Wronging People

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

People have rights on us and society have rights on us. We have to be acutely aware of this. If we don't we will suffer tremendously. Wronging someone is a serious matter and could take one to the Fire.

On the Day of Judgment, we will be put face to face with those we have wronged intentionally or unintentionally. People are greedy and needy creatures and they will be less inclined to forgive you because they will be able to benefit from your wronging them in this life by taking good deeds away from you and giving their sins to you.

Abu Hurayra reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, asked,

“Do you know who the bankrupt are?” They said, “The one without money or goods is bankrupt.” So the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “The bankrupt are those from my nation who come on the Day of Resurrection with prayer, fasting, and charity, but comes also insulting, slandering, consuming wealth, shedding blood, and beating others. They will each be given from his good deeds; if his good deeds run out before the score is settled, their bad deeds will be cast upon him, then he will be thrown into the Hellfire.”

[Muslim]

This person didn't know the rights of people on his tongue--he insulted them. He didn't know the right of people's property--he unlawfully took other's property. He didn't know the right of people to be treated with good conduct--he beat them or he killed them. If he knew about them, then he must not have cared about them. So he will suffer tremendously. His prayers, his fasting and his zakah and all his good deeds will not help him whatsoever.

Bankruptcy in this life is unpleasant but you can recover from this hardship and someone might be able to help you to stand back on your feet again. Bankruptcy on the Day of Judgment is completely different. Accounts have to be settled. Wealth, power, intelligence or knowledge will not be helpful unless they were used properly during one’s life time. No one can buy good deeds or rewards on the Day of Judgment because none is for sale, and no one, not even your own mother, will lend or give you even a single good deed on the Day of Judgment. On that day each person is concerned with his/her own affairs and salvation.

Allah Almighty says,

يَوْمَ يَفِرُّ الْمَرْءُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ ﴿٣٤﴾ وَأُمِّهِ وَأَبِيهِ ﴿٣٥﴾ وَصَاحِبَتِهِ وَبَنِيهِ ﴿٣٦﴾ لِكُلِّ امْرِئٍ مِّنْهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ شَأْنٌ يُغْنِيهِ ﴿٣٧

On that Day man shall run from his own brother, and from his mother and father, and from his wife and his children. Each one of them, on that Day, will have enough concern of his own to make him indifferent to the others.

[Qur'an Abasa 80:34]

The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said,

A Muslim is the one the Muslims are safe from his tongue and his hands.

[Bukhari and Muslim]

He, Allah bless him and grant him peace, also said,

None of you truly believe until he wants for his brother what he wants for himself.

[Bukhari]

We should be far away from wronging people. As a scholar advised, it is better to be wronged than to be a wrong-doer. This means that if you ever at a point in your life where if you do something you might be wronging someone and if you don't do something, they might be wronging you, then let them wrong you. You don't want the burden of bankruptcy in the Day of Judgment.

We don't want to end up bankrupt in the Day of Judgment. If we owe anyone money, time, an apology, or anything else we should do our best to settle our accounts while still alive before we are taken into account in the next life.

May Allah make it easy for our limbs to worship Him and protect us from Hellfire. Ameen.

Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam