Piety and Judging Others

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

Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

Before we point fingers and judge, take a look in the mirror. If we are true to ourselves, we will see the true us--lots of faults. The thought that, "I am better than them" is ridiculous and definitely not a character of the people of knowledge and piety. This is the standard of Iblis, who said to the Lord, "I am better than him (Adam)."

However, if we follow the standard of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, as we reach a level of knowledge and attachment to this religion (by knowledge or understanding of certain ruling or by attachment to waking up and stand in prayer at night and fasting during the day), we increase in tranquility, humbleness, mercy and kindness to creation.

There is a big difference between Divine knowledge taught by His beloved Messenger, Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the knowledge of the devil.

The sign of truth of a person's attachment to the religion is not just the image of the person itself, rather it is by the character and interactions of this person with the creatures of Allah. And a sign of falsehood is that the person has no character. The more he worships and attaches himself to the Deen, the more angry, more impatient, more harsh he becomes to people around him and the more despising he becomes with his community. Why? The reason is that the lack of connection between the image of performing a religious act or seeking knowledge and the sincerity in doing so. The truth is in realizing the interaction with Allah and realizing Allah's bounties.

Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace) himself emphasized that, “I was only sent to perfect noble character,” [Ahmad] and said, “The believers most perfect in faith are those best in character.” [Tirmidhi]

Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali and others relate that the sum of Prophetic teachings is that good character is manifest in five matters:

(1) Fulfilling the rights of others
(2) Avoiding hurting or harming others
(3) Being cheerful and positive in one’s dealing with others
(4) Recognizing the good of others and reciprocating
(5) Responding to the wrong of others with nothing but the good.

These five manifestations of good character don’t only summarize the Prophetic teachings on good character, but they also summarize the Prophet Muhammad’s own character and conduct.

If we are seeking piety, we should gaze at ourselves and try to find the truthfulness in our hearts. If you passed by someone or group of people in a bad state of behavior, how will you perceive them? Will you look at them with compassion and mercy? Or are you going to look down upon them and yell at them? You make du'a for Allah to guide them. Say, "O Allah as you have provided for us to hear such, provide for them to hear as well and give them success." If they look at you, you smile and give them the greeting of peace, assalaamu alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh, and you continue along calmly. Kindness and compassion give a more positive impact on people's hearts? If on the other hand, you look at people with a harsh look, it will not help them nor you. Smiling is a charity. It applies here too. And people respond better to goodness than harshness.

If you enter somewhere, do not think of yourself as better than the others because you may be an accomplished, well respected person but the poor, don't know anything person you thought of, to Allah he might be greater by weight of earth than you. All people are to be respected. This is our adab with Allah.

Let us judge ourselves, and not judge others, so we can rectify and correct ourselves for what is between us and Allah.

Islam is a religion of good manners with our Lord. And with this we should renew the way we look at our piety and religiosity. Because if we renew and reflect how we look at our piety, we will feel the need for the connection with good character.

There is no way there can be knowledge or piety without good character. Knowledge or religiosity that does not affect the person with good character shows a defect in the person's knowledge and religiosity. This defect is due to disconnection from understanding the part of religion about good character and dealing with others.

لَّيْسَ ٱلْبِرَّ أَن تُوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ قِبَلَ ٱلْمَشْرِقِ وَٱلْمَغْرِبِ وَلَـٰكِنَّ ٱلْبِرَّ مَنْ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّـهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ وَٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ وَٱلْكِتَـٰبِ وَٱلنَّبِيِّـۧنَ وَءَاتَى ٱلْمَالَ عَلَىٰ حُبِّهِۦ ذَوِى ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ وَٱلْيَتَـٰمَىٰ وَٱلْمَسَـٰكِينَ وَٱبْنَ ٱلسَّبِيلِ وَٱلسَّآئِلِينَ وَفِى ٱلرِّقَابِ وَأَقَامَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتَى ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱلْمُوفُونَ بِعَهْدِهِمْ إِذَا عَـٰهَدُوا۟ ۖ وَٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ فِى ٱلْبَأْسَآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ وَحِينَ ٱلْبَأْسِ ۗ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا۟ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُتَّقُونَ ﴿١٧٧

Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is [in] one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveler, those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves; [and who] establishes prayer and gives zakah; [those who] fulfill their promise when they promise; and [those who] are patient in poverty and hardship and during battle. Those are the ones who have been true, and it is those who are the righteous. (177)

[Qur'an Al-Baqarah 2:177]

May Allah grant you and me the most complete of success. Ameen.

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

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam