21st Ramdhan..Martyrdom of 4th Caliph, Ali (r.a)

Amongst  the descendants of Prophet Ibrahim (a.s), Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) belonged to the line of Quraish. He was the son of Abu Talib , son of Abdul Muttalib of the distinguished tribe of Bani Hashim.  Only one step above his lineage coincided with that of the Prophet of Islam (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).The latter being Muhammad bin Abdullah bin Abdul Muttalib. and the former Ali bin Abi Talib bin Abdul Muttalib.. It was his father Abu Talib who had nourished and brought up the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). His mother Fatima binte Asad was also a noble lady belonging to the tribe of Bani Hashim whom the Prophet (saw) regarded as his own mother. When the Prophet of God (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was 30 years old, Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) was born on 13th of Rajab in the 30 th year of Aamul eel (The Elephant Era) inside the sacred Kaba.

The responsibility for bringing him up devolved directly on Muhammad Mustafa (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) who devoted all his time and attention towards nurturing him with utmost love and affection, instilling in him both knowledge and noble morals. Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) was 10 years old when Muhammad Mustafa (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was formally called upon to convey the divine message. The Prophet had embarked upon a mission which was against the trend of the times, the prevailing environment, the practice of  the entire city and of his own people and tribe. No one was prepared to extend a helping hand and cooperate with him. It was Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) alone who was foremost in testifying the claim  of the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and in reposing full faith in his mission.The other personality was that of Khadijatul Kubra (radyAllahu`anha) who acquired the honor of precedence in embracing Islam among the women.

The moment the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) proclaimed his prophet hood every particle under the sun turned against him. Those very people who used to acclaim his truthfulness and trustworthiness began calling him a lunatic, a sorcerer and what not ? Thorns were laid in his path, stones were pelted at him , and garbage was thrown on his head. In these hard times only a child was there to share his misery. This child was the same Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) who never lost his courage in collaborating with his cousin and in professing his love and loyalty towards  him. On every occasion he acted as a shield to the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) against all odds.

The demise of Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) loving uncle Abu Talib broke the Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) heart. He made up his mind to migrate to Madinah because the enemies unanimously decided to surround the house of the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) at night and finally kill him. At night the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) left Makkah for Madinah and Ali ibne Abi Talib (radyAllahu`anhu)  slept on his bed. Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) stayed at Makkah for 3 days. During this period he returned to their owners all the articles that were left in trust with the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam)

The first thing that the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did on his arrival to Madinah was to solemnize the marriage of his only daughter, Fatima Zahra (radyAllahu`anha) with Ali (radyAllahu`anhu). The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) deeply loved his daughter and had so much respect for her that whenever she came to him he used to stand up in reverence. The life of Fatima and Ali presented an unparalleled ideal for domestic life. It was an example of how a man and woman can prove to be the real life partners, what should be the distribution of duties between them and how they can be helpful to each other.
Besides participating in Jihad Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) was never averse to do anything for the sake of Islam.The tasks that he had to perform were of diverse nature. He was responsible for writing down treaties and letters.  He was also the custodian of the recorded portions of the Quran.  Besides, he was deputed to Yemen by the Prophet (saw) for the propagation of Islam.As a result of his successful preaching,the entire Yemen embraced Islam.

When the Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) soul left his body Ali's (radyAllahu`anhu) hand was still on his chest.After the Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) demise how could the man who had been with him for the whole of his life, leave his body unattended ?So, the duty of washing of the body, wrapping it in shroud and other funeral rites were performed by Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) It was he who laid the Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) body in the grave. After the Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) burial.

In addition to this he was, on his own, ever busy in the service of Islam in the spiritual sphere as well as in the dissemination of knowledge.  He compiled the Quran in order of revelation of the verses, specifying the verses which were later canceled and those which canceled them; the verses which are clear and those which are obscure. He generated in the educated class of the Muslims an interest in writing and compilation of  books land also a longing for research in various branches of knowledge.  He himself produced a body of learned works comprising Quranic exegesis, philosophical reasoning, Islamic jurisprudence and commandments. He trained a large number of disciples who helped build in future a society of learned scholars amongst the Muslims. In order to preserve the Arabic language, Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) laid the foundation of Arabic grammar and elucidated the principles of etymology and literature.  In this way Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) set an example that one must not forget one's duties even when facing adverse conditions, deprived of authority and compelled to lead a life of neglect and seclusion. The interest of the society is not to be harmed for the sake of personal aggrandizement or to gain official position. One should in all circumstances continue to serve the society. the community and the religion as far as possible.

For 25 years after the Prophet's (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) demise Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) led a life of seclusion. In 35 A.H. the Muslims offered the office of Islamic Caliph to Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) At first he refused. But when the insistence on part of the Muslims increased , he accepted it on the condition that he would rule strictly in accordance with the precepts laid down in the Quran and the Sunnah (practice) of the Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) without favour and partiality towards any body. The people agreed to this condition and thereupon he accepted the office of the Caliph. But the people could not tolerate his purely religious rule. and rebelled against him on one or the other excuse.

He wore patched clothes, sat in the company of poor people on ground and partook food with them. The p;proceeds of the Baitul Mal (public treasury) were distributed equally amongst the deserving .

Alas! this protagonist of peace, equality and Islamic values could not escape the malicious designs of the worldly people. In the morning of 19th of the month of Ramdhan 40 A.H. while offering prayer in the mosque he was fatally wounded by a  sword dipped in poison . His mercifulness, kindness and regard for equality of all human beings was such that when his assassin was brought before him with a pale face and tears rolling down his eyes, he was touched with compassion even for him and and addressing his two sons, Imam Hasan and Imam Husain (radyAllahu`anhu) , said : " He is your prisoner. Do not treat him harshly. Give him the food that you yourself eat. If I recover, it will be upto me to punish him or to forgive him. But if I do not survive and you decide to avenge his crime, then strike him with sword only once as he had struck me once and in no case his hands or legs or any other part of his body should be cut off as it is against the teachings of Islam." Ali (radyAllahu`anhu) spent  two  restless days on his sick bed in extreme  pain and distress. Eventually the poison spread all over the body and he breathed his last on 21st of Ramdhan at the time of morning prayer.  Hasan and Husain (radyAllahu`anhu) performed the funeral rites and that prince of humanity was buried at Najaf at the back of the city of Kufa (Iraq).

Prepare To Answer

It is proven in the Qur’an and SunnahWay/method/saying or deed of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). that when a person dies, he will be called to account for every major and minor action he did in this world, whether it was good or bad. He will be rewarded for his good deeds and punished for his bad deeds. The first stage of that reckoning is in the grave. In the grave the first thing a person will be asked will be:

Who was your Lord?
What is your religion?
Who is this man who was sent amongst you?1
Then on the Day of Resurrection he will be brought to account for every major and minor action, even though he has already been brought to account for that in the grave. The first thing for which he will be brought to account for then will be his prayer.

It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The first thing among their deeds for which the people will be brought to account on the Day of Resurrection will be prayer. Our Lord will say to His angels, although He knows best, ‘Look at My slave’s prayer, is it complete or lacking?’ If it is complete, it will be recorded as complete, but if it is lacking, He will say, ‘Look and see whether my slave did any voluntary (naafil) prayers.’ If he had done voluntary prayers, He will say, ‘Complete the obligatory prayers of My slave from his voluntary prayers.’ Then the rest of his deeds will be examined in a similar manner.”2

On the Day of Resurrection, people will be asked about other matters, including the following:

It was narrated from Ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The son of Adam will not be dismissed from before his Lord on the Day of Resurrection until he has been questioned about five things: his life and how he spent it, his youth and how he used it, his wealth and how he earned it and how he disposed of it, and how he acted upon what he acquired of knowledge.”3

And the nations will be asked on the Day of Resurrection: “What answer gave you to the Messengers?”4

These are some of the things about which people will be asked on the Day of Resurrection. So the wise person who is keen to save himself should prepare answers to these questions. We ask Allaah to guide us to the straight path.

What They Said about Muhammad (part 3 of 3)

Encyclopedia Britannica:
“....a mass of detail in the early sources show that he was an honest and upright man who had gained the respect and loyalty of others who were like-wise honest and upright men.” (Vol. 12)
George Bernard Shaw said about him:
“He must be called the Saviour of Humanity.  I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much needed peace and happiness.”
(The Genuine Islam, Singapore, Vol. 1, No. 8, 1936)
He was by far the most remarkable man that ever set foot on this earth.  He preached a religion, founded a state, built a nation, laid down a moral code, initiated numerous social and political reforms, established a powerful and dynamic society to practice and represent his teachings and completely revolutionized the worlds of human thought and behavior for all times to come.
His Name is Muhammad.  He was born in Arabia in the year 570 C.E., started his mission of preaching the religion of Truth, Islam (submission to One Allah(God) at the age of forty and departed from this world at the age of sixty-three.  During this short period of twenty three years of his Prophethood, he changed the complete Arabian peninsula from paganism and idolatry to worship of One Allah(God), from tribal quarrels and wars to national solidarity and cohesion, from drunkenness and debauchery to sobriety and piety, from lawlessness and anarchy to disciplined living, from utter bankruptcy to the highest standards of moral excellence.  Human history has never known such a complete transformation of a people or a place before or since - and imagine all these unbelievable wonders in just over two decades.
LaMartine, the renowned historian speaking on the essentials of human greatness wonders:
“If greatness of purpose, smallness of means and astounding results are the three criteria of human genius, who could dare to compare any great man in modern history with Muhammad?  The most famous men created arms, laws and empires only.  They founded, if anything at all, no more than material powers which often crumbled away before their eyes.  This man moved not only armies, legislation, empires, peoples and dynasties, but millions of men in one-third of the then inhabited world; and more than that, he moved the altars, the Allah's(god), the religions, the ideas, the beliefs and souls....his forbearance in victory, his ambition, which was entirely devoted to one idea and in no manner striving for an empire; his endless prayers, his mystic conversations with Allah(God), his death and his triumph after death; all these attest not to an imposture but to a firm conviction which gave him the power to restore a dogma.  This dogma was two-fold, the unity of Allah(God) and the immateriality of Allah(God); the former telling what Allah(God) is, the latter telling what Allah(God) is not; the one overthrowing false gods with the sword, the other starting an idea with the words.”
“Philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational dogmas, of a cult without images, the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire, that is Muhammad.  As regards all the standards by which Human Greatness may be measured, we may well ask, Is there any man greater than he?”
(Lamartine, Histoire de la Turqui, Paris, 1854, Vol. II, pp 276-277)
The world has had its share of great personalities.  But these were one-sided figures who distinguished themselves in but one or two fields, such as religious thought or military leadership.  The lives and teachings of these great personalities of the world are shrouded in the mist of time.  There is so much speculation about the time and place of their birth, the mode and style of their life, the nature and detail of their teachings and the degree and measure of their success or failure that it is impossible for humanity to reconstruct accurately the lives and teachings of these men.
Not so this man.  Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of Allah(God) be upon him, accomplished so much in such diverse fields of human thought and behavior in the fullest blaze of human history.  Every detail of his private life and public utterances has been accurately documented and faithfully preserved to our day.  The authenticity of the record so preserved are vouched for not only by the faithful followers but even by his prejudiced critics.
Muhammad was a religious teacher, a social reformer, a moral guide, an administrative colossus, a faithful friend, a wonderful companion, a devoted husband, a loving father - all in one.  No other man in history ever excelled or equaled him in any of these different aspects of life - but it was only for the selfless personality of Muhammad to achieve such incredible perfections.
Mahatma Gandhi, speaking on the character of Muhammad, says in (Young India):
“I wanted to know the best of one who holds today’s undisputed sway over the hearts of millions of mankind....I became more than convinced that it was not the sword that won a place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life.  It was the rigid simplicity, the utter self-effacement of the Prophet, the scrupulous regard for his pledges, his intense devotion to this friends and followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute trust in Allah(God) and in his own mission.  These and not the sword carried everything before them and surmounted every obstacle.  When I closed the 2nd volume (of the Prophet’s biography), I was sorry there was not more for me to read of the great life.”
Thomas Carlyle in his (Heroes and Heroworship), was simply amazed as to:
“how one man single-handedly, could weld warring tribes and wandering Bedouins into a most powerful and civilized nation in less than two decades.”
Diwan Chand Sharma wrote:
“Muhammad was the soul of kindness, and his influence was felt and never forgotten by those around him.”
(D.C. Sharma, The Prophet of the East, Calcutta, 1935, pp. 12)
Edward Gibbon and Simon Ockley speaking on the profession of Islam write:
“I believe in One Allah(God), and Mahomet, an Apostle of Allah(God)’is the simple and invariable profession of Islam.  The intellectual image of the Deity has never been degraded by any visible idol; the honor of the Prophet has never transgressed the measure of human virtues; and his living precepts have restrained the gratitude of his disciples within the bounds of reason and religion.”
(History of the Saracan Empires, London, 1870, p. 54)
Muhammad was nothing more or less than a human being.  But he was a man with a noble mission, which was to unite humanity on the worship of One and Only One Allah(God) and to teach them the way to honest and upright living based on the commands of Allah(God).  He always described himself as, “A Servant and Messenger of Allah(God),” and so indeed every action of his proclaimed to be.
Speaking on the aspect of equality before Allah(God) in Islam, the famous poetess of India, Sarojini Naidu says:
“It was the first religion that preached and practiced democracy; for, in the mosque, when the call for prayer is sounded and worshippers are gathered together, the democracy of Islam is embodied five times a day when the peasant and king kneel side by side and proclaim: ‘Allah Alone is Great’...  I have been struck over and over again by this indivisible unity of Islam that makes man instinctively a brother.”
(S. Naidu, Ideals of Islam, vide Speeches & Writings, Madras, 1918, p. 169)
In the words of Prof. Hurgronje:
“The league of nations founded by the prophet of Islam put the principle of international unity and human brotherhood on such universal foundations as to show candle to other nations.” He continues: “The fact is that no nation of the world can show a parallel to what Islam has done towards the realization of the idea of the League of Nations.”
The world has not hesitated to raise to divinity, individuals whose lives and missions have been lost in legend.  Historically speaking, none of these legends achieved even a fraction of what Muhammad accomplished.  And all his striving was for the sole purpose of uniting mankind for the worship of One Allah(God) on the codes of moral excellence.  Muhammad or his followers never at any time claimed that he was a Son of Allah(God) or the Allah(God)-incarnate or a man with divinity - but he always was and is even today considered as only a Messenger chosen by Allah(God).
Michael  H. Hart in his recently published book on ratings of men who contributed towards the benefit and upliftment of mankind writes:
“My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world’s most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels.”
(M.H. Hart, The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, New York, 1978, p. 33)
K. S. Ramakrishna Rao, an Indian Professor of Philosophy in his booklet, (“Muhammad, The Prophet of Islam,”) calls him the
“Perfect model for human life.”
Prof. Ramakrishna Rao explains his point by saying:
“The personality of Muhammad, it is most difficult to get into the whole truth of it.  Only a glimpse of it I can catch.  What a dramatic succession of picturesque scenes!  There is Muhammad, the Prophet.  There is Muhammad, the Warrior; Muhammad, the Businessman; Muhammad, the Statesman; Muhammad, the Orator; Muhammad, the Reformer; Muhammad, the Refuge of Orphans; Muhammad, the Protector of Slaves; Muhammad, the Emancipator of Women; Muhammad, the Judge; Muhammad, the Saint.  All in all these magnificent roles, in all these departments of human activities, he is alike a hero.”
Today after a lapse of fourteen centuries, the life and teachings of Muhammad have survived without the slightest loss, alteration or interpolation.  They offer the same undying hope for treating mankind’s many ills, which they did when he was alive.  This is not a claim of Muhammad’s followers but also the inescapable conclusion forced upon by a critical and unbiased history.
The least you could do as a thinking and concerned human being is to stop for a moment and ask yourself: Could these statements sounding so extraordinary and revolutionary be really true?  And supposing they really are true and you did not know this man Muhammad or hear about him, isn’t it time you responded to this tremendous challenge and put in some effort to know him?
It will cost you nothing but it may prove to be the beginning of a completely new era in your life.

Prophetic Tradition- Biography of Female companions- Mothers of Believers- Ms. Aisha- lesson (1-5)- Engagement to the Prophet

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Creations, and Peace and blessings be upon our prophet Muhammad, the faithful and the honest.
 Oh, Allah, we know nothing but what You teach us. You are the All- Knower, the Wise. Oh Allah, teach us what is good for us, and benefit us from what You taught us, and increase our knowledge. Show us the righteous things as righteous and help us to do them, and show us the bad things as bad and help us to keep away from them.
  O Allah our Lord, lead us out from the depths of darkness and illusion, unto the lights of erudition and knowledge, and from the muddy shallows of lusts unto the heavens of Your Vicinity.

Kawla tells the story of proposing to Aisha:

 O dear brothers, Khawla bint Hakim suggested to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, to marry Aisha the daughter of Abu Bakr. If He did, this would strengthen the link between him and the dearest of all people to him: that is Abu Bakr, his best friend, may Allah be pleased with him. The truth is that marriage is about bringing together; marrying is one of the largest unions between families, because the relationship of descent and of marriage is one of the most sacred relations at all…

“And how could you take it (back) while you have gone in unto each other, and they have taken from you a firm and strong covenant?” (21)

(Al Nisa)

 A strong covenant, it has been said: this contract is the marriage document, which is the most sacred contract of all. Now, let Khawla bint Hakeem, may Allah be pleased with her, talk about this marriage. She said: “I entered the house of Abu Bakr and found Om Roman, his wife and mother of Aisha and said to her “What a great goodness and blessings that Allah sent me to you. "What is that?” she asked. She said, “The Messenger of Allah peace be upon him sent me to propose to Aisha for him.“
 I tell you frankly, if Allah chooses someone to intercede between the couple, the families will be filled with pleasure. It is the great joy of all joys that God Almighty provided, for your daughter, a young believer. If he loves he will give her the best of everything, but if he does not like her he will not be unjust. When Allah, gives you a husband for your daughter with good morals, with a known family, and with true religion, this is a major gift. So may Allah reward everyone who contribute to reconcile the couple, or contribute to the establishment of marriage, blessed and Islamic.

“Whoever makes a good intercession shall receive a share of it”

(Sahih Bukhari)

 This family, which is based on understanding, love, having children, and raising children to be good in the community, all of this is a huge project, and there will be good deeds for the one who helped husband to marry the wife.  A brother once told me: "We are now eighty-five people, the base is the husband and wife, of course; they had children, and their children got married, and gave birth to daughters, and their daughters got married, sons and daughters, daughters and sons, sons and daughters-in law, eighty-five people in all. If the family was righteous, the father refined, with high education, discipline and commitment, and with all of them being veiled women, isn’t all this good? Whomever had a good intercession for this marriage, here's blessings and peace upon him:

" One of the best intercessions is the intercession between the two in marriage."

 Don’t say what the devils say: "Walk in a funeral and do not walk for a marriage."
 It has been stated that whoever helps a man to marry a woman, he is a part of every word they utter, and every step they take in the night worship and the daytime fasts. Don`t hesitate to be interceding between the couple; do not hesitate to persuade the a man to marry a believing woman; do not hesitate to persuade a young woman to marry a pure man; do not say: It is none of my business, I had better not interfere. This is the devil’s talk.

"The Muslim who is in contact with others and bears patiently their annoyances is better than a Muslim who does not mix with people and bear their annoyances"

(From Sunan Al-Tirmidhi: for "Yahya bin Wathab")

 Life is a place of trial: Make favor with all people whether they deserve it or not. If they don’t deserve it, you deserve it.
 Om Roman asked: "Why is that? She said: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, sent me to propose to Aisha for him. She said: I was hoping for this. This is a beautiful thing, for he is the best of mankind. If a physician came to propose to someone`s daughter, the father will repeat a million times: the man who married our daughter is a physician; the one who married my daughter is an engineer; the one who married my daughter has a laboratory. If the father and mother married their daughter to an important person then this is something worthy of attention, and people never stop talking about his certificates, and his knowledge, and his morals, and the anticipated future would belong to him. So, it was a great honor that the prophet, peace be up on him, had proposed to the family. Therefore, the scholars have said: the seeker of knowledge is sufficient for any girl. The seeker of knowledge knows what his rights and duties are.
 Om Roman said: “I wish, but wait until Abu Bakr comes”. Note the politeness with the husband. Nowadays the wife is the one who refuses or agrees, saying "I will convince him”. When Abu Bakr came, Khawla said to him: “O Abu Bakr, can you imagine what Allah gives you of goodness and blessings? The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, sent me to engage Aisha. Can you imagine what he said? Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, asked, “Is this permissible”? He realized it was a great honor for young Aisha to become the prophet’s wife but he wondered if she was permissible for him, as she was the daughter of his brother. I (Khawla) returned to the Prophet, peace be upon him, and I told him what Abu Bakr said. He, peace be upon him, said:

"Return to him, and tell him ‘I am your brother and you are my brother in Islam and it is permissible for your daughter to marry me’" *

(From Musnad Ahmad: About "Ms. Aisha")

 I, (Khawla) returned to Abu Bakr and stated to him what the prophet said. There was a problem, however, which teaches us more about the greatness of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him. He said: “Wait until I return”. Om Roman, the mother of Aisha, described the problematic situation to Khawla: “Almutaam Bin Adai” proposed to engage Aisha to his son “Zubair”, and Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, never broke a promise”.  Al-Mutaam, Bin Adai said he wished to marry his son, Zubair, to Aisha. Abu Bakr had not approved nor disapproved of the matter, but his silence implied consent. So, he was not able to make a decision in the matter, to fulfill the promise. Could Zubair bin Al-Mutaam bin Uday be compared with the Messenger of Allah? Loyalty and religion are what matter. I imagine that Abu Bakr, may Allah pleased with him, felt almost torn that he missed the opportunity of the marriage of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, or that he had never imagined this proposal from the Prophet, peace be upon him, to his daughter Aisha. Of course, for any father if a good young man visited him and announced his desire to marry his daughter, welcoming him warmly almost becomes a promise. So Abu Bakr could not say yes to the Prophet until he figured out an end to this problem. So, he went to Al-Mutaam of bin Adi. Abu Bakr came to the Mutaam and his wife, Zubair`s mother, a polytheist, said: "O Ibn Abi Quhafah, perhaps if we married our son to your daughter you might make him disbelieve in idols and involve him in your religion, that you believe in. We have a problem with you - we are afraid that if our son marries your daughter, you will turn him into a disbeliever in our gods and get him involved in your religion. This was the statement of the wife. Abu Bakr did not reply to her; instead, he turned to her husband Al-Muttaam and said, "what do you say about this? Do you agree with her? Are you really afraid that if your son marries my daughter he will enter Islam like me?” So he answered: "This is what she said, and I support her, and I accept what she has said”. Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, left and felt satisfaction because Allah helped him to commit to his promise. He returned to his home and said to Khawla: “Call for me the Messenger of Allah”.
 There seems to be a tradition in Arab life that a suitor has to come to the house of his fiancée. So, look at the moral position:

"There is no belief in one who cannot be trusted, and there is no religion in one who does not keep his promise.”

(Musnad Ahmad from: for "Anas bin Malik")

 I read much about the honored female companions, but what attracted my attention the most was one who had five children, and the Prophet, peace be upon him, proposed to her. Would any woman who had the opportunity to be the mother of believers reject?! Is there any woman who could be the first lady in the community that would reject that?! She said: "O Messenger of Allah I have five children I am afraid that if I care for their benefit, I will deprive you of your full rights, and I fear that if I give you my care, that I will deprive them of their full rights. I do not want to be unfair" and she apologized. And so, the Prophet, peace be upon him, replied:

"May Allah bless the best women who ride camels, Quraish`s best women, who are kind with a young child and who take care for an old man, with the same hands”.

(Musnad of Imam Ahmad: for "Abdullah bin Abbas),"

 What are these incredible positions? A woman, had the opportunity to be the first lady, to be the Mother of believers, to be the wife of the messenger of Allah, but she hesitated because she didn`t want to be unfair to her husband or children. She wanted to take care of her children, and missed the chance to be the mother of believers, and the paradise for such women.  A woman was walking down the street when she saw a scholar and said to him: “Sir, what right does the Prophet, peace be upon him, have to tell us that we are lacking in mind and religion?” This smart scholar said to her: “Oh! By Allah, he has no right to say that; however, these words are not for you, they are for the female companions; you don`t have mind or religion.
 It was mentioned in the old books, that the prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"I am the first one who holds onto heaven. There is a woman who wants to get into heaven before me. I asked, “O Jibreel, who is this women?” He said, “This is a woman whose husband died and left her children and she refused to marry to take care of them."
 This is amazing! She raced the Messenger of Allah to enter heaven. Therefore, when I see a mom taking good care of her children, their food, their health, their clothing, the cleanliness of their rooms, their needs, watching them, caring about their morality so they become first-class believing youth, then this women should be at the top ranks. Therefore, In Islam there is prayer, fasting, Hajj, charity, and many orders, but the pinnacle of Islam, the highest point in the summit of Islam is “Jihad”. The Prophet says, peace be upon him:

“Oh ye woman leave and tell the women after you that if any woman exerts her efforts, attends to her husband and pleases Him, it is considered jihad for the sake of God. "

(Asmaa bint Zaid)

 By Allah, I do not think that one woman out of a thousand is aware of this hadith. The Prophet does not speak by his own inclination; it is only a revelation revealed to him. A woman persevered in praying in the night, prayed and read the Qur`an, asked forgiveness, and remembered Allah, and at six o`clock in the morning she became tired and she threw her head onto the pillow to sleep. Her children were going to wake up shortly after, and they needed to eat, and wear their clothes; but, she ignored them and told them, “eat and drink and go to your schools”. I'm sure on a real religious scale, that this woman did not worship Allah as she should because she neglected her children. If a woman woke up half an hour before sunrise and prayed Al-Fajr on time and took care of her children, prepared their food, supervised them as they get dressed, oversaw their activities, sent them to school, and then dropped her head on the pillow, Allah would consider this mother a thousand times better than the who worshiped and neglected.
 Every person worships Allah as Allah has ordained for him. It is very important to say: everyone should worship Allah as He decreed for him or her. He has established this woman as a wife: thus, the highest worship is to take care of her husband and children. If Allah All- mighty makes you rich, the highest worship for you is to spend this money in the right way. If Allah makes you strong, the most powerful worship for you is to treat the oppressed. If Allah make you a judge, you have to be just. If Allah make you a scholar, you have to receive knowledge generously without hesitation. Everyone should worship Allah in the right place where Allah wants him to be. decree
 Let’s say, for example, that an administrative director stays up at night and worships and reads the Koran, and thus neglects his work. He should first have to stay up to solve the problems of the people, and do justice to them, and follow up their cases. There is a thief, and there are perverse people, and a gang of corruption; if he tracks his duties and performed as best as he could, then he is worshiping Allah. Therefore, you must worship Allah the way he decrees for you.
 You must worship according to the situation that you are in. You have guests; the worship of Allah is to honor the guest, offer him a comfortable sleeping area, food and drink. If your father is sick, worship of Allah is to take care of him until he is cured. You have a son preparing for examinations: worship of Allah is to take care of him during the examination period. If your wife is sick, you must worship Allah in the circumstances that he put you in and you thereby, will have fulfilled your duties as you should.
 Abu Bakr, may Allah pleased with him: I imagine this proposal from the prophet, peace be up on him, filled his heart with joy that no human being can describe. However, he was still tied by the promise. He told Khawla to wait for him. Almighty Allah created the atmosphere. Then Al-Mutaam`s wife, the polytheist, spoke and she said: “I am afraid that if my son marries your daughter convert him to your religion. Abu Bakr asked her husband, “what do you say, man?” He responded, “As she said”, and the issue ended. Abu Bakr returned home and asked Khawla: “Call for me the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. So, Khawla went to the Prophet to invite him. The prophet, peace be up on him, came to his friend's house, the house of Abu Bakr. Aisha was six or seven years, and of course, was not married but was engaged and her dowry was five hundred dirhams.

"The greatest blessing of a woman to her husband is the lowest need."

(From the small collector)

"The greatest blessing amongst women are those who have smiling faces and the least dowry."

(About "Ms. Aisha")

The parentage of Ms. Aisha:

 He said: Aisha`s people, who are the children of Tamem, are known for their generosity, courage, honesty, rectitude, and they were good with their women, and treated them well. There are honorable families who honor the wife, treat her as a daughter of the family, and there are despicable families that treat the son’s wife cruelly, with no limits, like a servant or farmhand. Therefore, the more educated a person becomes, the better he treats others.  This is the truth; if you apply it to people you will never find any problem. Treat people as you would like them to treat you, deal with your son's wife as you would want your daughter treated within a family. This rule does not disappoint at all.
 I remember a part of a true story: There was a woman. Her son bought a convenient electric machine for his wife. He lived with his mother, and she was disapproving. She made it a big problem in his head: why this waste? This women did not deserve a washing machine. The same day her son-in-law bought a similar machine for his wife. She commended him: "May Allah be pleased with you, you helped my daughter." Do you see this contradiction? By Allah, dear brothers, if a person came out naked, and this is very ugly, it would be easier than contradiction between his words and behavior.
 Once I was in a shop, I will never forget that situation. There was a young, eighth grade vendor in a fabric shop. The shop owner gave him; the first dress, and the second dress, and the third, and the fourth dress. The young man couldn`t take any more so he said to him: “I can`t”. The owner said, “You are young, do not say I can`t” and at the same time he gave one dress to his son and said to him: “Watch out for your back”. What do you think of this discrimination? He was afraid for his son’s back from only one dress, whereas the latter was made to hold many, as you know. You will never be a believer unless you treat others as if you are dealing with your own son, and you will not be a believer unless you treat the wife of your son as you treat your daughter. This is the faith, but that distinction is really not accepted. The world now is with the powerful, who are applying double standards. You find they have relaxed beyond indulgence, and have become cruel beyond cruelty.

A man was killed in a forest… it is an unforgivable crime

The killing of the safe people…it should be reconsidered

* * * *

 The worst thing in any human is contradiction, and contradiction is not bearable, but it is the law of the jungle.  The prophet`s friend Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, was of the degree following the prophet. The Master of Prophets is the highest thing: Messenger, Prophet, and then a friend, a guardian, a believer, a Muslim, then there is a red line followed by the end. These are ranks in Islam.
 They said: "Abu Bakr has a reputation for civility, and good treatment, and historians of Islam on the whole agree he was the most appropriate for the Quraish, and he had the most knowledge about Quraish, and he knew best about the of good and evil in Quraish. He was known as good moral merchant, and men came to him with their arguments asking him to judge between them in their own affairs because of his knowledge, experience, and his good companionship when you meet with him.
 When Allah's blessings are upon you, you will find many people like you will be around you. The biggest punishment is to live among people without much understanding to you, as if you are in a valley and they are in another valley; you are at a level of thinking, and they are at another level.
 Therefore, Ms.Safanah, Hatem Tayy`s daughter, Aday`s sister, when the Prophet, peace be up on him, said to her, she said to the prophet, "I would like to make supplication for you". So, he said, "Listen to and understand what she is going to say." Ms. Safanah said: "Allah hit the pools positions sometimes take care of much attention by man, shows him the nobility unreasonably, and sometimes made to a person who invaluable services Vijahlha..

I taught him shooting everyday
And when he became skilful he shot me
And how often did I teach him poetry
And when he was able to compose poetry he ridiculed me
* * * *

Conclusion:

 Dear brothers...We have studied the biography of a friend in this mosque. It is nice to imagine the greatness of this man in his modesty, his discipline, his longing for Allah, his piety. The Prophet says, peace be upon him:

"I have never called anyone to Islam but had a setback, except my brother Abu Bakr."

"No money was ever as useful for me as the money of Abu Bakr. It was said that Abu Bakr wept. He said: “O Messenger of Allah are my funds and I only for you?"

 Will a believer be anything but like this, “Nothing is for me”. So he gave him all his money. He said: The prophet peace be upon him asked, "O Abu Bakr, what did you keep for your family?” Abu Bakr replied, “Allah and His Messenger."  If you want to be a first-class believer, make this companion an example for you, of the first-class. He would milk the sheep for his neighbors, and when he become the Caliph, his neighbors thought that he would not follow up on this service. But, there was a knock at the door. The woman asked her daughter to open. The mother asked, “Who is it?”. She responded, “the goat-milker came”, even after become the Caliph.
 Our master, the friend, was walking on his feet even though he was a caliph of the Muslims, and our lord “Usama bin Zaid”, aged seventeen years, was riding a camel. He said: "By Allah, O Messenger of Allah`s Caliph, you will ride on the camel or I will get down." He said: "By Allah, I will not ride and you will not get down and it is a lot to walk on my one hour in the way of Allah."
God willing, we will follow this biography of the venerable Ms. Aisha, one of the smartest women of the Prophet. She recounted over a thousand Hadiths of the Messenger of Allah. If she were a man, she would have been one of the leading scholars. A scholar, narrator of Hadith, and she was one of the dearest of wives to the Prophet, peace be upon him. And, this lady is also a secure example for every woman who aspires to be significant for Allah, Almighty. In another lesson, God willing, we will continue to talk about this lady, who is a role model for all women, and talk about the wives of the Prophet. It is a pleasurable discussion, because it deals with the perfection of women. A person is very happy when listening to these perfect situations, and feels sorrow and sadness when he sees a person decline, when he sees shabbiness, and cynicism, infidelity, violation of the husband, neglect of children, obscenity of the tongue, cruelty in speech, and adornments for others besides her spouse, and the neglect of the husband. This is the reality of women. The roads are nice, but the houses are hell. Either the houses, roads, everything, advances the common good or the roads are empty and there is nothing there, which corrupts morals of all where the houses were once gardens. Now houses have became infernos because these women highlight the charms of the assaults in the road, and did a disservice to the relationship between husband and wife.

Islamic Biography - Prophetic Biography - Prophetic Character 1995 : lesson(16-32)- His mercy with orphans

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Creations, and Peace and blessings be upon our prophet Muhammad, the faithful and the honest.
 Oh, Allah, we know nothing but what You teach us. You are the All- Knower, the Wise. Oh Allah, teach us what is good for us, and benefit us from what You taught us, and increase our knowledge. Show us the righteous things as righteous and help us to do them, and show us the bad things as bad and help us to keep away from them.
  O Allah our Lord, lead us out from the depths of darkness and illusion, unto the lights of erudition and knowledge, and from the muddy shallows of lusts unto the heavens of Your Vicinity.
Dear believing brothers! Now, we go on to the sixteenth of the lessons that have to do with the Prophet’s noble traits. In the previous lesson, we got to the point that deals with his mercy upon orphans. In this context Allah Almighty says:

﴾Therefore, treat not an orphan with oppression.﴿

[XCIII; 9]

Due to Allah's Infinite Divine Wisdom, the Holy Prophet, Peace be upon him, was an orphan, in order to console the hearts of all orphans that would come after him, as he, the best of all man kind and the most beloved to Allah, Almighty, was an orphan. Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, used to do well to orphans and help them. He (PBUH) used to counsel his Companions to be their custodians and to do well to them. He also showed the merits that come from that. Al-Bukhari narrated on authority of Sahl that Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, said:

((I and the custodian of an orphan are like this (together) in Paradise (and he joined his four finger and middle finger together))

Ibn Maja also narrated on authority of Abu Huraira that Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, says:

((The best Muslim house is a house in which an orphan is well treated; and the worst Muslim house is a house in which an orphan is badly treated. ))

The above Prophetic Hadith shows clearly that if someone takes good care of an orphan, he is sure to enter paradise by his good care. Also, Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), praises a widow whose husband dies, but she abstains from getting married again and prefers to devote herself to bringing up her children. Sometimes the husband might pass away because of an accident or an illness at an early age, the husband might pass away at the age of thirty, and his wife might be twenty-two; very early, he passes away leaving her with her orphan children. Of course, she can get married, but if she gets married the children will perhaps be lost or go astray. The new husband might not accept her with her children. She has to put her children under the care of her parents who might be old: and with an old person, a young child might quite often get out of control.
If a young widow abstains from getting married again, prefers to devote herself to bringing up her children, and prefers to do good to her children instead of getting married again: such woman was praised by Allah's Messenger. In this contest, ‘Aouf Bin Malik Al-Ashja’i narrated that Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, said:

((I and a woman with dark brown cheeks will be like these (i.e. together) on the Resurrection Day (and he joined his fore finger and middle finger together): a widow, although beautiful noble, devoted herself for her orphans upon her husband’s death until they became strong enough or died))

What is the meaning of “a woman with dark brown cheeks”? Interpreters of the foregoing Prophetic Hadith, said it means “a widow who abstained from getting married again and therefore she became pale with hard work and sorrow”, and therefore the color of her cheeks became dark brown. This is because a woman has been created by Allah to be a wife, and when her husband is away from her, this causes her a lot of misery and badly affects her beauty. This fact was made quite clear when a woman came to the Prophet’s venerable wife ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, complaining about her husband. ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, noticed that the woman, who was the wife of Uthman Ibn Math’oun (may Allah be pleased with him), had neglected herself. When the woman complained about her husband that he was always fasting and that he always stood up the nights for prayer, Allah's Messenger, be peace be upon him, summoned him, and he addressed him: “O Uthman! Am I not your example in life?!” And he taught him that he had to fulfill certain rights towards his wife. On the next day, however, Uthman's wife came back with a good apparel and nice smell. Where did she get that good looking? The answer is: when her husband took care of her. Then, ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, asked the woman: “How are things with you now?” Uthman's wife answered: “I have had what other people usually have.”

Abdullah Ibn ‘Amr Ibn Al-‘Ass quoted Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, as saying:

((Don't do that! Fast for sometime, and break the fast for sometime. Stand up the nights (in prayer) for sometime and sleep for sometime. This is because your body has a right on you, your eyes have a right on you, and your wife has a right on you))

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, At-Tirmithi, An-Nasa’ee, Abu Dawood, Ibn Majah, Ahmad, and Ad-Darimi]

Islam is a well-balanced religion, i.e. you can reach the topmost rank with Allah and, at the same time, fulfill your duties towards other fellow humans. But if you overdo your worships but neglect the rights of other fellow humans, you will be held responsible, and you will be called to account for neglecting such rights.
This woman, who sacrificed herself for her children, abstained from getting married again, and preferred the good righteous work of looking after her orphans to getting married again, became with dark brown cheeks, i.e. became in a miserable condition because of her being away from her husband. Once again:

((I and a woman with dark brown cheeks will be like these (i.e. together) on the Resurrection Day (and he joined his fore finger and middle finger together): a widow, although beautiful noble, devoted herself for her orphans upon her husband’s death until they became strong enough or died.))

The foregoing Prophetic Hadith shows clearly that the woman abstained from getting married to another husband, but consecrated herself to her children. Now the question is: how dear is this young child to Allah, so that if you take care of it, you deserve Allah's Paradise? The answer is: I swear by Allah! I don't see any work in this present life nobler or better than firmly establishing true faith in your children, taking good care of them, making them happy, and bringing them up to love Allah, His Messenger and his noble family. There is nothing nobler or better than making your children love Allah's book (the Holy Quran), bringing them up according to the teachings of Islamic religion, teaching them rules of Islamic Law, and making them love true Faith and righteousness. Such work is indeed very great in the sight of Allah.
That is why I mentioned in the previous lecture, that man is sad and miserable when his children are sad and miserable, no matter how great or wealthy he might be. Some thirty years ago, a relative of mine passed away, leaving a legacy of a hundred million pounds. But just before he died, he said to his wife: “We have lost the real gold! We gained nothing but coal!” Of course, he meant his children, because he had neglected them, and, therefore, they deviated from the Right Way.
This father admitted that he had committed a grievous mistake when he had neglected his children but cared for collecting money. Furthermore, When the man died, he left that entire great legacy in the hand of his sister, who was profligate and irresponsible, and, therefore, the man’s wealth and children were all lost.
Dear brothers! There is no better work that man can ever do than bringing up his children and educating them according to the teachings of Islam. I swear by Allah! I greatly respect a person who does such noble work! Someone living comfortably and wealthily in a European country, or the United States of America, for example, but suddenly he makes a decision that appears to be difficult but, in reality, it is the best decision that he ever makes, when he decides to go back to his country in order to bring up his children according to the teachings of Islam, and to preserve their religion for them. Such a man is really great and wise!
Today, we are going to discuss the Prophet’s Mercy upon orphans, which is indeed something incredible. A person who takes an orphan under his custody and guardianship will be with Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), in Paradise; and similarly, a wife whose husband dies leaving her orphans, and she devotes herself to bringing them up and abstains from getting married again, will be with Allah's Messenger, (PBUH), in Paradise.
Narrated Abu Huraira may Allah be pleased with him, that a man came to Allah's Messenger, (PBUH), complaining about his being hard hearted, so Allah's Messenger, (PBUH), advised him:

((Tap on the heads of orphans, and feed the needy one.))

[Narrated by Ahmad]

An orphan might, one day, become a great social reformer, a great scientist, or a great misanthropist. A person who takes care of this orphan and brings him up according to Islamic teachings will be greatly rewarded by Allah Almighty. I know a man whose brother died, leaving him male and female orphans. He brought up his brother's orphan children, exactly as he brought up his children, he chose for his dead brother's daughters good righteous husbands; and he made, at his own expense, wedding parties for his brother's daughters like those he made for his own daughters. There is also another family that I respect highly because when their brother died, all the other brothers and sisters took his place and took good care of his children. No doubt, taking care of children is one of the very best human works, and so is bringing them up properly. Once again: “I and a woman with dark brown cheeks like these on the Resurrection Day (and he joined his fore finger and middle finger together): a widow, although beautiful noble, devoted herself for her orphans upon her husband’s death until they became strong enough or died.”
I have a friend who died in a car crash at the age of thirty-five. He left behind a wife and three children. One day, I met one of his children, who was in the third secondary class. I asked him: “Do you need anything?” He said: “Yes, please. I need some help in the subject of Arabic.” I said: “Come to my place, and I‘ll give you some lessons.” For the sake of my dead friend, I gave his son some lessons in Arabic. In fact, he was very weak in this subject, but I took care of him in a way that pleases Allah Almighty; and every day, I gave him a lesson until he became very good in Arabic and until he passed his exams with high marks. I saw the boy’s father, my dead friend, in a dream, thanking me.
An orphan doesn't have a father, so each and every believer should be a father for him. If this orphan feels that people have mercy on him and treat him kindly, he likes them whether they are of his father's relatives or friends. In other words the community of believers is cooperative and helpful to one another. Have you ever thought of this question? Allah Almighty said:

﴾Have you seen him who denies religion? That is he who repulses the orphan.﴿

[CVII; 1,2]

Why did Allah, Almighty, choose denying Allah’s religion as the most ugly human quality and confirm that those who deny Allah’s religion are those who repulse orphans? Some scholars say: an orphan should not be repulsed, but should be treated kindly and gently, if you don't treat him well, you are completely wrong; so how would the case be if you pushed him harshly away? Yes, indeed! It is a great mistake to treat an orphan badly, but it is even worse to repulse him harshly, to humiliate him, or treat him unkindly.
A friend of mine told me that one of his female relatives passed away. By the way, I don't like to mention this as evidence. It is merely and example to clarify things. Anyway, he told me that he saw her in a dream in a very terrible condition, surrounded by flames in a fire. He swore to me that he saw her several times once or twice a year for eight years, in such horrible condition. Later on, he told me that after eight years, he saw her in a dream in a very good condition. He was happy for that told her that he was very happy for that. He asked her: “What happened to you? And how are things with you now?” She told him: “It was the milk.” Of course the man knew her story: she had children from her husband but from another wife, and she also had orphans from her previous husband, she used to give her children full cream milk, but the orphans milk mixed with a lot of water. That was why she was tormented in her grave for eight years. Now, if you have an orphan, it is a grievous mistake to give him bad milk but your own son good full cream milk.
Narrated Abu Huraira may Allah be pleased with him, that a man came to Allah's Messenger, (PBUH), complaining about his being hard hearted, so Allah's Messenger (PBUH) advised him:

((Tap on the head of orphans, and feed the needy.))

[Narrated by Ahmad]

Also, Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said:

((He who looks after a widow and a needy person is like a fighter for the Cause of Allah.” He also said: “like someone who stands up the night in prayer and worship and someone who is always fasting.))

[Narrated by: Al-Bukhari, Muslim, At-Tirmithi, An-Nasa’ee, Ibn Maja, and Ahmad]

Yes, indeed! It is great to look after a widow and a needy person. By the way, a Prophetic Hadith that is narrated by the two Sheikhs, Al-Bukhari and Muslim, is one the most authentic and true Prophetic Hadiths. However, Ibn Majah mentioned another narration of the foregoing Prophetic Hadith, which goes:

((He who looks after a widow and a needy person is like a fighter for the Cause of Allah, or someone who stands up the night in prayer and worship and fasts all the day.))

As for the Prophet’s mercy on animals, he, peace be upon him, always recommended his companions to be merciful to animals. He forbade keeping animals without food for a long time, making them work more than they can, or overloading them. In this context, Sahl Ibn Al-Hanthalia said:

((Allah's Messenger, (PBUH), came past some camels, one of which was so slim, so he (PBUH) said, ‘Fear Allah as regards these animals! Use them well and eat their meat well.))

[Narrated by Abu Dawood and Ahmad]

By the way, I had a relative who passed away a few years ago; may Allah have mercy on him. He had a horse, and he used to take good care of it. He used to provide it with a good fodder, and he also used to make a special bed of straw for it to lie on, for its own comfort, of course. Once, his daughter mounted the horse and rode it on the main road. When a tramcar passed by the horse, it was frightened, but it realized that on its back was the daughter of her master. So it kneeled down gently, allowing the little child to dismount safely, and then it ran away. Animals know those who love them, those who take care of them, and those who feed them. A true Muslim is someone who is always merciful to animals.

((Allah's Messenger (PBUH) came past some camels, one of which was so slim, so he (PBUH) said, ‘Fear Allah with these animals! use them well and eat their meat well.))

In this Prophetic Hadith we notice that the camel was made so slim because of hunger. Taking care of animals is part to a true believer’s Faith. But nowadays, we no longer have to live with animals in the same place, as people used to do in the past. But there are pets, like cats and dogs, which are also rare in our country. However, if someone sees an animal in an orchard on a field, he has to take good care of it whenever necessary.
Abdullah Ibn Ja’far said:

((I was riding behind Allah's Messenger (PBUH) one day and he confided to me something I shall never tell to any one. Whenever Allah's Messenger (PBUH) wanted to answer the call of nature, the best place for him to hide in was a wall or an enclosure of palm trees. So he (PBUH) entered an orchard that belonged to one of the Ansar (Helpers), where there was a camel. When the camel saw Allah's Messenger (PBUH), it looked at him sadly, and its eyes were filled with tears. Allah's Messenger (PBUH) came to the animal and wiped with his Holy hands the back of its head, behind its ears, and the camel stopped weeping. So, Allah's Messenger (PBUH) asked, ‘Whose is this camel?’ A man of the Ansar (Helpers) came to Allah's Messenger (PBUH) saying: “It is mine, O Messenger of Allah.’ Allah's Messenger (PBUH) turned to the man and said: ‘Don't you fear Allah as regards this animal, which Allah has enabled you to own?! It complained to me that you keep it hungry, overload it, and force it to work more than it can.))

[Narrated by Muslim, Abu Dawood, Ibn Maja, Ahmad, and Ad-Darimi]

I swear by Allah! I once saw, with my own eyes, a female dog weeping, because a car had run over her baby dogs; and she stood before her babies with tears in her eyes. Animals are creatures and have souls; and we will see later on how a woman deserved to enter Hell-Fire because of a cat. Now, we go back to a Prophetic Hadith,

((… Allah's Messenger came to the camel and wiped with his holy hand the back of its head, behind its ears, and he asked, ‘Whose is this camel?’ A man of the Ansar (Helpers) came to Allah's Messenger (PBUH), saying: ‘It is mine, O Messenger of Allah.’ Allah's Messenger (PBUH) turned to the man and said: ‘Don't you fear Allah as regards this animal, which Allah has enabled you to own?! It complained to me that you keep it hungry, overload it and force it to work more than it can.))

Allah's Messenger (PBUH) also strongly forbade keeping animals hungry or forcing them to work more than they can, either by forcing them to do lots of works or by overloading them. In this context, some of those who work with animals use an awl or spur to punch animals with. In this way, they very badly treat animals, and therefore, they will be severely punished by Allah All Mighty.
A true believer is someone who believes that animals belong to Allah, and Allah is their Lord and their Defender. He, All Mighty, will certainly punish those who do them harm or treat them cruelly. I told you before that I saw someone riding a car on the road to the airport. He wanted to show off that he is a good driver, so he ran over the two legs of a dog in the cold winter days. The dog of course was sitting on the side of the road, stretching its hands on the asphalt to keep them warm, because it felt that asphalt was warmer because it was black and could absorb more heat. In short, the man ran over the dog’s legs and cut them off; and he laughed hysterically, boasting that he was a very good car driver. By the way, the person who was sitting beside him in the car told me that after a few days, and in the same place, the man had a flat tire, and therefore, he had to replace it. He tried to lift the car by using a jack, but suddenly the car slipped and fell on his two wrists. When he was taken to hospital, his hands had got black and died out; and they had to be amputated. In the same place where he cut off the dog’s hands, he cut off his own hands. Keep in mind! Allah is Great; Allah is the Almighty Avenger.
Because a roaming animal doesn't have a master, some ignorant people kill it or run it over with their cars. If someone runs over a hen or a sheep, for example, its masters will charge him its price. Roaming dogs have no human masters to defend them, but keep in mind that they have Allah, All Mighty, to defend them.
I would like to remind you of the story of a prostitute who gave water to a dog to drink. Although she knew for sure that the dog had no masters to thank her and that there was no one around to see her good deed, she gave water to this dog and quenched its thirst. Therefore, Allah, the Almighty, forgave her all her sins. Narrated Abdullah Ibn Omar, may Allah be pleased with them, that Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said:

((A woman was tormented for a cat that she kept imprisoned until it died, so she was made to enter Hell-Fire because of it. She didn't feed it or give it to drink when she kept it imprisoned; nor did she leave it eat from the vermin of the earth.))

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, and Ad-Darimi]

The same thing applies to a person who treads even an ant with his foot. To this effect, Allah All Mighty, says,

﴾Till, when they came to the valley of the ants, one of the ants said: ‘O ants! Enter your dwellings, lest Solomon and his hosts should crush you while they perceive not.﴿

[XXVII; 18]

According to the teachings of Islam, it is forbidden to tread insects or small animals with our feet. So we have to be careful about animals. It is by no means permissible to kill animals. In this context, the Almighty Allah says,

﴾And they (true believers) do not kill the Self that Allah has forbidden to be killed, except rightfully.﴿

[XXV; 68]

Narrated Sahl Ibn Mou’az on authority of his father:

((Allah's Messenger (PBUH) came across some people who were standing on the backs of theirs animals, talking together. Allah's Messenger (PBUH) addressed the people: ‘Ride them safely, and leave them safely. And do not make them seats for you to talk on the roads and markets. A ridden animal might be better than its rider, because it remembers Allah more than he does.))

[Narrated by Ahmad and Ad-Darimi]

Ridden animals might sometimes be better in the sight of Allah than their riders, because Allah Almighty says:

﴾The seven heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, glorify Him; and there is not a thing but glorifies His Praise, but you understand not their glorification. Truly, He is Ever Forbearing, Oft-Forgiving.﴿

[XVII; 44]

If the rider is in a state of heedlessness of the Lord, Allah, All Mighty, while the ridden animal is in a state of consciousness of Him, then, the ridden animal is indeed better than its rider.
Narrated Abdur-Rahman Bin As-Salami, may Allah be pleased with him, that Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said:

((Verily Allah counsels you to take care of these brute animals.))

And he repeated this twice or three times. Then, he (PBUH) added,

((After you have traveled on them, take them back to their stables))

Some people sell fish live from lakes or special containers. Those ignorant sellers open the body of the fish, and take out their inner parts while they are still alive and moving. In Islam, it is not permissible to cut open the body of a fish, while it is still alive. You should do that after it has become completely dead and motionless. It is forbidden in Islam to torture a fish that is still alive and feeling pain. Ignorant fish sellers not only catch the fish and take them away from the water, but also make them suffer painfully because of the lack of Oxygen; they also cut open their bodies alive, and take out their inner parts. A fish is a living creature with a soul. A person who buys fish alive in the water has no right to let ignorant sellers to cut open the body of the fish and take out its inner parts unless it is completely dead and motionless.
Narrated Abdur-Rahman Bin Uthman said:

((A physician told Allah's Messenger (PBUH) about a medicine that contained frogs in it, so Allah's Messenger (PBUH) forbade killing frogs))

[Narrated by Ahmad, An-Nasa’ee, Ad-Darimi and Abu Dawood]

He (PBUH) also said,

((Croak of fogs is a kind of glorification of the Lord Almighty))

In a well known Prophetic Hadith mentioned in Al-Munthiry’s book of Hadith on authority of Abdullah Bin ‘Amr, may Allah be pleased with him, Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said:

((A woman was tormented for a cat that she kept imprisoned until it died, so she was made to enter Hell-Fire because she didn't feed it or give it to drink when she kept it imprisoned, nor did she leave it eat from the vermin of the earth.))

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, and Ad-Darimi]

You notice in the foregoing Prophetic Hadith that a woman deserved to enter the Fire, because she imprisoned a cat. Similarly, if a chief of a police station arrests someone without any investigation or charges, and the person dies in arrest, the chief of the police station is considered, in Islam, as a killer. Because of a cat, the woman deserved to enter Hell-Fire, so what do you think of more important things or creatures than a cat. A cat might be the cause of entering Hell-Fire, so what about a human being.
In this context, Allah's Messenger (PBUH) forbade inciting animals against one another, and instigating them by skirmishing them against one another. Narrated Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him

((Allah's Messenger (PBUH) forbade instigating animals against one another.))

[Narrated by Abu Dawood and At-Tirmithi]

It is worth mentioning that some people make certain fights between animals, like cocks or dogs for example. Such kind of entertainment is absolutely forbidden in Islam. Of course, dogs and cocks might fight on their own, which is something natural, but to incite animals and to make it your entertainment to incite animals against one another or to instigate them to fight one another or kill one another is strongly forbidden according to the teachings of Islam.
Allah's Messenger (PBUH) recommended us to take care of birds. I would like you to consider the following Hadith, which confirms the fact that due to his mercy upon animals, Allah's Messenger (PBUH) forbade frightening birds by doing harm to their babies. Abdur-Rahman Bin Abdullah narrated that his father said:

((While we were traveling with Allah's Messenger (PBUH), he went away to answer the call of nature. We found a Humra (kind of bird) with her two baby birds. We took away the Humra's babies, and when the Humra came back, she kept moving its wings in confusion and worry (about her babies). Therefore Allah's Messenger (PBUH) asked: ‘Who distressed this bird with her babies? Give her back her babies!’ He also saw an ant- village that we had set on fire, so he asked: “Who set this on fire?’ ‘We did.’ We replied. He (PBUH) said: ‘No one has the right to torture by the fire except the Lord of the Fire (Allah, the Almighty.))

[Narrated by Abu Dawood and Ahmad]

Some people put a scorpion alive in fire. Such a deed is a kind of torture; and torture with fire is strongly forbidden in Islam, as no one has the right to torture with fire except the Lord of fire Allah, Almighty.
Narrated Amr Bin Ash-Shareed: I heard Ash-Shareed say: I heard Allah's Messenger (PBUH) say:

((Whosoever kills a bird just for fun, the bird comes to Allah on the Day of Judgment, complaining: ‘O Lord! So-and-so killed me just for fun, and he didn't kill me for any benefit.))

[Narrated by Ahmad]

Only if you are on travel in a remote deserted place, and if you are very hungry and there is no food to eat, it is permissible for you to hunt birds and eat them. But to take hunting birds just for a hobby and entertainment, and to kill them just for fun, without eating them, is strongly forbidden in Islam.
Narrated Abdullah Bin Ammer that Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said:

((If someone kills a bird or any other animal without its due right, Allah, the Almighty, will question him for it (the bird). They asked: “O Messenger of Allah! What is its due right?” He (PBUH) said: “Its due right is to slaughter it and eat it, and not only to cut off its head and throw it away))

[Narrated by Ahmad and An-Nasa’i]

At-Tabarani, and others, narrated on authority of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, that a man lay down a sheep in order to slaughter it, and began to sharpen his knife in front of it. Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said angrily:

((Do you want to kill this sheep twice?! Why don't you sharpen your knife before you lay it down?!))

Allah's Messenger (PBUH) also severely reproached another person who slaughtered a sheep in front of other sheep:

((Do you want to kill the sheep twice?! Why don't you separate them from one another (while you are slaughtering them?!))

After private slaughterhouses had been established, one of our brother, who worked in this kind of business, asked me about the proper Islamic way to slaughter animals. I recommended him to make a special room for slaughtering animals away from the other sheep. I told him: “If you slaughter the sheep in front of one another, it is a sinful deed.” I advised him to make a secret room especially for the sheep that he wanted to slaughter so that the other sheep would not see those that are being slaughtered.
Allah's Messenger (PBUH) also forbade making animals or any living things as targets to shoot at. I this context, the two Sheiks (Al-Bukhari and Muslim) narrated on authority of Sa’eed Bin Jobair:

((Ibn Omar, may Allah be pleased with them, came past some boys who had posted a bird and were shooting their arrows at it; and they gave the bird's master all the arrows that missed. When they saw Ibn Omar they dispersed, but Ibn Omar Asked angrily: ‘Who did this?! Allah curses those who do such a thing! And Allah's Messenger (PBUH) curses those who take any living thing for a target!))

