In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The lives of the salaf.
Between speech and action.
Enjoining good and forbidding evil.
The importance and merit of enjoining good and forbidding evil.
And the consequence for those who abandon it.
Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, recited this verse:
“O ye who believe! Ye have charge of your own souls. He who erreth cannot injure you if ye are rightly guided. Unto Allah ye will all return; and then He will inform you of what ye used to do.” (5:105)
“O ye who believe! Ye have charge of your own souls. He who erreth cannot injure you if ye are rightly guided. Unto Allah ye will all return; and then He will inform you of what ye used to do.” (5:105)
Then he said:
"People misapply this verse, placing it where it does not belong."
"Verily, I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say:"
"If people see an oppressor and do not restrain his hand,"
"And see an evil and do not change it,"
"Allah will encompass them all with His punishment."
Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
"A man may enter a situation where he is obligated to speak for the sake of Allah,"
"Yet he does not speak."
"And his heart will never return to what it once was."
He, may Allah be pleased with him, also said:
"A man would speak a word during the time of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,"
"And become a hypocrite because of it."
"Yet today, I hear one of you say it four times in a single sitting."
"You must enjoin the good and forbid the evil,"
"And encourage one another toward righteousness,"
"Or Allah will surely overwhelm you all with a punishment,"
"Or He will cause your worst to rule over you,"
"Then your best will call upon Him, and they will not be answered."
Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him, said:
"No believer gives a charity more beloved to Allah, the Almighty and Majestic,"
"Than an exhortation with which he counsels his people,"
"So that they disperse having been benefited by Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, through it."
Al-Fudayl, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"Those who attained high status among us did not do so through excessive fasting or prayer,"
"Rather, they attained it through generosity of soul, soundness of heart,"
"And sincere counsel to the Ummah."
Al-Dahhak, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"Enjoining good and forbidding evil is among the obligatory duties of Allah, the Blessed and Exalted."
'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"It used to be said that Allah does not punish the general public for the sins of the elite,"
"But if evil is committed openly,"
"They all deserve punishment."
Etiquette and advice for those who enjoin good and forbid evil.
Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him, passed by a man who had committed a sin,
And the people were reviling him.
He said:
"Tell me, if you found him in a well,"
"Would you not pull him out?"
They replied, "Yes."
He said:
"Then do not revile your brother,"
"But praise Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, who has spared you."
They asked, "Do you not hate him?"
He said:
"I only hate his action,"
"So if he abandons it, he is my brother."
Sa'id ibn Jubayr, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
I said to Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him:
"Should I enjoin the ruler to do good and forbid him from evil?"
He said:
"If you fear he will kill you, then do not."
He said:
Then I returned [to the topic],
And he said the same to me.
And he said:
"If you must do it,"
"Then do it between you and him."
Tawus, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
A man came to Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, and said:
"Shall I stand before this ruler and enjoin him and forbid him?"
He said:
"Do not be a source of tribulation for him."
He said:
"What if he commands me to disobey Allah, the Almighty and Majestic?"
He said:
"That is what you intend?"
"Then be a man in that moment."
Al-Fudayl ibn 'Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"The believer conceals, counsels, and advises,"
"While the wicked person exposes, shames, and spreads."
Bishr ibn al-Harith, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"No one should enjoin good and forbid evil,"
"Except one who can endure the harm."
Talhah ibn Musarrif, may Allah have mercy on him, passed by Hujr ibn Wa'il,
Who was sitting at the door of his house.
He whispered something to him, then walked on.
Hujr said,
"May Allah reward you with good," and prayed for him.
Then he said:
"Do you know what he said?"
He said:
"I saw you looking around during the Friday prayer; do not do that."
It was said to Imam Malik ibn Anas, may Allah have mercy on him:
"There are people who, if I command them, they obey me,"
"And others who, if I command them, I am harmed by them."
"So what should I do?"
He said:
"If you fear and think they will not obey you,"
"Then leave it and forbid it in your heart,"
"For you have leeway in that."
"But whoever you do not fear, enjoin him and forbid him,"
"Especially if you seek the pleasure of Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, through it."
"If you are like that,"
"You will see nothing but good,"
"Especially if you possess a gentle nature."
Do you not see the words of Allah the Exalted
To Musa and Harun, peace be upon them both:
“And speak unto him a gentle word, that peradventure he may heed or fear.” (20:44)
"If you are harsh in your command, it will not be accepted from you,"
"And you will be exposed to what you dislike,"
"And you will depart from the ranks of the people of the Qur'an."
