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MADRASA AL-HIDAYA |
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MUSLIM SCHOOL OF RIGHT GUIDANCE |
WRITINGS OF
IMAM ‘ABDALLAH BIN ‘ALAWI AL-HADDAD
Rady Allahu ‘AnhuBeing Kind and Merciful
From: An-Nasaih ad-Diniyya (Sincere Religious Advices)
By: Imam ‘AbdAllah bin ‘Alawi al-Haddad
Rady Allahu ‘Anhu
As for graciousness towards mu’uminin – believers – one needs to be merciful and compassionate to them and these are among the best characters and for them Allah described His Apostle:
Now has come unto you an Apostle from amongst yourselves: it grieves him that you should perish. Ardently anxious is he over you: to the believers is he most kind and merciful (Qur’an, Surah at-Tawba, verse 128).
And the Apostle of Allah, upon whom be blessings and peace, said: “Those who show kindness to others, the Compassionate will show kindness to them and he who does not show kindness will not be shown kindness.” He also said that the Abdal of my umma do not enter Paradise on account of a great deal of Salat and Fasting but because of souls which are sound, generous spirits and kindness to every Muslim.
Now, says the author (al-Imam al-Haddad, may Allah be pleased with him): this should not be construed to mean that the Abdal did not establish Salat in plenty or fast likewise. Indeed they did those in abundance plus other devotions.
But these qualities with which the Apostle, upon whom be blessings and peace, described them advanced them closer to the Presence of Allah because of their virtue and honour when compared to their other deeds. (This is because) they are actions of the heart and inner qualities, so beware.
Actions of the heart weigh heavier than those of the limbs
And beware that whenever actions of the heart, both evil and good, are measured: they will distinctly outweigh actions of the limbs considerably. And this being the case, people of Tasawwuf have outranked other groups of believers – both ‘ulama and great worshippers – who are not as pre-occupied with the inner affairs of the soul as the people of Taswwuf are with purifying hearts and (with) inner devotions.
(And) all bounties are in the hand of Allah. He grants them to whom He pleases. And Allah cares for all and He knows all things (Qur’an, Surah Āl-i-‘Imran, verse 73).
Kindliness to Muslims comes from a compassionate heart.
And kindliness to Muslims is obligatory and binding, more so in respect of the weak, the indigent, the afflicted and ill-fortuned. He who does not feel kindness and compassion upon seeing the weak and the afflicted among Muslim, he is coarse of heart, overwhelmed by strength, and stripped of kindness. Now, kindliness is not stripped from anyone except he who is banished from the mercy of Allah, as said the Apostle, upon whom be blessings and peace of Allah. If on top of this, the harsh-hearted person finds himself too arrogant, disdainful and haughty to mix with the weak, poor Muslims, then far is he removed from forgiveness. Away with him and Allah’s odium has overtaken him and he deserves being driven away from the door of Allah. And he counts among the arrogant who contest with Allah, the Exalted.
The Apostle, upon whom be blessings and peace, says: “He will not enter Paradise whosoever harbours in his heart arrogance, the weight of a mustard seed.”
Source: Imam ‘AbdAllah bin ‘Alawi al-Haddad, An-Nasaih ad-Diniyya wal-Wasaya al-Imaniyya (Sincere Religious Advices and Counsels of Faith), translated by Shaykh Mohamed Mlamali Adam in consultation with Sayyid Omar ‘AbdAllah, in Al-Alawiyya, Vol. 1, No. 2, 1988, p. 4-5.