On the authority of Abu Dharr Jundub ibn Junada and Abu Abdul Rahmaan Muaadh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with both of them) from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) who said, “Fear Allah wherever you are. And follow up a bad deed with a good deed and it will wipe it out. And behave towards the people with a good behavior.” Recorded by al-Tirmidhi who said it is a hasan hadith. And in some of the copies [of Sunan al-Tirmidhi, it says it is] hasan sahih.
- “Fear Allah wherever you are”
- “And follow up a bad deed with a good deed and it will wipe it out”
- “And behave toward the people with a good behavior”
- Other Points Related to This Hadith
- Summary of the Hadith
General Comments about the Hadith: This is one of the hadith wherein the Prophet (peace be upon him) gives a Companion some advice, although it is for all Muslim, in reality. In this particular case, the Prophet (peace be upon him) has stated advice whose meaning covers all of the rights that an individual must attend to. In one short statement, the Prophet (peace be upon him) covered the rights of Allah over an individual, the rights of an individual upon himself and the rights of other individuals over a person. By fulfilling Allah’s rights, one becomes beloved to Allah. By fulfilling the rights of human beings, one also becomes beloved to them. It could even be argued that this is an all-encompassing advice, beyond which one really needs no other advice.
1. “Fear Allah wherever you are”
Taqwa emanates from the root waqaaya, which means, “he protected,” or “to protect.” When the word taqwa (“fear”) is used with respect to Allah, as in this hadith, it means that one must fear or protect himself from Allah’s anger and punishment. This is the greatest thing that one must protect oneself from. It is the source of Allah’s punishment in both this world and the Hereafter. Allah says in the Quran,
“And Allah warns you about Himself [that is, His punishment]” (ali-Imraan 28). Hence, the person must do what he can to avoid and protect himself from earning the anger of Allah. He does this by being sincere to Allah, by performing what Allah has ordered and remaining away from what Allah has prohibited. This is, in essence, taqwa. This portion of the hadith may be understood in different ways. However, they are all somewhat compatible and may all be meant by these words.
One implication is that a person should “fear Allah” when he is with others as well as when he is all alone. Allah knows everything that everyone does as well as what anyone even considers in their hearts. Under all circumstances, one must be on his best behavior and avoid what may displease Allah, for Allah is watchful of all things. Allah has stated,
“Fear Allah through Whom you demand your mutual (rights) and [do not cut off the ties of] the womb. Surely, Allah is ever an All-Watcher over you” (alNisaa 1 ).
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to supplicate to Allah,
“I ask of You to give me fear of You in matters that are not seen as well as those that are witnessed.”[al-Nasaai and ibn Hibbaan] If a person realizes that Allah sees him at all times and knows what he does in secret, he will then avoid committing sins even when he is in complete privacy. This is a sign of complete Imaan in his heart. However, constantly failing to obey Allah when one is alone is a sign of a diseased heart, like the heart of the hypocrites. Allah says about them.
“They may hide [their crimes] from men, but they cannot hide them from Allah– for He is with them [by His knowledge] when they plot by night in words that He does not approve. And Allah ever encompasses what they do (al-Nisaa 108).
A second implication is that one must “fear Allah” while in a state of blessings or trial. A third implication– which is the only meaning given to this expression by Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi in his commentary to Sunan alTirmidhi- is that one must “fear Allah” while one is alone or while one is among any group of people, whether they be pious or impious. The person must tend to himself and cannot use others as an excuse for disobeying Allah
1.1 The Concept of Taqwa
The words translated here as, “Fear Allah,”. That is, one should have “taqwa of Allah.” Taqwa is one of the most important concepts found in the Quran and sunnah. Indeed, al-Mubaarakfoori calls it the foundation of the religion. In numerous hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) advised Muslims to have taqwa. Whenever he sent an army out, he would advise them to have taqwa of Allah.
Indeed, this has been the command of Allah for all of the messengers. Allah says, “To Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. We have advised the people of the Scripture before you and you also (O Muslims] to have taqwa of Allah [fear Allah and keep your duty to Him]” (al-Nisaa 131). Commenting on this verse, al-Ghazzaali wrote,
Does not Allah have more knowledge than anyone concerning what is best for the human? Is He not their most sincere adviser and the more merciful and compassionate than anyone? If there were any characteristic that is better for a human, more comprehensive in its goodness, greater in its reward, more important for worship, weightier in its measure, more
important in its substance, more rescuing in the long-run than this characteristic of taqwa, then Allah would have ordered His servants to have that other characteristic. Allah has advised His most dear servants to have this characteristic out of His Perfect Wisdom and Encompassing Mercy.
When He advised this one characteristic, and combined together his previous and later servants upon that characteristic and mentioned that characteristic only, you then know that it is the final goal beyond which there is none other and for which there is no other purpose. Allah has combined together every advice, direction, guidance, instruction, teaching and rectification in that one advice, as is becoming His wisdom and mercy. And you also know by that fact that this one characteristic of taqwa combines together all of the good of this life and the Hereafter, that is sufficient for all of the important matters that leads one to the highest ranks [in Paradise]. This foundation cannot be increased upon. It is sufficient for the one who sees the light, is guided and acts upon that light.
Furthermore, in numerous places in the Quran, Allah has quoted different prophets and messengers as advising their people and telling them that they must have taqwa of Allah. These are the most sincere of all who give advice. Such was the example of Saalih, Lot, Moses and others. For example,
Allah says about Noah, “The People of Noah belied the Messengers. When their brother Noah said to them, ‘Will you not have taqwa of Allah?”‘ (al-Shuaraa 105-106)
A lexical understanding of the word taqwa will help in having a complete picture of this very important concept. In the supplement to Lane’s Lexicon, it defines in the following manner,
He preserved, or guarded, himself exceedingly, or extraordinarily; he put a thing between him and another to preserve him, or guard him. In the conventional language of the law, He preserved, or guarded, himself exceedingly, or extraordinarily, from sin, of commission or of omission … It may often be rendered, He was pious, or careful of his religious duties- . (He guarded himself against them in an extraordinary degree, and was cautious, or wary).
The essence, therefore, of taqwa is to put some kind of barrier or guard between oneself and what one fears, in order to protect oneself from what is feared. A form of this word was used, in its linguistic sense, in a hadith in Sahih Muslim. Al-Baraa was describing the Battle of Hunain in which many Muslims fled but the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not flee. At one point in the hadith, he said,
“By Allah, if the fighting became hot, we would seek a barrier or protection (nattaqi) in the Prophet (peace be upon him). And the brave one among us was the one who was next to him, that is, next to the Prophet (peace be upon him).” That is, they would put the Prophet (peace be upon him) between themselves and the enemy in order to protect themselves from the enemy, due to the Prophet’s courage and bravery.
As was noted above, the word taqwa is sometimes followed by the name of Allah (have taqwa of Allah). This is the case with this particular hadith and with numerous verses of the Quran (such as al-Maaidah 96 and alHashr 18). Again, in this sense, it means one should fear or protect himself from Allah’s anger and punishment. This can only be done by obeying Him
and not disobeying Him. This is the minimum aspect of taqwa.
Furthermore, if someone puts some kind of distance between himself and disobeying Allah, then he has fulfilled what this concept of taqwa really implies. Abu al-Darda and al-Hasan both have stated that the people of taqwa even leave permissible deeds out of fear that there might be something harmful in them. These doubtful or permissible acts are that barrier that they have put between themselves and the acts of disobedience.
Sometimes the word is followed by the place of Allah’s punishment, such as Hell, or to the time of Allah’s punishment, the Day of Resurrection. The meaning is once again the same: One must protect himself from the harm related to those times or places. Here are two examples from the Quran, “And fear (ittaqoo) the Fire, which is prepared for the disbelievers” (aliImraan 131 ). Another verse states,
“And fear a Day [the Day of Judgment] when a person shall not avail another, nor will intercession be accepted from him nor will compensation be taken from him nor will they be helped” (al-Baqara 48).
1.2 Who are the True Muttaqeen (Possessors of Taqwa)?
To have complete taqwa or protection from Allah’s anger and punishment, one must perform all of the obligatory deeds that he is capable of and remain away from all of the forbidden acts and doubtful matters. Some scholars also state that the person must also perform the recommended acts and remain away from the disapproved acts. This, obviously, is the highest level of taqwa. These are the people who truly deserve the title muttaqeen, “the people possessing taqwa”. In the same way that a true believer is only the one who fulfills all of the obligations of Imaan, the only ones who deserve the title of muttaqeen are those who fulfill all of the requirements of taqwa. These requirements include both mental as well as behavioral acts. These are the true muttaqeen who are described in the verse of the Quran,
“It is not righteousness that you turn your faces towards the East or the West, but righteousness is [the quality of] the one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, the Prophets and gives his wealth, in spite of love for it, to the kinsfolk, to the orphans, and to the poor who beg, and to the wayfarer, and to those who ask, and to set slaves free, and who establish the prayers and gives the zakat, and who fulfill their covenant when they make it, and who are patient in extreme poverty and ailment and at the time of fighting [during battles]. Such are the people of the truth and they are the muttaqeen” (al-Baqara 177).
This ultimate level of taqwa, which is the true and complete taqwa, has been described in a number of statements from the early scholars. For example, Talq ibn Habeeb once profoundly stated, “Taqwa is to act in obedience to Allah, upon light from Allah, hoping for reward from Allah; [it is also to] avoid acts of disobedience to Allah, upon light from Allah and fearing Allah’s punishment.”
From this quote, one can note that it is essential that the obedience to Allah be according to the light or guidance from Allah while hoping for His reward. At the same time, avoiding an act must also be because of what the shareeah has stated about that act while realizing that if one were to perform that act, he would be punished by Allah.
Al-Thauri said, “They are called muttaqeen because they even guard against things that are not to be guarded against.”‘ And in discussing the verse,
“O believers, have taqwa of Allah as is His right to have taqwa. And die not except while you are Muslims” (ali-Imraan 102), ibn Masood said that it means, “That He should be obeyed and not disobeyed, He should be remembered and not forgotten and that He should be thanked and be not ungrateful to.”
Again, like imaan, taqwa has different levels to it. There is the minimum level that is required to save oneself from eternal punishment in Hell and there is the higher level of those who deserve the title of muttaqeen. AlAloosi wrote,
Linguistically wiqaayah means seeking protection or guarding oneself in general. In the shareeah, it is for a person to guard himself from what is harmful in the Hereafter. It is of different levels that correspond to the different levels of possible harm. The first level is to protect and keep oneself from shirk [associating partners with Allah]. The second level is to refrain from the great sins, and this includes performing a minor sin on a continual basis. And the third level is what is alluded to in what is recorded by al-Tirmidhi from the Prophet (peace be upon him), “A person will not reach the level of the muttaqeen until he leaves something in which there is no harm out of fear that it may contain some harm.” This level is reflected in remaining away from even the minor sins.
Al-Raazi states that there is a difference of opinion over whether or not a person who commits minor sins is deserving to be called a muttaqi (singular of muttaqeen ). He stated, [The scholars] differ about whether or not avoiding the minor sins is considered an aspect of taqwa. Some of them say that it is in the same way that there is also a threatened punishment for the minor sins. Others say that it is not included. However, there is no difference of opinion that it is obligatory to repent from such sins. The difference of opinion is only concerning whether or not a person who does not avoid the minor sins is deserving to be called a person of taqwa.
According to Ahmad Fareed, for one to have complete taqwa and be from the muttaqeen, one must also avoid the minor sins, the doubtful matters and the disapproved deeds. The complete taqwa is where one strives his best to avoid all sorts of sins, major or minor. He also strives to perform different acts of obedience, both obligatory and recommended. In this way, he will be having the complete and true taqwa that is referred to in the verse, explained by ibn Masud above,
“O believers, have taqwa of Allah as is His right to have taqwa. And die not except while you are Muslims” (ali-Imraan 102)
This is the concept of taqwa that the Prophet (peace be upon him) advised his followers concerning. The final result of having this taqwa can be clearly noted in the following verse of the Quran: “And the good end [Paradise] is for the [people of] taqwa” (Taha 132).
1.3 The Importance, Blessings and Benefits of Taqwa
A reading of the Quran will demonstrate the great importance of taqwa, how pleasing it is to Allah and how Allah responds to the muttaqeen. Note in particular the following blessings and benefits from taqwa:
(1) Guidance from the Quran is received by the muttaqeen: “This is the book concerning which there is no doubt, a guidance for the muttaqeen” (al-Baqara 2).
(2) Allah’s special closeness, help and supports comes to those who have taqwa: “Verily, Allah is with those people who have taqwa” (al-Nahl 128)
(3) Allah gives His loyalty, protection and support (wilaayah) to the muttaqeen: “Allah is the protector and ally of the muttaqeen” (al-Jaathiyah 19)
(4) Allah loves the muttaqeen: “Certainly, Allah loves the muttaqeen” (al-Tauba 4).
(5) Allah gives the muttaqeen a criterion or signs (furqaan) to distinguish right from wrong, good from bad and what is beneficial from what is harmful: “O you who believer, if you have taqwa of Allah, He makes for you a criterion [to judge between right and wrong] and shall remit from your sins and forgive you” (al-Anjaal 29).
(6) Allah provides beneficial solutions and ways out from difficulty and confusion for those who have taqwa: “For whoever has taqwa of Allah, He makes for him a [beneficial] solution and way out [of difficulties]” (al-Talaaq 2).
(7) Allah provides for the muttaqeen from avenues that they did not even imagine: “For whoever has taqwa of Allah, He makes for him a [beneficial] solution and way out [of difficulties] and He provides for him from sources he never imagined” (al-Talaaq 2).
(8) Allah makes matters easy for the muttaqeen: “For whoever has taqwa of Allah, He makes matters easy for him” (al-Talaaq 4)
(9 and 10) Allah forgives the sins of the muttaqeen and makes their reward greater: “For whoever has taqwa of Allah, He will remit his sins from him and will enlarge his reward” (al-Talaaq 5).
(11) Allah only accepts deeds from those who have taqwa, if a deed is not done with taqwa it will not be accepted: “Allah only accepts deeds from the muttaqeen” (al-Maaidah 27)
(12) Prosperity and success comes to the muttaqeen: “And have taqwa of Allah so that you may be prosperous and successful” (alBaqara 189).
