Light in the Heavens

Sayings of the Prophet Muhammad

al-Qadi al-Quda'i, Tahera Qutbuddin

• Publisher: NYU Press
• Year: 2019
• ISBN:
  9781479824021
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Middle Eastern Literary Collections
• Index: Literature

Humanitarian lessons and practical insights from the prophet of Islam The words of Muhammad, messenger of God and prophet of Islam, have a special place in the hearts of his followers. Wielding an authority second only to the Qur'an, they are cited by scholars in a vast array of disciplines—including law, theology, metaphysics, poetry, grammar, history, and medicine—and are quoted by Muslims to one another in their daily lives.

Light in the Heavens by al-Qadi al-Quda'i, a Sunni judge in the Fatimid court in Egypt, is an outstanding example of a compilation of these sayings, known as hadiths, that circulated orally and were later assembled and written down. From North Africa to India, generations have used Light in the Heavens as a teaching text for children as well as adults, and many of its 1,200 sayings are familiar to individuals of diverse denominations and ethnicities. For Muslims—who consider Muhammad’s teachings the fount of wisdom and the beacon of guidance in all things, mundane and sublime—these sayings provide a direct window into the inspired vision of one of the most influential humans to have walked the Earth.

CHAPTER ONE

1.1

Acts are only worth the intentions that accompany them.

1.2

Keep what is said at gatherings private.

1.3

Advice is sought in trust.

1.4

A promise to give is binding.

1.5

A promise is a debt.

1.6

Warfare entails cunning.

1.7

Regret is a form of repentance.

1.8

Unity is mercy, dissent punishment.

1.9

Integrity is a form of wealth.

1.10

True faith is giving good counsel.

1.11

Virtue is wealth,⁸ magnanimity piety.

1.12

Goodness is habitual, wickedness obstinacy.

1.13

Leniency brings dividends, harshness deficits.

1.14

Prudence is to expect the worst.

1.15

Offspring cause stinginess and timidity.

1.16

Obscenities offend.

1.17

The Qurʾan is the real cure.

1.18

Supplication is the best form of worship.

1.19

Debt disfigures devotion.

1.20

Half of living well is planning well.

1.21

Half of discernment is affection.

1.22

Worry causes aging.⁹

1.23

The fewer children you have, the more affluent you will be.¹⁰

1.24

Half of learning is asking good questions.

1.25

Greet before conversing.

1.26

One’s nature is influenced by the milk one has suckled.¹¹

1.27

Elders bring blessings.

1.28

The outcome is the essence of a deed.

1.29

Honor the book by reading it in full.¹²

1.30

Faith is bolstered by scrupulosity.

1.31

The pinnacle of wisdom is fear of God, and the prince of deeds scrupulosity.

1.32

The wealthy oppress when they delay payment and court hellfire when they beg.

1.33

To speak of favors received is to show gratitude.

1.34

Awaiting succor with fortitude is the best form of worship.

1.35

Fasting gives protection.

1.36

A chieftain is a guarantor for his tribe.

1.37

Gentleness is the pinnacle of wisdom.

1.38

The sage should seek out wise words wherever they may roam.¹³

1.39

Goodness is beauty of character.

1.40

Youth is a time of madness.

1.41

Women are Satan’s snares.

1.42

All sins converge in wine.

1.43

Wine is the mother of all abominations.

1.44

Embezzlement burns with a fire from hell.

1.45

Wailing for the dead is a practice from the dark ages.¹⁴

1.46

Fornication bequeaths poverty.

1.47

To ogle is to fornicate with the ...