Islamica Magazine - The Loss of Mercy — And Where To Find It
Sectarian bloodbaths in Iraq…suicide bombers blowing themselves up in
parking lots of hotels, taking innocent lives…female madrassah
students in Islamabad waving cane sticks at shopkeepers and
vendors…people being turned away from Islam from the harshness of
many of those deemed “religious”…
There is a loss of mercy and gentleness around. Yet we see anger and harshness abound, and one wonders what has gone wrong.
In reality, Divine guidance and Prophetic teachings are nothing but
a manifestation of mercy-and any understanding of religion lacking in
mercy is lacking in true understanding.
Our problem is that we fail to act on the implications of the Prophet
Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace) having been, “sent only
as a mercy to all creation.” [Qur’an, 21.107] The Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) himself emphasized that, “I was only sent as a
gift of Mercy.” [Bazzar and Tabarani, from Abu Hurayra; sound]
The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) explained, too, that,
“The merciful are shown mercy by the All-Merciful. Be merciful to those
on earth and the Lord of the Heavens will be merciful to you.”
[Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud, from Abd Allah ibn Amr; rigorously authentic]
It is a sign of the way of traditional Islamic scholarship that this is
the first hadith (Prophetic teaching) traditionally conveyed by a
scholar to their students.
Learning to Love
Mercy relates to how one views others. A leading Kuwaiti scholar whom I
met last summer advised that, “We have to teach people how to love
God’s creation, because this is central to the Prophetic example and
teachings. This look of love and mercy is a condition of faith itself,
for the Prophet cautioned us that, “None of you truly believes until
they love for their brethren what they love for themselves.” And the
“brotherhood” mentioned here is the brotherhood of humanity, not merely
that of Islam-as Imam Nawawi and other classical commentators have
mentioned.
Dealing with Disagreements
In dealing with disagreements, Imam Razi mentions an important
principle in his great Qur’anic exegesis: there is no contradiction
between being firm on what one understands to be the truth and between
being gentle. Rather, the way of the Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him
and give him peace) is to be firm, when firmness is called upon, but
with mercy and gentleness-in both attitude and action.
When one differs with others, one must maintain the excellence of
character and conduct that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him
peace) said was the very purpose of Divine Guidance, when he explained
that, “I was only sent to perfect noble character.”
It is only with this gentleness and excellence that people, ultimately,
listen to the call to guidance. It once happened that some non-Muslims
greeted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) with an insult.
His wife, A’isha, insulted them back. But the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) did not. Rather, he simply replied, “And upon
you,” which is the standard reply to the greeting of, “Peace be upon
you.” Then, he said to his dear wife, “A’isha! Allah is gentle and
loves gentleness in all matters.” [Bukhari, from Ai’sha] And he also
taught that, “Gentleness is not found in anything except that it makes
it beautiful; and gentleness is not taken out of anything except that
is makes it ugly.” [Muslim and others, also from A’isha]
Imam Razi explains that the very purpose of Divine revelation is for
messengers to convey the call to believe and submit to God. This
purpose cannot be fulfilled unless people incline towards the message
and are at ease with it. And this, in turn, cannot be fulfilled unless
its bearers are merciful and generous; overlooking others’ mistakes and
forgiving their errors; and being respectful of them.
This is how the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself was.
Allah commends him, saying, “It is from the Mercy of God that you were
gentle with them. Were you harsh and hard-hearted they would indeed
have fled from you.” [Qur’an, 3.159]
The underlying respect of others, even those one differs or
disagrees with, is affirmed in the Divine command in the second part of
this very verse,
“So overlook their errors, seek forgiveness for them, and consult them
regarding matters.”
The Fault in Fleeing
Harshness within communities leads to disunity and discord (fitna), as
people “flee from each other,” to use the Qur’anic metaphor above. The
Prophetic example entails that we differ with respect for the other
party. We should see the good in them; consider the points and issues
of commonality, and not merely those of difference; and always assume
that they, too, are sincerely seeking the truth.
And then when we act or speak in matters or situations where there is
disagreement or difference-whatever it may be and whomever it may be
with-we should stop and consider: how would the Messenger of Allah
(peace and blessings be upon him) have acted in this situation? If we
reflect on his example, we cannot possibly imagine him acting with
other than excellence, mercy, and gentleness in any situation or with
anyone.
FARAZ RABBANI is a researcher in Islamic law who answers questions related to religious matters and teaches at www.SunniPath.com