(13) Allah gives glad tidings in both this life and the Hereafter to the muttaqeen, and that, in fact, is the greatest of rewards: “For those who believed and had taqwa is glad tidings in the worldly life and in the Hereafter. [That is the word of Allah] and verily there is no changing the
word of Allah. And that is the great success” (Yoonus 63-64).
(14) The muttaqeen will be entered into Paradise: “Verily, for the muttaqeen are gardens of delight with their Lord” (al-Qalam 34)
(15) The muttaqeen will be spared the Hell-fire, “There is not one of you but will pass over it [Hell]; this is with your Lord a Decree which must come to pass. Then We will save those who had taqwa” (Maryam 71-72).
(16) The muttaqeen will have the special blessing of being seated in the seat of sincerity, near to Allah, the Omnipotent King: “Verily, the muttaqeen will be in the midst of gardens and rivers, in a seat of sincerity, near the Omnipotent King (Allah)” (al-Qamar 54-55).
( 17) The muttaqeen will be given the honor of being above the rest of creation on the Day of Judgment: “This worldly life has been made alluring to the disbelievers while they ridicule those who believe. And those who have taqwa will be above them [the disbelievers] on the day of Resurrection” (al-Baqara 212)
(18) All fear of punishment and grief will be removed from the muttaqeen: “Those who have taqwa and righteousness shall have no fear upon them nor shall they grieve” (al-Araaf 35).
1.4 The Key to Taqwa
lbn Juzayy al-Kalbi states that the key to attaining taqwa revolves around ten matters. If a person takes these matters seriously the result should be a true taqwa in his heart:
(1) Fear of punishment in the Hereafter;
(2) Fear of punishment in this world;
(3) Hope for reward in this world;
(4) Hope for reward in the Hereafter;
(5) Fearing the reckoning and accounting of one’s deeds;
(6) Feeling shameful that Allah should see oneself performing deeds that are displeasing to Him;
(7) Being thankful and feeling grateful for all of the bounties that Allah has bestowed on the person;
(8) The true knowledge of reality, of Allah, His names and attributes, as Allah says, “Those who truly fear Allah among His servants are only the people of knowledge” (Faatir 28);
(9) Having a great deal of respect for the greatness of Allah;
(10) Being sincere and truthful in one’s love for Allah.
2. “And follow up a bad deed with a good deed and it will wipe it out”
This portion of the hadith demonstrates that even those who have taqwa slip sometimes and commit sins. Being from the muttaqeen does not imply perfection. However, the muttaqeen do not persist in their sins. When they remember Allah, they change back to their old selves. And they immediately follow up evil deeds with good deeds. This is in accordance with what the Prophet (peace be upon him) has advised them to do. This is the way of the muttaqeen as described by Allah in the Quran:
“And be quick in the race for forgiveness from Your Lord and for Paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth, prepared for the muttaqeen: Those who spend [for Allah’s cause] in prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men. Verily, Allah loves the doers of good. And those who, when they have committed some evil or wronged themselves, remember Allah and ask forgiveness for their sins– and who can forgive sins except Allah– and who do not persist in what they have done, while they know. For such, the reward is forgiveness from their Lord, and Gardens with rivers flowing amidst them, wherein they shall abide forever. How excellent is this reward for the doers [of taqwa ]” ( 3: 133-136).
These verses are very much related to this hadith that is currently being discussed. As ibn Rajah stated, The muttaqeen are described by their dealings with others as they exhibit ihsaan [goodness] to others by spending [on their behalf], repelling their anger, and forgiving them. They have been described as giving to others and putting up with [others’] harm. This is the limit [or the goal] of the good character that the Prophet (peace be upon him) advised Muaadh to have.
Then Allah describes them as, “those who, when they have committed some evil or wronged themselves, remember Allah and ask forgiveness for their sins.” They do not persist in their sin. This shows that the muttaqeen may even commit a great sin once in a while, such as fawaahish [an evil, lewd act, such as illegal sexual intercourse], and even minor sins, such as wronging themselves. But they do not persist in what they are doing. Instead, they remember Allah after doing such and they ask Allah for forgiveness and repent to Him from that deed. And repentance is to avoid being persistent in a deed. They “remember Allah,” they remember His greatness and the harshness of His punishment and retribution. They remember what He has promised as a punishment for sin. This makes them come back from the sinful state and ask for forgiveness and stop their continuation of that act. (lbn Rajab, Jaami, vol. 1, pp. 4 12-413.)
Some scholars interpret a “bad deed” in this sentence as being a small sin. That is the majority opinion. However, some accept the word in its general sense and say that it applies to both minor and major sins. Furthermore, some of them also interpret “good deed” here to mean repentance from that sin which was committed. Repentance can wipe away both the major and the minor sins. Therefore, according to al-Munaawi, one does not have to understand “bad deed” to refer to a minor sin only.
Another understanding of the “good deed” in this hadith is in its general sense. That is, good deeds- not just repentance from that one evil deed–wipe away evil deeds. This will be discussed in more detail shortly.
The good deed will wipe out or remove the evil deed. This is, of course, a figurative attribution. It is actually Allah that either removes the effects of that sin from one’s heart or from the record of one’s deeds. The evil deed may itself be removed from the records of the angels while some scholars say that this hadith simply means that the person will not be held responsible for that evil deed, although the deed itself will still be recorded in the scrolls of the person’s deeds. It seems that this latter view is the strongest- that the deed will still be recorded, that the person will see it on the Day of Judgment but the punishment for it will be wiped away-because Allah says, “So whoever does good equal to the weight of an atom shall see it. And whoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom shall see it” (al-Zalzalah 7- 8). Allah knows best.
According to Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi, a good deed wipes away an evil deed regardless of whether it is performed before or after the evil deed. He says that deeds come first from the heart and are influenced by it. If a person performs an evil deed, it is rooted in the heart by choice. If it is followed by a good deed, this is the result of that voluntary choice in the heart which wipes away the evil deed and the choice to do an evil deed.
However, the meaning of this hadith is clear: one should follow-up the evil deed that he performed with a good deed. There is no sign in this hadith or in any other relevant hadith that good deeds performed now can wipe away evil deeds performed in the future. Allah knows best
It is important to note that an evil deed that violates the rights of others is not simply wiped away by a good deed. Instead, the sinner must return the right to the person or ask for his forgiveness. If that is not possible, then he must pray for the wronged person and ask Allah to forgive him.
pray for the wronged person and ask Allah to forgive him. It should also be noted that in the same way that good deeds wipe away evil deeds, evil deeds can also wipe away good deeds. That is, the reward for the deed is removed due to the evil deed performed after it. This is especially true with respect to the great sins. In fact, it is narrated from Aisha that dealing with interest (riba) erases the reward of participating in jihad.
2.1 Ten Ways in Which Allah Removes Sin
This hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) tells of one of the ways by which the effects of one’s sin-that is, the punishment for a sin-may be removed. It is a great blessing from Allah that He does not punish every individual for every sin that he commits at the time he commits it. In fact, every soul is going to commit some sins. But Allah has left the door open to many means by which the punishment for a sin may be removed and, therefore, the servant will not have to be punished for that deed in the Hell-fire.
some of the punishment from a person are actually things that he could not avoid. Yet Allah, in His mercy, will relieve some of the punishment in the Hereafter from the Muslim due to these acts that humans must go through. The ten ways in which Allah removes some of the punishment of the Hereafter from humans are the following:
(1) Sincere repentance: Repentance is where one feels remorse for the sin he committed. The repentant person also has the resolve never to perform the act again. If the sin violated a right of another human, he rectified that person’s right. All of the Muslims agree that through sincere repentance Allah will remove some possible punishment in the Hereafter. Allah says in the Quran, “O my slaves who have been prodigal to their own hurt, despair not of the mercy of Allah, who forgives all sins. Lo! He is the Forgiving, the Merciful” (al-Zumar 53).
“And He it is who accepts repentance from His bondsmen and pardons the evil deeds and knows what you do” (al-Shoora 25). Furthermore,
The Prophet (peace be upon him) once said, “The one who repents from a sin is like one who has no sin.”
Ibn Rajah stated, based on the Quranic verses and hadith related to repentance, that if a person repents to Allah and truly meets the conditions of repentance, then Allah will definitely accept that repentance from him in the same way that Allah accepts a disbeliever embracing Islam. This is the opinion of the majority of the scholars and ibn Abdul Barr even gives some indication that there is a consensus on this point. There are some scholars who say that one cannot definitively say that a repentance that meets all of its necessary conditions will be accepted by Allah.
Instead, the person hopes for this. He is under the will of Allah– if Allah wills, He may punish him, and if He wills, He may forgive him. However, ibn Rajab answers their arguments and states that one can definitively say that a true repentance is accepted by Allah. Note that there is a difference of opinion over whether or not one must repent from both major and minor sins. The majority opinion is that one must also repent from the minor sins. lbn Rajab concludes that this is the strongest opinion and gives numerous arguments in its defense.
(2) Simply by recognizing that one has committed a sin and recognizing that Allah forgives sins and then asking forgiveness from Allah for that sin: In the Sahihs of al-Bukhari and Muslim there is the following hadith:
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “A slave committed a sin and said, ‘O Lord, I have committed a sin, so forgive me.’ The Lord said, ‘My slave knows that he has a Lord that forgives sins. Therefore, I have forgiven my slave.’ Then he committed another sin and said, ‘O Lord, I have committed another sin, so forgive me!’ His Lord says, ‘My slave knows that he has a lord who forgives sins, therefore, I have forgiven him. ‘ And on the third or fourth occurrence Allah says, ‘He may do whatever he wishes. “‘ (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
What this hadith means is that if the person continues to behave in this manner, committing a sin but then realizing his mistake and asking forgiveness, then Allah will continue to forgive him.
Al-Hasan al-Basri was once asked, “Shouldn’t we be shy in front of Allah to ask Him to forgive a sin and then we do it again, then we again ask Him to forgive the sin and we do it again?” Al-Hasan answered, “Satan wishes that he could gain that victory over you. Do not get bored with asking forgiveness. ”
Istighfaar (asking for forgiveness) may be with or without sincere repentance. Ibn Taimiya has argued that in either case the asking of forgiveness may be accepted by Allah and the person may be forgiven for his deed and not punished in the Hereafter although he did not perform the complete repentance.
(3) Good deeds that erase some evil deeds that have been performed: This is the aspect that is specifically mentioned in this hadith from Abu Dharr. Allah also says in the Quran, “Establish worship at the two ends of the day and in some watches of the night. Lo! Good deeds annul ill deeds” (Hood 114).
It is recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim that a man had kissed a woman. He came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) seeking some way of expiation for the deed that he committed. So then the above verse was revealed to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and he read it to that man and indicated to him that the prayer he had just performed behind the Prophet (peace be upon him) had wiped away the sin he had committed.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said, “The five prayers, the Friday prayer until the Friday prayer and Ramadhaan until Ramadhaan, they all act as expiation for what is between them, as long as one did not perform one of the great sins.” (Recorded by Muslim.)
And there are many other hadith that give a similar meaning as the above verse and hadith. Some people say that the good deeds only wipe away the minor sins and that the great sins cannot be erased save by sincere repentance. This opinion has been narrated from Ata and a number of the early scholars. The above hadith, about the five daily prayers, the Friday Prayer and so forth, has been interpreted to mean that the wiping away of evil deeds is conditional upon the person avoiding the major sins. That is, if a person is committing one of the major sins, then his daily prayers, for example, do not wipe away his minor sins. According to ibn Attiyyah, this is the opinion of the majority of the ah! alSunnah. lbn Rajah calls this opinion “strange”.
The second view of that hadith is that those acts simply expiate the minor sins but do not expiate the major sins. This is conditional upon the person repenting from those minor sins and not persisting in performing them. According to ibn Atiyyah, this is the stronger opinion and the opinion of the truly learned.
Some even say that the major sins are wiped away by good deeds. Ibn Rajah himself leaned toward that opinion but then concluded that the correct opinion is that of the majority of the scholars: major sins are not removed but by repentance. However, after discussing this question for a number of pages, he says that the major sins will not be wiped away by the good deeds. But he does state that on the Day of Judgment, all deeds will be weighed and at that time some of the good deeds may cancel out the major sins. In fact, a person may be left with a balance of one good deed for which he will be rewarded.
(4) Supplications by the believers for another Muslim may relieve some of the punishment from him in the Hereafter: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “No one dies and then has a group of Muslims, whose number reaches one hundred, praying and interceding for him except that there will be intercession for him.” (Recorded by Muslim.)
( 5) What is done by a living person for the sake of a dead person: There is some difference of opinion over what deeds may be done on behalf of a dead person. Many say that only fasting may be made up for the deceased or one may give some charity on behalf of the deceased, and so on. According to ibn Taimiya, any action may be done for the sake of a deceased and will relieve the deceased of some of the punishment of the Hereafter.
(6) The intercession by the Prophet (peace be upon him) and others for people of his ummah who have committed sins: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
“My intercession is for those of my ummah who performed the great sins.” In another hadith, he said, “I was given the choice between having half of my ummah entering Paradise or me being granted the right of intercession. I chose intercession as it is more general and encompasses more people.” He was asked, “Is it just for those who fear Allah?” He answered, “No, it is for those who committed sins and mistakes.”
(7) Afflictions in this life by which Allah wipes away some of sins: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The believer does not get inflicted by a prick of a thorn or anything greater save that Allah raises his degree due to it and removes some of his sins due to it.”
(8) The hardship of the test and the life in the grave will be used by Allah to remove some sins and relieve some of the punishment in the Hereafter.
(9) Similarly, the events of the day of judgment and the hardship of the resurrection will be so great upon the people that, by Allah’s mercy, He will overlook some of their sins simply because He made them go through such a harsh event. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that some people will be up to the ankles in perspiration while others will be in perspiration to their waists or necks, and so on.
(10) Mercy and forgiveness from Allah which is not due to any action of the slave himself but simply due to the overwhelming mercy of Allah.
As was discussed in the commentary to the hadith of Jibreel, all of the true believers in Allah will enter Paradise some day and they will reside therein forever. But it is also true that there will be some Muslims who will be punished in the Hell-fire for some of the deeds that they have performed in this life. But, all praise be to Allah, in Allah’s mercy He has provided many means by which one may avoid this punishment. Some of them one may perform himself, as mentioned above, while there are acts that others perform on behalf of someone else.[This points to the importance of being a member of the Islamic community such that when aMuslim dies, for example, there will be Muslims who will know about him and who will be able to pray on his behalf, and so on]
There are still other ways in which Allah relieves some of the punishment from a person, yet as human beings, they have no choice but to pass through those events (for example, the trial in the grave, the harshness of the day of resurrection, and so forth). Allah, in His infinite mercy, will also use these events on one’s behalf to remove some possible punishment in the Hereafter. And, finally, Allah may simply forgive any of His servants that He wills to forgive.
One of the essential aspects of faith or Imaan is having hope in Allah that He will forgive one’s sins and grant His forgiveness and mercy. This hope in Allah is increased by realizing the many ways by which Allah is willing to forgive sins and remove some of the punishment of the Hereafter. Hence, this topic in itself should be a very important factor in increasing one’s hope in Allah and, therefore, one’s Imaan.
3. “And behave toward the people with a good behavior”
This means that one should deal with and interact with others in a good manner. This includes having a pleasant expression and smile when one greets them. It also includes being calm and gentle with them as well as not having bad thoughts about them. This should be done with respect to all people, for example, both the young and the old. This concept of good behavior is summed up by some people in the statement, “You should treat the others in the way that you would like them to treat you.”
The word for behavior or manners in Arabic is al-khuluq. This is from the same root as al-khalq, which refers to a person’s being or creation itself. The relation between the two is that one’s behavior and manners flow from a person with ease and without any need to ponder over them. Hence, his character is like his “first nature”. Based on this aspect, some people think that a person’s character is something that comes about by nature and cannot be changed.
In this hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) advised the person to have a certain behavior. This demonstrates that a person can change and determine his behavior. He can do those acts that are of good behavior and character to the point that he grows accustomed to them. He can grow so accustomed to them that they do become his nature and character. Hence, a person can change his character and, if he is of bad character, then, following this advice of the Prophet (peace be upon him), he must work to change his character.
The first statements that ibn Rajah makes in his commentary to this part of the hadith are, [Having good character] is a characteristic of taqwa. Taqwa cannot be complete without it. It was mentioned here by itself due to the need for explicitly explaining that point. Many people think that taqwa implies fulfilling the “rights of Allah” without fulfilling the rights of humans. Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) explicitly stated that he must deal with people in a kind manner. He was sending him to Yemen as a teacher, instructor and judge.
Especially a person in that position, more so than others, must deal with the people in a good manner. Many of those who take advantage of fulfilling the rights of Allah, and are attached to love for Him, fear of Him and obedience to Him, neglect the rights of the humans, either completely or partially. There are very few people who combine together the fulfilling of the rights of Allah and of His servants. The only ones who have the strength to do that are those who are complete in their taqwa from among the prophets and sincere ones.
Actually, in these words of advice, the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave advice that could lead a person to Paradise. This is proven by another hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) was asked about the thing which most causes people to enter into Paradise and he stated,
“The taqwa of Allah and good behavior.” (al-Tinnidhi and ibn Maajah)
3.1 Islam’s Stress on Good Behavior
Every aspect of one’s life must be ruled by the religion of Islam. To put it differently, there is a relationship between one’s belief in La, Ilaaha Illallaah and every action that he makes in this world. If one has the correct and true concept of “There is no God but Allah”, this belief will have a complete effect on him. It will change him into that person that reflects the belief in the shahaadah. In fact, that is the goal that one must aspire to. When talking about the purpose for which he had been sent, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) (peace be upon him) stated,
“I have been sent for the purpose of perfecting good morals.” In this hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) has clearly stated that one of the important aspects of his being sent as a prophet was to define, illustrate and teach good morals and manners. That is, he was to show the manners and the behavior consistent with the belief in Allah.
In another hadith, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “I am a guarantor of a house in the highest part of Paradise for the one who makes his behavior good.” In yet another hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) described piety itself as being good character. Hence, it is an essential aspect of being pious.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “Piety and righteousness is being of good character.” (Recorded by Muslim.) There is yet another hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) made the connection between being a true believer and good character even clearer. He said, “The believer with the most complete Imaan is the one with the best behavior.”
How pleasing good character is to Allah can be seen by the weight that Allah will give it on the scales on the Day of Judgment. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “There is nothing heavier in the scales than good character.” In another hadith that gives a similar impression, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “A believer reaches, due to his good character, the level of the one who fasts and performs the night prayer.”
Allah describes the successful believers by their behavior. Allah says, “Successful indeed are the believers. Those who offer their prayers with all solemnity and full submissiveness. And those who turn away from vain talk. And those who pay the Zakat. And those who guard their chastity except from their wives or (the captives) that their right hands possess-for then, they are free from blame. But whoever seeks beyond that, then those are the transgressors. Those who are faithfully true to their trusts and to their covenants. And those who strictly guard their prayers. These are indeed the heirs. Who shall inherit the Firdaus (Paradise). They shall dwell therein forever” (al-Muminoon 1-11 ).
On the other hand, when the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) described the hypocrites, he described them by their actions and behavior. He also stated that whoever possesses any of their characteristics has a characteristic of hypocrisy until he gives it up. Those characteristics include lying, breaking of promises, non-fulfillment of trusts and immoral behavior while arguing. (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
It must also be clear in every Muslim’s mind what the source of one’s behavior-what is defined as proper behavior and what is defined as improper behavior- must be. It is not acceptable to get such standards from the disbelievers and their way of life. Similarly, it cannot be derived from the different jaahiliyah (non-Islamic) societies that are spread throughout the Muslim world. Nor can one use his own desires and liking to determine what is proper and good behavior.
A Muslim’s behavior and manners are supposed to be derived from the Quran and sunnah. His life and his behavior should be an actualization and implementation of the Quran and sunnah. This is exactly what the true example and model, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), was like.
When Aisha, the Prophet’s wife, was asked about the character of the Prophet (peace be upon him), she answered, “His character was the Quran.” (Recorded by Muslim.)
The Quran and sunnah show how to behave towards one’s wives, neighbors, friends, enemies and even one’s own soul. As was discussed in a previous hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) has even given guidance as to how to behave towards animals.
Therefore, the way to improve one’s character is to look at the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him). One should try to emulate his behavior in as many different circumstances as possible. If a person does that, then he will be moving toward the most noble character, as Allah has described the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the following manner, “And, verily, you [O Muhammad] are of an exalted standard of character” (alQalam 4).
4. Other Points Related to This Hadith
- The concept and importance of taqwa also demonstrates the importance of knowledge. The foundation of taqwa is to have knowledge of what one must guard against and how to guard against it. To have fear of Allah requires knowledge of Him– as He is described in the Quran and sunnah. The more that one has such knowledge, the more he may fear Allah and have true taqwa. Allah says in the Quran, “It is only those who have knowledge among His slaves that truly fear Allah” (Faatir 28).
- A true believer is worried about the sins that he has committed. Ibn Masud once said, “The believer looks at his sins as if he were at the foot of a mountain and they were all to fall on him. The evildoer looks at his sins as if they were a fly that landed on his nose. He simply [swats at it as if it were nothing].” (Recorded by al-Bukhari.) Therefore, the true believer rushes to repentance and to perform the acts that will expiate or remove those sins.
- The pious forefathers of Islam were always worried and afraid that their deeds and repentance would not be accepted by Allah. This drove them to being even more careful and more repentant to Allah.
- There are two separate terms in the shareeah that are closely related to the removal of sins. These two terms have slightly different connotations. They are in the following verse of the Quran “Our Lord, verily we have heard the call of one calling to faith, [saying,] ‘Believe in your Lord,’ and we have believed. Our Lord! Forgive (aghfir) us our sins and remit (kaffir) from us our evil deeds, and make us die in the state ofrighteousness along with the pious” (ali-Imraan 193).
One of these terms is al-takfeer. This has the implication of covering one’s sins. However, this occurs after one has been punished for a deed or one has done something as an expiation for the sin. For example, the legal punishments are considered a kind of takfeer for the sin committed. This term is usually translated as “remit, expiate.” When expiation is performed, the person receives no reward for the actual deed of expiation performed but he will also face no further punishment for the wrong he committed. If a person breaks an oath and frees a slave, the freeing of the slave expiated his sin of breaking his oath and there is no reward for him in freeing that slave. Hence, one may ask Allah to expiate his sins by the good deeds he performed or by other means. Al-maghfirah, also implies the covering of one’s sins as well as protection from their harm, but it also implies not being punished or held responsible in any way whatsoever for the deed. Some acts are acts of maghfirah and acts of reward in themselves. When a person walks to the mosque, that act removes sins from him and, on top of that, he is rewarded for that act itself.
- Having “good manners” does not mean that one accepts everything that everybody else does and continues to treat them all the same. Some people think that they have good behavior when they accept the sins and heresies of others. They never try to correct others as they fear that such would be impolite behavior. As was stated earlier, the correct good and Islamic behavior is that which is based on the shareeah and the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him). The Prophet (peace be upon him) would not be silent if the laws of Allah were violated. Indeed, he would get angry and his anger could clearly be seen. Hence, not speaking out in the presence of wrong, sins and innovations is not a part of correct Islamic behavior. It is only Satan that deceives people into thinking that such is good and nice behavior. Instead, the good and nice behavior towards others is to advise them when they are wrong. It is to show them kindly that what they are doing goes against the Quran and sunnah. It is to demonstrate to them that their behavior is not acceptable.
5. Summary of the Hadith
• One must have taqwa of Allah under all circumstances. For example, wherever he may be, whether he be alone or with others, he must have taqwa.
• Even a person of taqwa may slip and commit sins. However, he should not persist in those sins. Instead, he should follow them up with good deeds that will wipe them away by the grace and mercy of Allah.
• An essential characteristic of taqwa is to behave with people in a good manner. One should behave towards them in a manner that he likes for them to behave towards him.
Books of Muslims 