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, An-Nasa’i, Ahmad and Ad-Darimi]

I have heard of a horrible kind of food in South East Asia. People there bring a monkey alive, put it under a wooden chair that has an opening on the monkey’s head. The monkey's skull is cut off and opened; and they eat its brain while it is still alive. This is something that some of my friends saw with their own eyes in countries of South East Asia, and also in America. This is a grievous sinful deed! Don't those people fear that Allah, the Almighty, may transform them into monkeys?! Those who eat monkey’s brains while they are still alive: don't they fear that Allah make them monkeys themselves?! When man becomes so hard-hearted he is no longer a human being. According to the teachings of Islam, even if you were to kill a scorpion, or a snake, you should by no means torture it.
Narrated Shaddad Bin Aous:

((I learned two things from Allah's Messenger (PBUH), as he said: ‘Allah bids good doing to everything. If you kill you, should kill well; and if you slaughter, you should slaughter well. And the one of you should sharpen his blade and comfort his slaughtered animal.))

[Narrated by Muslim, At-Tirmithi, An-Nasa’i, Ibn Majah-, Abu Dawood, Ahmad and Ad-Darimi]

According to the teachings of Islam, even if you kill an animal that Allah, the Almighty, considers as permissible for you to kill, you should by no means torture it. If you torture it, Allah, the Almighty, is severe in revenge and punishment.
Undoubtedly, Allah's Messenger (PBUH) was sent as a mercy to all worlds. To this effect Allah, the Almighty, says:

﴾And We have sent you not (O Muhammad) but as a mercy for all worlds.﴿

[XXI; 107]

In other words all the good deeds that Prophet Muhammad's nation does are due to his Prophetic direction and guidance. True Muslims work according to the teachings of Islam, i.e. the principles of their Islamic religion; and they have values and principles. Allah's commandments have been communicated to them, so it is not up to them to kill or not to kill. But ignorant disbelieving people are like brute animals. True believers are well disciplined and rightly guided people; and all of the things that they do are according to Allah's religion.
I noticed that some people who sell poultry strip off feathers of chickens while they are still alive and moving. They just put them in hot boiling water and they strip them, while they are still alive and moving, off their feathers. Don't such people have any mercy?! Man should know what to eat and how to slaughter the animal that he wants to eat. A chicken should by no means be stripped off its feather until it is completely dead and motionless. We should fear Allah as regards animals!
In this context Allah, the Almighty, protects true upright believers, together with their children and families, if they have mercy on animals. I have heard of someone who gave his son a bird with a rope attached to its leg. Whenever the bird desired to fly away, the boy pulled the rope to prevent it from flying away, until the bird’s leg was broken. Two days later, the boy fell down and had his leg broken. Be careful! Don't allow your children to play with birds or to cause them any injury, because those are Allah's creatures and have souls. And remember that a father is the custodian and guardian of his house and he is responsible for the ones under his custody. In his book of Prophetic Hadith, Imam Ahmad narrated on authority of Ibn Abbas:

((While Allah's Messenger (PBUH) was asleep, he dreamt of two angels that came to him. The first angel sat at his feet, and the second angel sat at his head. The angel at his feet said to the angel at his head: ‘Give the parable of this man (i.e. Muhammad) and the parable of his nation.’ The angel at his head said: ‘His parable and the parable of his nation, is the parable of a people who, while traveling, went into a desert but didn't have enough food and drink whereby they could cross the whole desert or go back to the place where they started. While they were in this case, a man, in a silk gown, came to them and said: ‘You see! If I take you to an orchard full of green landscape and lakes of water, would you follow me?’ They answered: ‘Yes, we would.’ And he took them to a green orchard with lakes of water, and they eat and drunk and were very happy. He said to them: ‘Didn't I find you in that condition, didn’t I ask you to follow me to a green orchard with lakes of water, and didn’t you follow me?’ They said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Now, I am going to take you to orchards that are greener than those and lakes that have more water, so I would like you to follow me.’ Some of the people said: ‘By Allah! He speaks the truth. We shall follow him.’ But others said: ‘We are satisfied with this. We should remain here.))

[Narrated by Ahmad]

This symbolic story has a lot of lessons: it symbolizes the fact that Allah's Messenger (PBUH) communicated to us this divine religion of Islam from the Almighty Lord. He (PBUH) guided us to the Straight Path; and he came to with his Holy Prophetic Sunna and Tradition, which enable us to achieve our interests in both the present world and the Hereafter. If someone follows Prophetic Sunna and Tradition, his life in the present world is all right, and his reputation is noble and pure, things are made easy for him, and his heart is made happy and contented. But if he thinks that this world is enough for him and doesn't care about the Hereafter, he loses the Hereafter, which the Holy Prophet (PBUH) describes as greener and better place than this present world.
In other words, after having committed himself to Allah's religion in the present world, and hence, reaped the good fruits thereof, he has to seek the Hereafter and strive for it, so that the bliss of this present world may be connected with that of the Hereafter. Sometimes, someone might be in the very best condition in the present world, but he has a very dangerous trap therein, namely death, after which he loses everything. But the really happy ones are those who are happy in this present world and whose happiness continues to the Hereafter. They are happiest in this present world, and when death comes, they still remain happiest. Therefore, in order to have the bliss in this present world connected with that in the hereafter, we have to stick to the Messenger’s Sunna and Tradition to achieve happiness in this present world and the Hereafter.
Dear brothers! Today, we talked about the Prophet’s Mercy upon orphans and animals. We also talked about his general mercy. In the next lecture, if Allah so wills, we will be talking about his shyness.

Prophetic Tradition- Prophet's character 1995- lesson 13- His generousity and courage

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Creations, and Peace and blessings be upon our prophet Muhammad, the faithful and the honest.
 Oh, Allah, we know nothing but what You teach us. You are the All- Knower, the Wise. Oh Allah, teach us what is good for us, and benefit us from what You taught us, and increase our knowledge. Show us the righteous things as righteous and help us to do them, and show us the bad things as bad and help us to keep away from them.
  O Allah our Lord, lead us out from the depths of darkness and illusion, unto the lights of erudition and knowledge, and from the muddy shallows of lusts unto the heavens of Your Vicinity.

 Dear brothers!
 First of all, I would like to tell you that a true believer is someone who builds up all his life on giving, while a disbeliever on taking. If you desire to know whether you are of those who love the life of this present world or the Hereafter, ask yourself this question: “What makes me happy, to give or to take?” I would like to put forward the following example from the Prophet’s biography, A’isha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated that

“ they slaughtered a she camel. The prophet (PBUH) asked: What is left from it? She said: the shoulder. He said: It is all left except the shoulder.”

[Al-Termithi]

 But before we start talking about the Holy Prophet’s generosity, I would like to ask you: What makes you happy, to give or to take? What makes you comfortable, to donate or to extort? True believers are very happy when they give, when they feel that they are generous and unselfish, while disbelievers are happiest when they extort people’s possessions and things.

“The Prophet (PBUH) was the best of all mankind, the most generous of mankind, and the most courageous of mankind. People of Madina were frightened so he went on a horse before them, and he said: we found him like a sea.”

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

 The best of all mankind, the most generous of all mankind, and the Most courageous of all mankind: these three qualities are the best of all human qualities; and Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was the best of all mankind as far as words, deeds and appearance are concerned. He (PBUH) was most handsome, and his manners and character were also beautiful, noble and comfortable to other fellow humans. His heart was the most courageous; and he, himself, was the most generous of all mankind and most useful to them. This generosity, with which Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was qualified, as writers of his biography confirm, was generosity for the sake of Allah and for His Cause, and in order to obtain Allah’s Good Pleasure. He used to work for the sake of Allah and because of his love, for Him and for the attainment of His Good Pleasure. That is why his generosity was in obedience of Allah, All Mighty. By the way, man may sometimes spend money not in obedience of Allah but as a kind of hypocrisy or eye-service. In this way, he might be respected and exalted in the sight of people only. But Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was always generous to the poor and needy, for the Cause of Allah and the Jihad (Holy Strife), to soften the hearts of those whose hearts had to be softened for the sake of Islam and in order to strengthen their belief, and in order to strengthen the hearts of believers as well. Therefore, Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), spent all of his wealth for the Cause of Allah and the Holy strife in His Way. Sometimes he would spend to feed the poor and needy. Sometimes, he would spend in order to soften the hearts of enemies; hopefully they might convert to Islam.
 In his book of Prophetic Hadith, Imam Muslim narrated on the authority of Anas: “Whenever Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was asked for anything for the Cause of Islam, he would readily give it. One day, a man came to him, asking for a favor, so Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), gave him a whole herd of sheep that filled a valley between two mountains. The man went back to his people saying, ‘O people! Convert to Islam, for Muhammad gives as generously as those who fear no poverty do.”
 Yes, indeed! Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), used always to give most generously; and he was very pleased when people asked him for favors. In this context, the verses go:

Never request the children of Adam for anything,
But request Him, Whose Gates are never closed.
Allah gets angry if you do not request Him,
But the children of Adam are angered when they are requested.
* * *