From Abu 'Abdullah ibn al-Rabi', may Allah have mercy on him,
He said:
I entered upon Sufyan al-Thawri, may Allah have mercy on him, in Basra,
And I said, "O Abu 'Abdullah,"
"I am with these inspectors (muhtasibun),"
"And we enter upon these wicked people,"
"And we climb over the walls."
He said, "Do they not have doors?"
I said, "Yes,"
"But we enter upon them so they do not flee."
He disapproved of that strongly,
And criticized our actions.
Then he said:
"No one should enjoin good or forbid evil,"
"Unless he possesses three qualities:"
"Gentle in what he enjoins,"
"Gentle in what he forbids,"
"Just in what he enjoins, just in what he forbids,"
"Knowledgeable in what he enjoins, knowledgeable in what he forbids."
Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked:
"People need tact,"
"And gentleness in enjoining good, without harshness,"
"Except for a man who openly declares his immorality,"
"For he has no sanctity."
He also said, may Allah have mercy on him:
"Do not confront the ruler,"
"For his sword is drawn."
Abu al-'Abbas said:
Juwayn once prayed behind Abu 'Abdullah, Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him.
When he prostrated,
He gathered his garment with his left hand.
I was at his side.
When we finished praying,
He said to me, lowering his voice:
"The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:"
"When one of you stands for prayer,"
"He should not tuck up his hair or his garment."
When we stood up,
Juwayn said to me,
"What was he saying to you?"
I said,
"He said such and such to me,"
"And I do not think the meaning was for anyone but you."
The Wazir Ibn Hubayrah, may Allah have mercy on him, said to someone who enjoins good:
"Strive to conceal the sinners,"
"For the appearance of their sins is a blemish upon the people of Islam,"
"And the most important of matters is to conceal faults."
The obligation of enjoining good and forbidding evil,
Even if one is deficient.
'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"If a person were not to counsel his brother until he had perfected his own affairs,"
"And completed what was torn in his worship of his Lord,"
"Then people would abandon goodness,"
"And enjoining good and forbidding evil would be lifted,"
"And those who preach and strive for the sake of Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, with counsel on earth would be few."
The obligation of enjoining good,
Even if one does not act upon everything he says.
From Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
"I enjoin you to do things that I do not do myself,"
"But perhaps Allah will reward me for it."
Malik ibn Dinar, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"I enjoin you to do things that my own actions do not reach,"
"But if I forbid you from something and then I contradict you by doing it,"
"Then on that day, I am a liar."
Stories and incidents.
From 'Umar ibn Muhajir, who said:
'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, said to me:
"If you see me deviate from the truth,"
"Place your hand on my collar, shake me, and say:"
"'O 'Umar, what are you doing?'"
Shuja' ibn al-Walid said:
I used to perform Hajj with Sufyan al-Thawri, may Allah have mercy on him,
And his tongue would hardly ever cease from enjoining good and forbidding evil,
Going and returning.
Silah ibn Ashyam, may Allah have mercy on him, used to go out to the graveyard,
And worship there.
He would pass by young men who were playing and having fun,
And he would say to them:
"Tell me about a people who wanted to travel,"
"So they avoided the road during the day,"
"And slept during the night,"
"When will they complete their journey?"
He would pass by them like that and counsel them.
One day he passed by them,
And said this statement to them.
A young man among them became alert and said:
"O people, he means none other than us,"
"We play during the day and sleep at night."
Then he followed Silah and continued to accompany him to the graveyard,
Worshipping with him until he died.
Musa Ibn Ibrahim narrated:
I was in the presence of Ma'ruf al-Karkhi, may Allah have mercy on him,
when a man was there mentioning another person and began to backbite him.
Ma'ruf began saying to him,
"Remember the cotton [used for the eyes of the deceased] when they place it upon your eyes."
Muhammad Ibn al-Munkadir, may Allah have mercy on him, once passed
by a young man who was flirting with a woman.
He said, "O my son,
this is not how one repays the blessing that Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, has bestowed upon you."
Ibn Jarir, may Allah have mercy on him, was
someone who would not let the blame of any critic deter him from the cause of Allah,
despite the immense harm and defamation he endured
from the ignorant, the envious, and the heretic.