RIGHTS OF OTHERS

RIGHTS OF OTHERS

26- THE RIGHT OF MASTER ON THE FREED SLAVE

Then the right of your master who has favored you¹ is that you should know that he has spent his property for you and has brought you out of the abasement of slavery and its desolation, and has brought you into the honor of freedom and its sociability. And he has freed you from the captivity of his own possession and has released the bonds of his slavery from you. And he has led you to smell the scent of honor, and has brought you out of the prison of subjugation, and has repelled hardship from you, and has extended to you the tongue of fairness, and has liberated you to freely move about in the whole world, and has given you ownership of yourself, and has freed you from captivity, and has given you the freedom to worship your Lord. And for this he has suffered a decrease in his fortune. Then you should know that he is the closest creature to you after your relations of kin, in your life and after your death, and that he is the most meritorious creature to receive your assistance and support, and your help for God's sake. Therefore do not prefer yourself to him regarding any of his needs.

27- THE RIGHT OF THE FREED SLAVE ON HIS MASTER

And the right of the slave whom you have favored² is that you should know that God has established you as his supporter, and shelter and assistant, and refuge, and He has established him for you as the means and as a mediator between you and Him. Then by freeing him, he will protect you from the Fire³. And this is the reward you get from him in the future. And your immediate reward is to inherit from him if he does not have any relations of kin. There is a compensation for the property you have spent for him, and respecting his rights after you spent your property. Then if you do not respect his rights, there is the fear upon you that his inheritance would not be purified for you. And there is no power but in God.

28- THE RIGHT OF HIM WHO TREATS YOU KINDLY

And the right of him who treats you kindly is that you should thank him and acknowledge his kindness; and spread the good word around about him, and sincerely pray for him between you and God the Praised One. Then if you do that, you have thanked him both in private and in public. Then if you are able to practically recompense him, Do recompense him. Otherwise you should be determined to do so later.

29- THE RIGHT OF THE CALLER TO PRAYER

And the right of your caller to prayer is that you should know that he is⁴ the one reminding you of your Lord, and is calling you to your good fortune, and is your greatest helper in fulfilling an obligation that God has made incumbent upon you. Therefore thank him for that just as you thank one who does some good to you. And if you are upset with him at home due to this, you should not accuse him for this since his act is for God. And you should know that he is one of the Blessings of God to you. There is no doubt about it. Then you should kindly treat God's Blessing, by praising God for him under all circumstances. And there is no power but in God.

30- THE RIGHT OF THE RITUAL PRAYER LEADER

And the right of your leader in your ritual prayer is that you should know that he has taken on the role of a mediator between you and God and appeared in the presence of your Lord on your behalf. And he speaks for you, but you do not speak for him; and he supplicates for you, but you do not supplicate for him; and he has beseeched for you and you do not beseech for him. And he has spared you the anxiety of standing before God and the question of interrogation for your prayer, but you do not spare him that. Should he perform the prayer imperfectly, he is held responsible for that not you; and if he makes a mistake during the prayer, you will not be his partner in it, and there is no superiority in this for him over you. Then he protected you through himself, And he protected your prayer through his prayer. Therefore thank him for this. And there is no power nor any strength but in God.

31- THE RIGHT OF YOUR SITTING COMPANION

And the right of your sitting companion is that you should treat him gently, and warmly welcome him, and be fair while talking with him, and do not take your eyes off of him when you are looking at him, and pronounce your words clearly to help him understand what you say. And if you are the first one to go and sit with him, you can leave him when you wish. However, if he is the first one to come and sit with you, he can leave you when he wishes to. And you should not leave him without his permission.⁵ And there is no power but in God.

32- THE RIGHT OF THE NEIGHBOR

And the right of your neighbor is that you should be as a guardian for him when he is absent, and you should honor him when he is present, and you should assist and support him in both situations. You should not pursue any of his imperfections, and you should not seek any of his faults. But if you should discover any of his faults unintentionally, you should take the role of -regarding what you know- a fortified stronghold and a veiling screen.⁶ You should guard them in such a way that none of his defects can be discovered even if they are thoroughly inspected through spears. And you should not eavesdrop on him, and you should not forsake him during times of hardship. And you should not envy him when he receives a blessing.

Pardon his deviation and forgive his mistakes. And do not lose your temper when he behaves out of ignorance with you. And do not stop to be his supporter, and answer those who scold him. And divulge for him the deception of those who counsel him, and associate with him in an honorable manner. And there is no power nor any strength but in God.

33- THE RIGHT OF THE COMPANION

And the right of the companion is that you should act as his companion with nobility as much as you can. You should at least treat him with fairness and honor him as he honors you, and guard him as he guards you, and do not let him be the first one to deal with the other one with honor. And if he does so, you should do something for him in return. And you should not neglect the friendship that he deserves in the least bit. You should commit yourself to advise him, care for him, and help him perform the acts of obedience to his Lord, and help him restrain himself from any act of disobedience of his Lord that he might attempt. Then be like a mercy upon him, and not as a chastisement. And there is no power but in God.

34- THE RIGHT OF THE PARTNER

And the right of the partner is that you should take care of his affairs in his absence. And you should treat him equally when he is present. And you should not make any decisions on your own without considering his opinion. And you should not act according to your own opinion before discussing it with him. You should safeguard his property, and advise him against cheating whether there is honor or disdain in it, since it has been transmitted to us: "God's hand is with partners as long as they do not cheat." And there is no power but in God.

35- THE RIGHT OF PROPERTY

And the right of your property is that you should not attain it except by legitimate means and you should only spend it for legitimate causes. You should not spend it improperly, you should not use it wrongfully, and you should not use what is from God in ways other than in His way and make it as a means to approach God. And you should not prefer to use it for one who does not show gratitude instead of using it for yourself. It is better that you do not leave it for others as inheritance who might use it not to obey your Lord, and then your wealth may be considered to be as an assistance for them in so doing. Or you may bequeath your property to one who spends it in the way of obedience to God in ways better than you do. Then he will gain the benefits, and you will be left with the sins, and the regret, and blame yourself for the ill consequence. And there is no power but in God.

36- THE RIGHT OF THE CREDITOR

And the right of him to whom you owe⁷ is that you should pay him back if you have the means to do so. You should meet his need, make him rich, and avoid putting him off and procrastinating. The Prophet, may God's peace be upon him and his household, said: "Procrastination is oppression for the rich." But if you are in hardship you should satisfy him by using good words. You should gently ask him⁸ and send him away with gentleness. You should not take his property and mistreat him too. That will surely be mean. And there is no power but in God.

37- THE RIGHT OF THE ASSOCIATE

And the right of the associate is that you should not mislead, or cheat him, lie to him or fool him, and you should not trick him. And you should not treat him as an enemy does -who alienates all his friends. If he trusts you, you should be very careful of yourself for his sake, and realize that cheating the intimate ones is like usury. And there is no power but in God.

38- THE RIGHT OF THE ADVERSARY

THE RIGHT OF THE CLAIMING ADVERSARY

And the right of the adversary who has a claim against you is that if his claim against you is true⁹, you should not nullify his proof and not abolish his claim. And you should dispute against yourself on his behalf and be a fair judge against yourself, and give witness to his right against you without the witnessing of any witnesses. This is the right of God that is made incumbent upon you. But if what he claims against you is false, treat him with patience and remind him to fear God, and implore him to his religion. And by reminding him of God you should help reduce his fury against you. Avoid using indecent words and yelling at him since this will not eliminate the animosity of your enemy but it will result in your suffering from the sin he commits against you. And it will also result in his sharpening of the sword of animosity towards you, since indecent words will cause evil but good words will eradicate evil. And there is no power but in God.

THE RIGHT OF THE CLAIMED ADVERSARY

And the right of the adversary against whom you have a claim is that if your claim against him is true¹⁰, you should use pleasant words while you are filing your claim, since hearing the claim is harsh for the defendant. And you should provide your evidence with lenience, and respite, and with the clearest statements, and with absolute gentleness. And you should not dispute with him over gossip lest your proofs will be voided and you will lose the opportunity to prove them. And there is no power but in God.

39- THE RIGHT OF HIM WHO SEEKS YOUR ADVICE

And the right of him who seeks your advice is that you should exert all efforts to advise him if you can provide him with a good opinion, and suggest to him to choose what you would have chosen if you were in his shoes. You should do so with mercy and with lenience since lenience will eliminate fear while rudeness will eliminate friendliness. But if you do not have any good advice for him, you should refer him to someone else whom you know and trust his advice yourself. You should spare no efforts to guide him towards the good and do your best to advise him. And there is no power but in God.

40- THE RIGHT OF HIM WHOSE ADVICE YOU SEEK

And the right of him whose advice you seek is that you should not accuse him when he gives you advice which does not conform to your own opinion. It is quite natural that opinions are divergent and people have various views about their affairs in which they disagree. You are free not to accept his advice if you doubt it. However, you are not permitted to accuse him of providing you with ill advice as long as you consider him to be of those worthy of consultation. Do not stop thanking him for the thoughts and the good advice he has given you. And if it¹¹ was appropriate for you, you should thank God for it, accept it from your religious brother with gratitude, and be ready to act similarly for him should one day he seek your advice. And there is no power but in God.

41- THE RIGHT OF HIM WHO SEEKS YOUR COUNSEL

And the right of him who seeks your counsel is that you should give him your counsel as much as you think he can bear. And you should talk with him with such gentle words that he listens to you and you should use such words that his intellect can understand. This is because for each person's intellect there is a certain way of talking, which he can comprehend and respond to. You should choose having mercy as your course of action. And there is no power but in God.

42- THE RIGHT OF THE COUNSELOR

And the right of your counselor is that you should treat him gently, then you should be whole-heartedly attentive to him, and open you ears for him so that you understand his counsel. And then study it deeply and if what he presents to you is right, you should praise God for it, and accept it from him and acknowledge his favor. But if what he presents to you does not agree with you, you should be kind to him and make no accusations against him; and you should know that he spared no efforts to provide you with the best advice, but he made a mistake. Unless he deserves to be accused in which case you should not trust him under any circumstances. And there is no power but in God.

43- THE RIGHT OF THE OLDER ONE

And the right of him who is older than you are is that you should respect him because of his age, and honor his submission to God¹² if he is one of the noble ones in Islam. You should recognize his seniority and stop confronting him in disputes and should not surpass him or walk ahead of him, and you should not treat him foolishly. If he should treat you foolishly, you should put up with him and honor him to respect his being an older Muslim. This is because the respect for one's age is according to how long he has been a Muslim. And there is no power but in God.

44- THE RIGHT OF THE YOUNGER ONE

And the right of him who is younger than you are is to be friendly with him, train and educate him, pardon him, and cover up his faults, be patient with him and help him, cover up the guilts of his juvenility because this will make him repent; treat him with patience, and stop quarrelling with him. This will lead him to more sensible conduct.

45- THE RIGHT OF HIM WHO BEGS FROM YOU

And the right of him who begs from you¹³ is that you should give him charity if you are certain that he is honest and you are able to fulfill his need. You should also pray to God to relieve him from what has befallen upon him, and help fulfill his needs. But if you doubt his honesty and he has already been accused of (dishonesty), but you are not convinced about this, you will not be sure whether this is one of the plots of Satan who is trying to deprive you from your fortune and cause a blockage between you and your approach to your Lord. Then you should leave him and overlook¹⁴ and should turn him down gently. But if you can overcome yourself in this respect and grant him what he has asked for despite what is presented to you regarding him, then this is due to your resolution in the conduct of affairs.

46- THE RIGHT OF HIM FROM WHOM YOU BEG

And the right of him from whom you beg¹⁵ is that you should accept from him whatever he grants you with gratitude and acknowledges his nobility. And you should accept his excuse if he withholds and think well of him. And you should realize that if he withholds, he is withholding his own property, and that he could not be blamed for withholding his own property. If he is doing wrong, "then man is certainly wrong-doing and unbelieving."

47- THE RIGHT OF HIM THROUGH WHOM GOD MAKES YOU HAPPY

And the right of him through whom God makes you happy is that¹⁶ if he intentionally made you happy, you should first praise God and then you should thank him accordingly, and reward him for initiating a nobility and be determined to return his favor. But if he made you happy unintentionally, you should praise God, thank Him, and realize that He chose you exclusively for that, and you liked it. He has been one of the means of God's Blessings descending upon you. You should only wish him well since the means of desension of Blessings are themselves Blessings wherever they be, even if unintentionally. And there is no power but in God.

48- THE RIGHT OF HIM WHO WRONGS YOU

And the right of him who wrongs you¹⁷ whether verbally or physically is that it is more appropriate for you to pardon him if it was done intentionally. This would eliminate bad feelings and is the polite way to treat most such people. Indeed God says: "But indeed if any do help and defend themselves after a wrong (done) to them, against such there is no blame. The blame is only against those who oppress men with wrongdoing and insolently transgress beyond bounds throughout the land, defying right and justice: for such there will be a Penalty grievous. But indeed if any show patience and forgive, that would truly be an exercise of courageous will and resolution in the conduct of affairs."¹⁸

The Almighty the High also says: "And if ye do catch them out, catch them out no worse than they catch you out. But if ye show patience, that is indeed the best (course) for those who are patient."¹⁹ This is so if it was intentional. But if he who wrongs you has done it unintentionally, then you should not oppress him by intentionally insisting on retaliation, lest you would be punishing him intentionally for what he has done unintentionally. You should also be friendly with him and treat him as gently as you can. And there is no power but in God.

49- THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE OF YOUR CREEDD

20 Their doing good to themselves is considered to be the same as doing good to you. This is because (by so doing) they have not bothered you and have not put you to any trouble. Then you should pray for all of them, and back all of them up with your support. And you should respect each one of them as he deserves: their old men hold the position of your fathers, and their children hold the position of your children, and their youths hold the position of your brothers. You should gently and compassionately care for those of them who come to you. And you should treat your brethren as brothers deserve to be treated.

50- THE RIGHT OF THOSE UNDER THE PROTECTION OF ISLAMM

AAnd the right of those under the protection of Islam is that you should accept from them what God has accepted from them, and fulfill what God has established for them under His protection and covenant, and entrust them to Him in what they are required to carry out, and are obliged to do. And you should judge among them with the judgments of God that He commanded for you regarding the conditions of dealing with them, and do not wrong them as long as they honor God's covenant and fulfill their pledge. And the pledge of the Prophet, may God's peace be upon him and his household, is a barrier²¹ since it is reported that he²² said: "I am the adversary of whoever oppresses one who has a treaty." Therefore fear God. And there is no power but in God.

These are the fifty rights that surround you and you cannot evade under any circumstances. It is incumbent upon you to honor them and exert all efforts to fulfill them. You should seek God the Majestic's help in this respect. And there is no power but in God. And all praise is due to God the Lord of the Two Worlds.