 Sometimes, man gets easily bored with people’s requests. After two or three requests, he gets angry. But Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was happiest when people came to request him or ask him for favors. Such was the Prophet’s character. Therefore, a true believer should be generous and magnanimous. In all places and times, he should be prepared to answer people’s requests: in the morning, at night, at noon, at siesta time, before dawn, after dawn, at late night or early morning. In all times, he should be well prepared to help other fellow humans with all possible ways.
 A true believer is always generous and magnanimous. A true believer is never bored with people’s requests. He never shows any anger or resentment, because he believes that those who come to him for help are Allah’s guests, whom Allah sends to him in order to see whether he will be generous enough with them. So how could a true believer send such needy people away?! In other words, whenever someone knocks at your door for help or shelter, this means that it is Allah Who sends him to you in order to try you. If you answer the caller’s request and fulfill his needs, Allah loves you and brings you near to Him. It is your chance to take care of such caller and offer him adequate help. It is your chance to attain a better and nobler position with your Lord. But if you show any kind of resentment or send such caller away, Allah sends him to another person. Therefore, those on whom Allah has conferred His Divine Favors: Allah is pleased with them so long as they offer such Favors to other fellow humans; but if they withhold such Favors from other fellow humans, Allah, All Mighty, deprives them of Such Favors and bestows them upon others. Sometimes, someone is well off and has sisters or relatives who are not as well off. It is all right if they seek financial help from him. It is not embarrassing if brothers, sisters, or relatives ask one another for help. If your sister’s son needs a surgical operation, and she comes to you for help, you should not hesitate for one single moment to offer necessary help. You should be generous; and you should show no anger or resentment. You should thank Allah for giving you the power and making you able to help others. He, Glory to Him, could simply make you a needy poor person.
 I think I have previously told you of a philanthropist who offered a house worth 8,000,000 pounds to a charity; and the charity changed the house into a clothes workshop. Members of the charity made a banquet in the philanthropist’s honor. Members the charity stood up to praise him for his benefaction. But what I liked best was the speech delivered by one of our brothers, who addressed the philanthropist, “Dear Philanthropist! Allah, All Mighty, could have made you one of the poor needy persons who seek help from our charity. But He, Glory be to Him, has given you; and you have given. Therefore, you should be thankful to the Lord. It is not we who have to thank you, it is you who have to thank your Lord because He has given you and enabled you to give; He conferred His Favors upon you; and enabled you to do favors to other fellow humans; He made you well off, and you gave generously.
 Dear brothers! Due to weakness of faith, some people misunderstand a great many things. They misbelieve that they are the real owners of that which Allah, All Mighty, gives them. The one of them, quite often, wrongly says, “I have given such and such a person,” or “I have given out of my own wealth.” But true believers firmly believe that all the things that they have belong to Allah, All Mighty, and that it is He Who bestows His Divine Favors upon them and enables them to give to other fellow humans. They firmly believe that He could make them poor and needy. In other words, dear brother, if you are able to give and, hence, your hand is the upper one, you should greatly thank Allah, because He has not made your hand the lower. You should be most thankful to the Lord, Allah, All Mighty, and you should turn to Him with true faith and sincere gratitude because He has made you a charity donor and not a charity receiver.
 Dear Brothers! It is not an exaggeration to say that a great many people become true believers not because they are convinced of the facts of true Faith, but rather because of the good treatment they receive from believers, who win their love by doing favors to them. They become believers because they love those who are believers. Generosity could be one of the best things that stand behind people’s becoming true believers.
 I would like to remind you of the story that I have told you before, namely that of the rich man who was driving his expensive car along the road between two of the Syrian cities when he suddenly saw someone trying desperately to mend the broken chain of his bike at the side of the road. Being a true believer, the rich man got out of his car and went over to the young man to help him repair his bike, since the rich man had previously worked in bike repair. The rich man’s help had a great impact on the young man and stood behind his true belief, honest reform and sincere repentance. In other words, it was the rich man’s good work, and not only his kind gentle words, that captured the young man’s heart and caused him to reform and repent.
 Good righteous work is always remarkable and eye catching. Generosity, magnanimity, and good righteous work, help you capture people’s hearts and make them love you. In other words, you will never be able to call people to Allah and true Faith unless you are generous and good doing to them. That is why it has been rightly said, “In the Call for Allah and true Faith, good example should come before admonition; and good doing should come before explanation.” Before you talk and philosophize about Religion, and before you analyze and explain, before you elaborate and provide evidence, you should be kind and generous to those to whom you are reaching. This is because if you do well to people, they open their hearts to you; and when they open their hearts to you, they open their minds to you. This is because man’s mind usually works after his heart does.
 In this context, we have to remember that Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), offered Safwan Bin Umayyah an entire herd of sheep that filled a valley between two mountains. Safwan went back to his people, saying, “O people! Convert to Islam and believe in Muhammad, for he gives as generously as those who fear no poverty do.”
 Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was twice tested by the Lord, All Mighty, once by poverty and once by richness.
 Dear brothers! A true believer’s firm belief that everything that he spends will be well recompensed and well rewarded by the Lord, All Mighty, is one of the causes of his generosity.
 Firm belief that Allah, All Mighty, will recompense and reward you for everything that you spend motivates you to spend and give generously. By the way, I would like to tell dear preachers and callers to Allah that with gifts and donations they capture people’s hearts and gain their love; and, as you know, if Allah, All Mighty, enables you to rightly guide someone, you are a great winner: your win is greater than the whole world with all things therein. If a certain financial gift or donation makes your son, for example, repent and reform, just give it to him and you will be a great winner. If buying him a house makes him a true believer, buy it for him and you will be a great winner. This is because man is paramount and supreme, and so is his guidance. If you know that a certain gift or donation helps rightly guide a fellow human, give it generously. Spend of your wealth and do not fear any diminution from the Almighty Lord of the Thrown. Exploit your wealth for the service of mankind. Use your wealth for the truth. Do not let wealth enslave you. Be its master.
 Books of Prophetic biography narrate:

“On the day of the battle of Hunain, Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), gave some of the released captives donations in order to soften their hearts towards Islam. He (PBUH) gave them a hundred camels each – that is ten thousand camels – and one of those who received donations was Malik Bin ‘Aouf, who wrote a poem in which he praised Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH).”

 It is not surprising that Allah’s Messenger gave such great donations because if those people converted to Islam, it would be a great victory and benefit for Muslims. By the way, to help some get rightly guided is not easy at all, for it is sometimes next to impossible to try and help those whose hearts are closed towards Allah’s religion to get rightly guided, irrespective of all of the crystal clear proofs, evidences, cosmic signs, Quranic Verses, or impressive stories that you may put forward to them. It is exactly like writing on the surface of water. Therefore, it is really heroic to be able to help a deviant capricious person turn to Allah with faithful repentance and sincere devotion. Generosity and magnanimity on the caller’s part plays first fiddle with this respect.
 A true believer, dear brothers, is someone who is constantly prepared to help and serve other fellow humans. He is always ready to spend of his time, wealth, abilities, expertise, physical and social power, pen, tongue, and everything for guiding fellow humans to the truth. This is exactly what Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), used to do.
 I remember that I have told you before the story of one of our believing brothers, who went to visit his married sister and found her and her husband quarreling because she demanded her husband to give her special monthly money to spend on her daughters, while the husband said that he simply could not afford that because his salary was not good enough. Although he was not very rich, the wife’s brother offered to give them a small monthly financial help of only 300 pounds; and he did this only for the sake of Allah, Most Gracious. That small monthly donation stood behind reform and right guidance of his sister’s whole family. It never occurred to our believing brother that such a small amount of money would have such a great impact on his sister and her husband, who were very grateful to him and asked him to give them some weekly religious lessons.
 However, our believing brother began giving his sister and her family weekly religious lessons, in which he explained a Quranic Verse, a Prophetic Hadith, a juristic rule, some rules of Quranic recitation, …etc. After some time, his sister’s daughters began practicing Hijab (Islamic veil), and happily got married.
 It is really amazing that a small gift, like 300 pounds a month, stood behind the reform and guidance of an entire family! Glory to Allah!
 Therefore, dear brother, you should always give generously in the Way of Allah! If you are an employer and one, or more, of your employees needs financial help because he wants to get married and, therefore, needs your financial help, give him generously, and, believe me, you will be a great winner. Do not say, “Well, I give him his rights in full.” Give him more. Be a philanthropist! Be generous!
 Don’t you want your employee to love you? Don’t you want him to be sincere to you? Don’t you want him to obey you? If you invite him to offer prayer or attend religious lectures, don’t you want him to respond willingly? We should never forget that with generosity and kindness we capture people’s hearts. We should understand that religion is not mere words but also good righteous work, magnanimity and generosity. This is how the Prophet’s venerable Companions understood religion. Frankly speaking, if you really desire to help people get rightly guided, you should generously give of your time, effort, work, expertise, power, and everything. Never belittle or underestimate any good thing or favor that you do to other fellow humans, no matter how small or insignificant it might be. Good work and generosity might be the cause of reform and repentance of lots of people and families; and usually people encourage one another to adopt religion once they are convinced of its validity and truthfulness. Don’t forget! People are fed up with words and admonition. They need to see good work. They need to see true generous Muslims. They do not want to hear bombastic eloquent words about Islam. They need to see real Islam. They need to see real committed Muslims, devoted Muslims, loving Muslims, honest Muslims, trustworthy Muslims, sincere Muslims, and faithful Muslims. This is what affects people and touches their hearts.
 With your wealth, you can help people get rightly guided. By Allah, Who there is no god but Him! I deem rich believers fortunate because with their wealth they can reach the highest ranks of nobility and righteousness. With their wealth, they can be the best callers for Allah and His Religion. This is because poor people don not usually need eloquent bombastic words or orations about religion. They need generosity and magnanimity. They need money to solve their problems. In other words, if you buy a poor homeless person a lodge, help him get married and provide him with food and clothes, you capture his heart and love and you become his Sheikh, so to speak.
 A businessman who dealt in watches went bankrupt. He told me that his multi-millionaire brother did not give him one single penny for help. Therefore, he had to travel to a neighboring country – Lebanon – hopefully he could find a way out of his problem. He introduced himself to a big watch-seller, who showed great sympathy and help when he heard the businessman’s sad story and invited him to stay for a few days at an expensive hotel at the seaside. Then, he gave him a big amount of money and dozens of watches to start over. The businessman told me that he was so grateful and thankful to the Lebanese watch-seller that he kept thinking of him day and night, dreamed of him in his sleep, and loved him more than his closest relatives.
 Man can be enslaved by benefaction; and if you desire to help people attain right guidance, do not talk a lot, but work a lot: serve them, solve their problems, give them, help them, and support them. The Prophet’s venerable Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, considered as permissible and lawful only the necessary basic human needs. The unnecessary extra money spent on lots and lots of unnecessary things in our lives can solve millions of problems and difficulties. For, example, is it reasonable to spend 20, 000,000 pounds on a wedding party, while thousands of young people are not only financially incapable of getting married but also homeless?! Is this reasonable?! As I have just said, rich believers are really lucky because with their wealth, they can wipe tears off the eyes of thousands of poor families, and they can get exalted in nobility and honor every day. In Islam, money should be spent and used dully.
Can’t you have a smiling face? Can’t you be kind-hearted, easy going and modest? Can’t you help someone with your good auspices, experience and effort? If you are an expert in furniture, and someone tells you that he does not know how to choose good furniture for his bedroom, you should help him: go with him over and over again until he finds suitable furniture at a reasonable price. It is not a waste of time to do that. It is really a kind of charity. Charity is not only by giving money; it can be by offering your time, effort, experience, social status,...etc. If someone needs something of a friend of yours, go with him to your friend and get his need fulfilled.
 Do not forget, dear brothers, that the Prophet’s cousin, Ibn ‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, was once in devotional seclusion in the Prophet’s mosque when a man came to him complaining about heavy debts that he owed to someone. Ibn ‘Abbas asked, “Who is your creditor?” The man answered, “So and so.” “Would you like me to speak to him for you?” Ibn ‘Abbas asked. “If you so desire.” Said the man. Ibn ‘Abbas stopped his devotional seclusion in the mosque and went along with the man to help him solve his problem. Someone told Ibn ‘Abbas, “Have you forgotten that you are in devotional seclusion?” “No, I haven’t.” Ibn ‘Abbas answered, “But I have heard Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), say,

“It is better for me to walk along with a brother in order to fulfill his need than to fast and stay in devotional seclusion for a whole month in my mosque.”

 If we understand that religion is sacrifice, donation, service, generosity, and altruism, Allah, All Mighty, loves us; but if we understand religion as mere rituals, worships or void meaningless bombastic words, Allah is never pleased with us. Life is cooperation, co-existence and co-assistance.
 You should never think that people stick to religion because it symbolizes the truth. It does symbolize the truth, but what makes people stick to religion is the generosity, sacrifice, care, protection, service, friendship, intimacy, compassion, and love they see among their believing brothers.
 Now, is it possible in our time that someone offers you his own house a gift: “Here is my house! Take it! It’s yours!”?! What’s this?! People nowadays give small presents, little amounts of money, like one or two thousand pounds, some clothes, some food, …etc. But too few, if any, would say, “Here is my house! Take it!” Such generosity is far above normal people. When Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), addressed the man “It’s yours! Take it!”, as regards the Prophet’s herd of sheep that filled the valley, the man was most astounded and said, “Such a generous thing can not be done except by a holy Prophet!” In other words, when someone gives, generously and willingly, something very expensive, he is highly respected and admired.
 Dear brothers! Callers for Allah should be well versed in human psychology; and they should know very well that people love those who do them favors.
If you earnestly seek to be honest, patient, generous, content, decent, chaste, or moderate, Allah helps you to be as such. This takes us to the opposite side, namely the side of those who are incapable to give but are, therefore, in the position of receiving. In this context, it has been rightly said, “If you need someone, you are his slave. If you do not need him, you are his equal. But if you do him a favor, you are his mater.”
 Once again, those who earnestly desire to be honest, patient, generous, content, decent, chaste, or moderate: Allah helps them to be as such.
 Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was of a noble generous character. Whenever asked for any favor, he (PBUH) would offer it by himself, i.e. he never bade anyone to offer it on his behalf. Also while offering anything or doing any favor, he (PBUH) would show adequate respect and honor to the poor and needy that came asking for help. For example, he (PBUH) used to stand up and walk towards the poor and needy that came asking for help, and to give them with his own hand that which they asked for. This teaches us that it is not enough to be helpful and generous by commanding one of our men to offer the thing needed; we should show enough respect and honor to those who ask for help by offering such help by ourselves. It is both virtuous and laudable in the sight of Islam to offer help or charity by our own selves.

