Imaam Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalaani – rahimahullaah – said:
It is reported from Tamim Addaari radiyallaahu anhu- who said – The Messenger of Allah -salallaahu alayhi wasallam said:
“The Deen is Nasihah.”( The messenger of Allah Salallaahu alayhi wasallam repeated it thrice) We said:
To whom Oh messenger of Allah salallaahu alayhi wasallam? He said: “To Allah, His Book, His Messenger(salallaahu alayhi wasallam), to the leaders of the Muslims and to the commoners among the Muslims.”
Transmitted and recorded by Imaam Muslim in his “Sahih”#55.
COMMENTARY
The hadith shows the importance of the following:
♦ It indicates that one should be sincere to Allah in imaan, avoiding shirk and following His commandments in every aspects of life.
♦ It shows that one should be sincere to the Messenger of Allah salallaahu alayhi wasallam by following His sunnah and avoiding what He forbids.
♦ It illustrates that one should also be sincere to the leaders of the Muslims by obeying them, advising them, and assisting them on truth.
♦ Lastly, it shows that one should be sincere to the commoners among the Muslims. And this encompasses four things:
• Being clean and pure of heart towards your brothers and the Muslims in their entirety. It is for the heart to be devoid of rancour, envy, hatred, despise, and distaste towards your brother. That means your heart is free from the aforementioned
• That you give him sincere advice when he asks for and when he doesn’t ask for. Brothers! There is a sharp difference between honesty and sincerity. Honesty is to speak the truth or to give an advice that concurs with the truth. Sincerity is to speak the truth from the depth of your heart and to wish good for the one to whom you speak. In other words, someone could be honest to you while been insincere. But the reverse is not possible.
Iblis, sometimes, is honest to people when tempting people. He deceives them with the truth and they follow in his train with that. It is easier to deceive and to misguide people with the truth than with falsehood. That’s why Ali-radiyallaahu ‘anhu – said: “Kalimatu Haqqin Araada biha Al-Baatil” (“A word of truth with which error is intended”)
• That you struggle hard to protect the interest of your brother both in his presence and his absence, even if he doesn’t like it or is hurt by that. This is the difference between a friend ‘Sadeeq’ and a ‘Naasih’. A Sadeeq (friend) only helps his friend do whatever he likes and refrains from doing that which he detests. In other words, they are together in both good and evil. But a Naasih, he only stands where there is good for his brother and assists him when he is in error by depriving him of it.
• That you do everything in your capability to protect your brother from anything that could harm his Din and his Dunya whether in his presence or his absence. Whatever the harm itself is.
Allaahu A’alam!
Baarakallaahu feekum!
