMessengerofAllaah(peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)said,Youdidnotteachhimifitwas thematterofhimnotknowing,andyoudid
notfeedhimifitwasthematterofhimbeinghun
gry.Givehimbackhiscloak.AndtheMessengerof
Allaah(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)
orderedthatIshouldbegivenawasqorhalfawasq
(measure ofwheat). (AlNisaa`i, alMujtabaa,Kitaab Aadaab alQudaat, Baab alIstidaa; Saheeh
SunanalNisaa`i,no.4999).
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www.islamhouse.com(peace andblessings ofAllaahbeuponhim) said,Donotinterrupthim;leavehimalone.Sotheyleft
himuntilhehad finishedurinating, then theMes
sengerofAllaah (peaceandblessingsofAllaahbe
upon him) called him and said to him, In these
mosquesitisnotrighttodoanythinglikeurinating
ordefecating;
they
are
only
for
remembering
Allaah,
praying and readingQur`aan,orwords to that ef
fect.Thenhe commandedamanwhowas there to
bringabucketofwaterandthrowitoverthe(urine),
andhedidso.(SaheehMuslim,no.285).
Theprinciplewhich theProphet (peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim) followed indealingwith thismistakewas to treat theman gently, not to be harshwith
him.AlBukhaarireportedfromAbuHurayrah(mayAl
laahbepleasedwithhim):
ABedouinurinatedinthemosque,andthepeople
got up to sort him out. TheMessenger of Allaah
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)saidtothem,Leavehimalone,andthrowabucketofwater
overit.Youhavebeensenttomakethingseasyfor
people,nottomakethingshard.(Fath,6128).
The Sahaabah,mayAllaahbepleasedwith them,were
verykeen todenounce thebad thing theyhadseenand
tokeep theirmosque clean andpure,as is indicated in
thevariousreportsofthishadeeth,whichdescribethem
asshoutingathim,gettinguptosorthimout,rebuking
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www.islamhouse.comhim and hastening to dealwith him, or telling him toStop it! (Jaami alUsool, 7/8387). But the Prophet
(peaceandblessingsofAllaahbeuponhim)was think
ingofthelikelyconsequencesofthetwooptionsstop
pinghimorleavinghimalone.Iftheytriedtostophim,
forcing aman to suppress his urination could do him
harm,and
ifhe
was
unable
to
stop
but
moved
away
be
cause he was afraid of them, the impurity would be
spreadoverawiderareaofthemosqueandonthemans
bodyandclothing.TheProphet (peaceandblessingsof
Allaahbeuponhim)had the farsightedness to see that
leaving theman alone until he had finished urinating
was
the
lesser
of
two
evils,
especially
since
the
man
had
alreadystarteddoing it,and itwasaproblem that they
wouldbeable todo somethingaboutby cleaning itaf
terwards.Sohe toldhiscompanions to leavehimalone
andnottointerrupthim.Hetoldthemtoleavehimalone
because thiswas in thebetter interestsofallandwould
wardoffaworseevilbyputtingupwiththelesserevil.
ItwasalsoreportedthattheProphet(peaceandblessings
ofAllaahbeuponhim)askedthemanthereasonforhis
action.AlTabaraani reported inalKabeer that Ibn Ab
baas(mayAllaahbepleasedwithhim)said:
ABedouin came to theProphet (peace andbless
ingsofAllaahbeuponhim)andpledgedallegianceto him in the mosque. Then he went away and
started tourinate.Thepeoplewanted to stophim,
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www.islamhouse.combut theProphet (peace and blessings ofAllaah beuponhim)said,Donotstopamanwhenheisuri
nating.Thenheaskedhim,AreyounotaMuslim?
He said, Of course.He said, Whatmadeyouuri
nateinourmosque?Hesaid,BytheOneWhosent
youwith the truth, I thought itwas just like any
otherplace
so
Iurinated
in