These are prohibited acts as the Sharee’ah has stipulated.

The acts are also prohibited in other cultures. There cannot be any room for love and peace where these three are violated. Be wary – if indeed you are keen on people’s love for you and you want to love them – of allowing any prohibited action to occur (from you).

There are usually precursors to falling into these prohibited acts such as competing over the world, jealousy, cheating, evil character, oppression, lack of remembrance of Allah and etc. It is from these that avarice and obedience to the devil are given birth to which then lead to committing crimes.

Verily people’s love for you makes it imperative that you renounce this world and get contented with the little therein. So also it becomes imperative upon you to honour and help people therein. And most importantly, it obliges you to be open-hearted which is the bedrock of your fear and adoration of Allah.

Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:” Do not be envious of one another, do not spy on one another, do not be angry with one another, do not turn away from one another, do not place bid on another person’s bid. Be, O slave of Allah, brothers unto one another. A Muslim is a brother of another brother; he will not oppress him nor will he let him down nor will he underrate him. Fear of Allah is here – {and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) pointed to his chest three times} – it is enough to say a person is evil if he underrate his Muslim brother. Every Muslim is sacred to other Muslim in terms of blood, wealth and honour.” (Muslim)

Man’s intellect will become troubled when any of these sacred things is violated. He will have an excuse if he takes vengeance over the violation of any them.

Sharee’ah has indeed viewed these acts as being

serious violations such that it stipulates stiff penalties to dissuade whoever might want to do them. For instance, Islam has placed down retaliation for whoever’s blood is unjustly spilled, for the family of the deceased, with the option of actual retaliation or pardon.

Islam views whoever is killed while defending his wealth and honour as a martyr. This of course informs those who are desirous of loving people and desirous of earning their love to shun these three acts even if it were by mere suggestions of the tongue because whatever occurs on a small scale can also occur on a much larger scale.

If an assailant were to ponder for a moment over what he was going to do, he would refrain from the act a thousand times; but alas.

If he had pondered that his own honour was at stake, he would have concluded not to transgress against the other person. If he had pondered over the meaning of,” A believer is for a believer just as all the parts of an edifice support each other,” he would not carry out any of the three acts.

Indeed, the Muslims are but a single entity and their rights are protected by those who are the least in honour among them i.e: they are one hand against their opponents.

The basis of this ummah is that it stands upon love, compassion and mercy, and if all these were to become misplaced in the ummah, its adherents will become misplaced and Allah will replace them with other people.

Narrated by An-Nu’man ibn Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him): The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:” The similitude of the believers in terms of their mutual love, mercy and compassion is like that of a body which when one of its limbs complaints (of ache) the rest of the limbs become restless and feverish.” (Muslim)

 

(Prepared by Aamir Shammaakh)