40 on Justice

Prophet Muhammad's Message to Humanity

Omar Sulaiman

• Publisher: Kube Publishing Ltd
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9781847741455
• Topic: Théologie et religion
• Subtopic: Théologie islamique

A collection of 40 Hadith (sayings) of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) focusing on the notion of social justice in Islam.

1



THE GRAVITY OF INJUSTICE IN ISLAM

On the authority of Abū Dharr al-Ghifārī (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet  is that among the sayings he relates from his Lord (may He be glorified) is that He said: O My servants, I have forbidden oppression for Myself and have made it forbidden amongst you, so do not oppress one another.

IWANT TO BEGIN this chapter by starting off with a wonderful quote by Syed Ja‘far Raza, who authored a book called The Essence of Islam: “If I am asked to summarise the principles of Islam and the essence of Islam, I would say it is justice. Islam is synonymous with justice. Justice to the Creator by worshipping Him and obeying His injunctions and mandate. He is Justice. Justice to the Prophet Muhammad  by following him as he represents the authority of God on earth.

Justice to oneself by keeping it secure from sinfulness and egotism. Justice to the body by keeping it healthy and free from undue exertion and illness. Justice to the soul by keeping it pure with piety.

Justice in the matrimonial sphere, justice to the parents as they have been instrumental in gifting our existence. Justice to the spouse who shares the burden of raising a family. Justice to the offspring as they are the extensions of our own lives and motivating them to take the right decisions in life. Justice to our neighbours by sharing with them in their moments of trial.

Justice to the sick by assisting them in restoring their health. Justice to the downtrodden and poor by supplementing their basic needs.

Justice to the motherland by enjoying the fragrance of its soul and loving and promoting its prosperity and being ready to sacrifice for it. Justice to humanity by contributing to its development. Justice to knowledge by spreading it far and wide for by enabling mankind to enjoy its fruits without discrimination. Justice therefore is the foundation of Islamic principles and occupies a place next to the Oneness of God.”

I find that this quote gives a comprehensive view of the importance of justice in Islam and how it encompasses everything we do on a daily basis. It is a fitting way to introduce the subject that we will cover in this chapter: the gravity of social injustice.

This topic is based on a Hadith Qudsī (the strongest form of Hadith; narrated directly by the Prophet Muhammad  on behalf of Allah).

Abū Dharr reported that the Prophet Muhammad  said, “Allah Almighty said: O my servants, I have forbidden oppression for myself and I have forbidden oppression amongst you, so do not oppress one another.”5

This Hadith powerfully conveys that any form of oppression is not accepted by Allah – for Himself or for His creation.

Imām Aḥmad, may Allah have mercy on him, went on to say regarding this Hadith that it is the most noble Hadith that was ever narrated by the people of Shām (Syria, Palestine, Jordan and Lebanon are all part of Shām). He also mentioned that when some scholars such as Abū Idris used to narrate this Hadith, they would be on their knees as a means of showing humility and vulnerability in the sight of Allah. The Hadith itself sets a paradigm of God being good with us, therefore we are expected to be good to one another.

There are also many other lessons that we can learn from this Hadith, in addition to the obvious message of oppression being forbidden, as we will cover below:

 If anyone was to have the right to wrong, it would be Allah. Nobody can set limitations or restrictions upon Him. Allah is infinite in His power.

Who can mandate anything upon Allah except Himself? He chooses not to oppress, He has forbidden oppression for Himself; He has forbidden Himself from wronging any of His creation. And in His glory, He has only mandated two things for Himself. One is for Him and His Angels to send their peace and blessings (ṣalawāt) upon the Prophet Muhammad . And as this is mandated upon Allah and His Angels by Himself, we are also expected to send peace and blessings upon the Messenger ; it is a strong statement that puts Allah’s mandates in perspective for us. We cannot have any argument against sending ṣalawāt upon the Prophet Muhammad . And the second is that which has already been mentioned: Allah has forbidden oppression for Himself and forbidden us to oppress one another.

Ibn Rajab explains to us that there are three approaches to any situation: transgression, justice and grace. Allah has denied Himself transgression; even when dealing with the worst of His creation (for example the Pharaoh who wronged an entire nation!)

As for justice, Allah uses it and will use it when necessary. On the Day of Judgement for example, those who will be receiving punishments will be dealt with complete justice; there will be no element of transgression or extra punishment. They will be punished accordingly for the wrong that they have committed – Allah will not wrong anyone of that Day, nor will He allow the wrongdoing that was done against anyone to be forgotten.

And lastly, grace is something that Allah loves. Allah gives extra grace to those who are righteous and aim to obey Allah as best they can. He has made it easier for us to multiply our rewards with our good actions, all thanks to His Grace.

There is a Hadith narrated in Abū Dāwūd in which the Prophet Muhammad  sums this up perfectly: “If Allah were to punish all of the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth, then He would punish them without being unjust to them and if Allah shows mercy to them, then His Mercy is always better than their deeds.”

Although we may initially be taken aback by the words “if Allah were to punish all of the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth,” it is important to remember that the Prophet Muhammad  was explaining to us that we cannot match what Allah does for us, yet Allah has chosen not to punish everyone.

 Another lesson we can derive from this is the meaning of oppression (ẓulm) and what Islam says about it. The word ẓulm in the technical meaning within the Arabic language means injustice, and in Islam it means to misplace rights. Or in other words, putting something in a place in which it does not belong.

Linguistically, ẓulm is of two types: going too far or excess, or withholding too much or deficiency. The first could be going too far in a dispute for example and resulting in violence or other forms of oppression, whilst the second could be withholding the rights of the spouse. There may not be violence or continuous fighting in a marriage, but not showing compassion towards your spouse is a form of oppression as Allah has mandated compassion for us in the marriage contract.

Islamically, the greatest form of oppression is to associate a partner with Allah, as Allah has mentioned in Sūrah Luqmān, verse 13 Allah has created us; therefore, it is His right to be worshipped. To associate someone with Him is to put the creation in the place of the Creator. This goes to show that the concept of justice and injustice is deeply embedded in our theology.

 We learn the reasons behind Allah referring to us as yā ‘ibādī (O my slaves) in the Hadith Qudsī.

Firstly, it puts into perspective our relationship with Allah; if we do not properly understand the reality of our relationship with our Creator, then it becomes difficult to understand our relationship with society.

Secondly, the words yā ‘ibādī show love from Allah. He calls upon us in a compassionate way to help us connect with Him better as well as to humble us. The one who is oppressing someone else is losing the spirit of love, or muḥabbah, as it is known in Arabic. Our fiṭrah, or natural disposition, is one of kindness, compassion and mercy and not of cruelty or harshness. And it is in the way that Allah addresses us in this Hadith that we are truly able to understand the importance of compassion.

Similarly, if we were to admonish someone sharply for being harsh or committing wrong towards others, then that person would probably become harsher and make the problem worse. Allah knows this, so He shows us the correct way to give advice to one another whilst at the same time giving us advice not to oppress one another.

Thirdly, Allah is reminding us through the words “O my slaves,” that He has created us to worship Him and that we were sent to Earth to serve and fulfil His purpose. We are mere slaves of Allah and we do not have the right to act arrogantly in the world. Allah will say on the Day of Judgement that He is the King, and He will call upon those who claimed that they were kings and all-powerful on Earth. This admonition is drilling home the truth that we have not been given the authority to wrong others. Allah gives us countless blessings, and going against what He asks of us is equal to ingratitude and disobedience. If Allah has blessed us with certain advantages, we cannot use them to cause injustice to others.

Fourthly, scholars say that it shows ingratitude on our part if we oppress others. Allah gives us blessings, yet we use those blessings as a means to oppress or wrong somebody else. We would have to be in a certain position in order to cause injustice to someone, and this phrase “O my slaves” is a reminder that we must not be ungrateful with the blessings that Allah bestows upon us, and we should never use them to commit evil.

Lastly, Allah does not address Muslims alone, He addresses all human beings through the words yā ‘ibādī. It is not just Muslims who are slaves of Allah, but all of humanity, and He has ordered everyone to deal justly with one another.

At the end of Sūrah al-Fātiḥah we are asking Allah to “not let us be amongst those who have earned Your Wrath nor those who have gone astray.” However, this supplication is negated when we transgress through our deeds as Allah also says in the Qur’an that He does not love the oppressors. By oppressing others, we sacrifice the love (muḥabbah) of Allah. We cannot be guided by Allah if we mistreat His creation!

 The Prophet Muhammad  warned us against oppression as it is a form of darkness. Oppression will not only cause darkness in the oppressors’ hearts, but also cause darkness for them on the day of Judgement. Allah says regarding the Day of Judgement in Sūrah Ta-Ha, verse 111 that, “he will have failed who carries injustice.” This is the weight of injustice; anyone who has oppressed will bear the ultimate loss on the Day of Judgement.

The Prophet  also mentioned that on the Day of Judgement, people will witness the proceedings of the animals and the way in which Allah will deal with the injustice amongst animals. Such will be the justice of Allah, that even the horned goat that attacked the one that did not have horns will have its retribution. Watching the judgement of the animals will cause fear in the hearts of the oppressors and disbelievers who will wish that they could be reduced to dust before their own deeds are accounted for.

 The Prophet Muhammad  says in a Hadith reported by Ṣafwān, may Allah be pleased with him: “Whoever wrongs someone we have a treaty with or who is under our protection, or diminishes his rights, or overburdens him beyond his capacity, or takes away something from him without his consent, then I will be his prosecutor on the Day of Judgement.”6

The weight of this Hadith is immense in that it clearly shows the seriousness of oppression in Islam. Causing oppression or injustice is such a grave sin, that the beloved Prophet  will stand against those from his own followers (ummah) who oppressed non-Muslims. If we will have our Prophet  arguing against us and asking Allah to punish us for the deeds that we committed against non-Muslims, then what hope do we have of making it to Paradise? The treaties that were made at the time of the Prophet Muhammad  may not exist anymore, but we still do not have a right to wrong anyone, be they Muslim or non-Muslim.

As narrated by ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Āṣ, may Allah be pleased with him, the Messenger  said: “Whoever kills someone protected by Muslims will not smell the scent of Paradise; it is so strong that it can be smelt from a distance of forty years away.”7 Such are the grave consequences of causing injustice to others in this life. Being unjust leads us away from Paradise (Jannah), so far in fact that even smelling the beautiful scent of Paradise will not be possible for us.

Ibn al Qayyim said that the strongest verse in the Qur’an ...