 If you sit with a poor person, talk to him, and have food with him, this would be very modest and compassionate of you. One of our brothers told me that when he was young, he was poor and had to work in a factory. Every day, his righteous believing factory owner used to choose two or three of his workers to check about their food and invite them to have lunch with him. One day, when the factory owner invited our man, who was one of his workers, to have lunch with him, the latter said, “It is all right! But I’ll bring my meal with me; and we’ll share our two meals together.” By the way, although the worker’s meal was a modest one, boiled potatoes and bread, while the master’s meal was an expensive one, the master sat most contentedly and happily to share his rich meal with the worker’s poor one, in order to make him feel honored, loved and respected. Every now and then, the factory owner also used to give his workers financial aids and bonuses. Undoubtedly, people love those who do them favors. I feel that rich people are really lucky because they can do lots of good righteous things with their wealth. If you are a factory owner and have a number of workers working for you, these workers can be your way to Allah’s Paradise, provided that you take care of them, help them and check about conditions of their families, and provided that you help single ones to get married and improve their life conditions. It is possible for you to enter Paradise by helping your workers and taking care of them. Moreover, all people around you can be your way to Paradise: your workers, your parents, your children, your wife, your neighbors, your colleagues, your friends, your employees, …etc.
The venerable Companion and Caliph, Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq, may Allah be pleased with him, about whom Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), said,

“The Sun has never risen over a man better than Abu Bakr, except for a holy Prophet,”

 used to help his neighbors by milking their sheep for them. Amazingly, when he became Caliph, nothing changed: he kept milking his neighbors’ sheep. The very next day after he took over the Caliphate, he humbly and modestly headed for his neighbors’ house to milk their sheep for them, as he had always done. When he knocked on their door, the mother asked her daughter to see who it was, “Who is it?” The mother asked her daughter. The little girl answered, “It’s the man who milks our sheep for us, Mum!” Yes, indeed, his becoming the Caliph of Muslims did not make him feel haughty or too great to milk his neighbors’ sheep. What modesty! What generosity! This teaches us that we remain great in Allah’s Sight so long as we serve and help those around us. Remember: The great Companion, Abu Bakr, kept milking his neighbors’ sheep, even after he had become Caliph!

 Quite often, Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), would borrow money to buy clothes for a poor or needy person. Yes, indeed! If he did not have money, he (PBUH) used to borrow some to help people. By the way, quite a few of our brothers strive to be generous and helpful, and, therefore, even borrow money, if they have none, to help other fellow humans when necessary.
Some people keep candies in their pockets, and whenever they meet someone, they give him a candy; and if his children are with him, they give each child two candies. Even though such donations might not be so precious, they have a good impact on people and cause delight, love and compassion among them. Some gifts have great symbolic values although they might not be expensive. However, a believer does not consider the materialistic but rather moral or emotional value of a gift.
 In the light of the foregoing facts, it is crystal clear that Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), is unmatched in both generosity and magnanimity. Due to his amazing generosity, he spent his entire money sometimes on the poor and needy, sometimes for the Cause of Allah, and sometimes to sooth and comfort the hearts of people. He gave gifts and donations that kings fail to give. He gave and gave until he had nothing, not even food for his dinner, so that he and his venerable wives would spend the night hungry. When Allah, All Mighty, bade his venerable wives to make their choice whether to bear with him such hard life or to get divorced from him, they chose to remain with him despite all of the difficulties they had to face in their life with him.
 Dear brothers! No matter how long and pleasant enjoyments of this present world might be, they are soon forgotten, and what remain are their consequences; and no matter how long and unpleasant difficulties of this life might be, they are soon forgotten, and what remain are their good consequences and rewards from the Lord, Allah, All Mighty, Most Gracious.
 As I have mentioned before, you can make your wealth a means to the Call for Allah and His Religion.
 Another thing: I swear by Allah, Who there is no god but Him! If you spend of your wealth to soften and unify people’s hearts and to call them to Allah and His Religion, then, destruction of the whole universe is less important to Allah than making you poor. Since Allah, All Mighty, is the Most Generous, it is impossible that He impoverishes you after you have spent of your wealth for His Cause, after you have spent of you your wealth to sooth and unify people’s hearts and after you have called them to Allah and His Religion! It is just impossible! Companies usually spend lots of money for advertising, so how would the case be with Allah, the Most Generous, when you spend your wealth to publicize His Religion?! The answer is self-evident!
* * *
 The venerable Companion, Ali Bin Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, describes the Prophet’s courage, saying,

“He (PBUH) was the most generous of all mankind, the most courageous of all mankind, the most truthful of all mankind, the most kind-hearted of all mankind, and the noblest of all mankind. Should any fears befall his Companions, he (PBUH) would hasten to remove them himself.”

 In fact, there are special ways of capturing people’s hearts. Some of these ways are materialistic. For, example, you might be more powerful than other people, but you will never master them unless you excel over them. A general director of a hospital might be an ordinary non-specialized doctor, yet he has a number of highly specialized ones under his administration. According to the rules of the hospital, he is the commander, and his orders have to be obeyed; and he has the power to punish or reward. Nevertheless, the highly specialized doctors under his command do not consider him as a real director simply because they are more knowledgeable, skillful and experienced than he is. Such director will not be considered as a real one, and he will not be dully respected and admired, unless he is the most experienced and the most knowledgeable of all of the doctors in his hospital.
 The venerable Companions did not actually love Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), simply because he was Allah’s Messenger or because he communicated Allah’s Revelation, i.e. the Holy Quran, to them. They loved him simply because he was the best and the most respectable and admirable of them all. He was superior in courage, forbearance, wisdom, and in all human qualities and manners. A preacher might sometimes discuss certain scientific issues. Those who are specialized in the subject matter under discussion might feel that they are more knowledgeable and experienced that the preacher himself is. Therefore, such a preacher might not be convincing or admirable enough for them. But if he were so well versed that he could excel them all in such subject matter, he would certainly be more convincing and admirable. No one, nowadays, can be excellent in all disciplines of human knowledge. Moreover, it is impossible to capture the hearts of other fellow humans by mere materialistic power, although this can be done as far as their bodies are concerned. Only by spiritual and moral excellence, it is possible to capture people’s hearts. The Prophet’s excellence in all aspects of human life stood behind the great admiration and love his venerable Companions had for him. He was perfect in every sense of the word. By the way, sometimes, people admire a highly ranked person; but if he shows any fear or lack of self-confidence in the face of danger, he drops in their esteem and respect.
 Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was the most courageous of all. One night, people heard horrible noises. They were frightened because they thought it was a sudden attack by enemy forces. When they came out to see what the matter was, they saw Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), riding on a horse with a sword hanging down his neck and calling out,

“It’s all right! Don’t be afraid!”

 Undoubtedly, he (PBUH) was the bravest and most courageous of all.
 In the same context, the venerable Companion, Ali Bin Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said,

“Whenever the battle became hard, and the fight became fierce, we used to take refuge with Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), as no one would be nearer to the enemies than he was.”

 Yes, indeed! In battlefield, he was always the nearest to enemies; and his venerable Companions always sought refuge with him against enemies.
Yes, indeed! Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was excellent and superior in every sense of the word: in generosity, forbearing, physical strength, knowledge, courage, and wisdom. That is why the venerable Companions said, “

On the day of the battle of Badr, we would be seen taking refuge with Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), for he was the nearest and hardest to the enemies.”

 On the day of the battle of Hunain, Allah, All Mighty, cast terror into the hearts of the venerable Companions because they were proud of the large number of fighters on their side; they said,

“We shall not be defeated because of fewness in the number of our fighters.”

 In this context, Ibn Isshaq narrated that a man addressed Al-Bara’, “O Aba ‘Amarah! Did you run away (before your enemies) on the day of Hunain?” “By Allah! No! Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), did not run away (before our enemies); but he went out with the youth and unarmed men from among his Companions, and they met with good shooters that rarely missed a target from Hawazen, Bani Nasr, who shot them and almost missed none of those whom they shot. Therefore, they came forward, led by Abu Sufian Bin Al-Harith Bin Abdul Muttalib, to attack Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), while he was on his white mule. So he (Allah’s Messenger) cried out for help, saying,

“I am truly the Prophet. I am the son of Abdul Muttalib!”

Then he lined them (his fighters) up.”

[A Hadith agreed upon]

 Here is a very important point: If, Muhammad, (PBUH), had not really been Allah’s Messenger, he would have run away before the enemies. But since he was really Allah’s Messenger, and was, therefore, confident of Allah’s Help and Victory, he remained steadfast in battlefield. This is because claims are usually tested at times of hardship. If, for example, a chemist makes a certain medicine but he is not confident enough of its validity, nevertheless, he wants to sell it and, therefore, advertises it. If anyone asks him to use the medicine publicly himself, but he refuses to do, this means that he is clearly not confident of it. When Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), was attacked by the enemies and, therefore, death was sure to come, unless he was truly Allah’s Messenger, he would have run away, and he would never have lined up his men and fought back. He cried out, “I am truly the Prophet. I am the son of Abdul Muttalib!”
Also, in his book, “Ad-Dala’il”, Al-Baihaqi narrated on authority of Bin Az-Zubair: “Ubay Bin Khalaf, the idolater, said on the day of the battle of Uhud, “Where is Muhammad? I wish I would never be safe if he were to escape!” Ubay also used to say to Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), “I have a horse that I give a lot of maize so that I may kill you while I am riding on it.” But Allah’ Messenger, (PBUH), used to answer, “It is I who shall kill you if Allah so Wills.” Notice the Prophet’s great confidence in his Lord, Allah, All Mighty! However, when Ubay saw Allah’ Messenger, (PBUH), on the day of the battle of Uhud, he galloped his horse towards Allah’s Messenger in order to kill him; but some of the Prophet’s Companions stood in Ubay’s way to prevent him from getting to Allah’s Messenger. But Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), bade them, “Step aside! And leave me alone with Ubay Bin Khalaf!” And Allah’s Messenger took a spear from Al-Harith Bin As-Soummah, one of the Prophet’s Companions, and stood up quickly and strongly with the spear in his hand. This frightened Ubay and other idolaters, who, at once, dispersed and tried to run away in horror like birds; but Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), stabbed Ubay in the neck and made him fall off his horse several times. It was also narrated that one of Ubay’s ribs was broken. Anyway, Ubay was seriously wounded and, therefore, galloped back to his people of Quraish calling out, “Muhammad has killed me! Muhammad has killed me!” And they told him “It is all right! You will soon get better!” Ubay said, “If the pain and distress I have were dispersed among all mankind, they would kill them! Didn’t he (Muhammad) say,“I shall kill you if Allah so wills.” By Allah! If Muhammad had only spitted on me, he would have killed me!”
 Shortly afterwards, Ubay and other idolaters went back to Mecca, where Ubay died of wounds. How miserable such person, who desired to kill Allah’s Messenger, is! Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), told Ubay,

“I shall kill you if Allah so wills.”

 And in the end, Ubay said, “If Muhammad had only spitted on me, he would have killed me!”
 Dear brothers! Today, we spoke about the Prophet’s courage and generosity; and we reiterated that a true believer should follow the Prophet’s good example and be courageous and generous. A true believer is generous simply because he firmly believes that Allah, All Mighty, Most Gracious, will certainly recompense him generously for every penny that he spends for the Cause of Allah; and he is courageous simply because he firmly believes that all matters are in Allah’s Hand and under His Divine Control, and that Allah, All Mighty, is with true believers and defends them. Such great confidence and trust that a true believer puts in his Lord is the most valuable part of his Faith: Trust in Allah, All Mighty. That is why Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), says,

“Trust (in Allah) is a (real) treasure.”