Some reminders....

[JJWhite]

Some reminders for myself and all my Muslim brethren and anyone else who thinks this is good advice.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said:

"Be kind, for whenever kindness becomes part of something, it beautifies it. Whenever it is taken from something, it leaves it tarnished." (Bukhari)

"Make things simple and do not complicate them. Calm people and do not drive them away."(Bukhari)

"Kindness is a mark of faith, and whoever is not kind has no faith." (Muslim)

"Whoever is kind, God will be kind to him; therefore show mercy to those on the earth, and He Who is in Heaven will show mercy on you." (Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)

"God did not send me to be harsh, or cause harm, but He sent me to teach and make things easy." (Muslim)

"Verily, Allah is the most Forebearant and is fond of forbearance, and He gives to the mild what He does not give to the harsh." (Muslim)

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica]"He who is deprived of forbearance and gentleness is, in fact, deprived of all good.''[/FONT] (Muslim)

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica]And my favorite.... "Shall I not tell you whom the (Hell) Fire is forbidden to touch? It is forbidden to touch a person who is always accessible/close to the people, having a humble/mild and easy-going nature.'' (Tirmidhi) May God make us all amongst them!
[/FONT]

 

[JJWhite]

Also... I remembered something Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said to Adiy ibn Hatim (who was a Christian convert to Islam)... "Surely you have two qualities that God loves: tolerance and forbearance."

 

[Tariki]

My experience is that each and every day we are faced with choices, maybe until such time as we live entirely by mercy/grace....if such is possibly in this world.

It really is up to us just what verses we choose to reflect upon.

And how we use them after doing so.

 

[GrowingSmaller]

Go Mo!

 

[Arthra]

Thanks for sharing the above quotes on kindness..from Bukhari:

I met Abdullah bin 'Amr bin Al-'As and asked
him,

"Tell me about the description of Allah's
Apostle which is mentioned in Torah (i.e. Old
Testament.")

He replied, 'Yes. By Allah, he is
described in Torah with some of the qualities
attributed to him in the Quran as follows:

"O Prophet ! We have sent you as a witness (for
Allah's True religion) And a giver of glad tidings
(to the faithful believers), And a warner (to the
unbelievers) And guardian of the illiterates. You
are My slave and My messenger (i.e. Apostle). I
have named you "Al-Mutawakkil" (who depends
upon Allah).

You are neither discourteous, harsh
Nor a noise-maker in the markets

And you do not do evil to those Who do evil to you, but you deal With them with forgiveness and kindness.

Allah will not let him (the Prophet) Die till he
makes straight the crooked people by making
them say: "None has the right to be worshipped
but Allah," With which will be opened blind eyes
And deaf ears and enveloped hearts."

Volume 3, Book 34, Number 336:
(Hadith, Bukhari Vol 3)



Here are a few references about kindness from the Letters of Ali :

Understand very well Ibn Abbas that Basra is a satanic place. It is an abode of strifes and bloodshed. So be kind and tolerant towards the citizens of Basra. Win them over with kindness, sympathy and sincerity. Remove fear, suspicion, distrust and animosity from their minds.

(Ali b. Abi Taalib, Letters from Nahjul Balaagh)

Do not accept the advice of misers, they will try their best to keep you away from acts of kindness and from doing good to others.

(Ali b. Abi Taalib, Letters from Nahjul Balaagh)

From Baha'u'llah:

"O friends, consort with all the people of the world with joy and fragrance.

If there be to you a word or essence whereof others than you are devoid, communicate it and show it forth in the language of affection and kindness:

if it be received and be effective the object is attained, and if not leave it to him, and with regard to him deal not harshly but pray.

The language of kindness is the lodestone of hearts and the food of the soul; it stands in the relation of ideas to words, and is as an horizon for the shining of the Sun of Wisdom and Knowledge."

(Abdu'l-Baha, A Traveller's Narrative, p. 43)

 

[bling]

There are many poets that have said wonderful thinks, but the best are just plagiarizing scripture. Scripture says it better and with fewer words.

 

[Nooj]

There are many poets that have said wonderful thinks, but the best are just plagiarizing scripture. Scripture says it better and with fewer words.

Whose scripture?

 

[JJWhite]

Islamic Trivia:

Once, the governor Khuraasaan wrote a letter to the Muslim Caliph of his time. He said, "Only the sword and lashes can keep the people of Khuraasaan straight." The Caliph wrote back and said, "You are wrong. Only truth and justice can ever keep people straight."

Who was this Caliph?

 

[JJWhite]

Maybe we could start a World Religions Trivia thread? Whoever gets the answer right gets to ask a question about his/her own worldview? Would anyone be interested in that for some educational fun?

 

[PHenry42]

Islamic Trivia:

Once, the governor Khuraasaan wrote a letter to the Muslim Caliph of his time. He said, "Only the sword and lashes can keep the people of Khuraasaan straight." The Caliph wrote back and said, "You are wrong. Only truth and justice can ever keep people straight."

Who was this Caliph?

Omar ibn al-Khattab?

 

[JJWhite]

Omar ibn al-Khattab?

Nope Umm... but I'll give you a clue. He's related to him.

 

[PHenry42]

Muawiyah ibn Abu Sufyan?

 

[JJWhite]

Muawiyah ibn Abu Sufyan?

He's related to 'Omar? To my knowledge, he's related to 'Uthman, but I didn't think he was related to 'Omar.

Okay... I'll make it really easy, now, PH. He has the same first name as Ibn Al-Khattab.

 

[SlaveOfGod]

Umar bin Abdul Aziz (may Allah have Mercy on him)

The direct descendent from the son of Al-Khattab

 

[JJWhite]

Umar bin Abdul Aziz (may Allah have Mercy on him)

The direct descendent from the son of Al-Khattab

And we have a winner!

 

[SlaveOfGod]

What a great man (rahimuallah) he was. May Allah Raise his Rank in Paradise

 

[higherFaith]

Umar bin Abdul Aziz (may Allah have Mercy on him)

The direct descendent from the son of Al-Khattab

I'm showing my ignorance, I would have never got it. Who is he?

 

[JJWhite]

I'm showing my ignorance, I would have never got it. Who is he?

Umar ibn AbdulAziz - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[higherFaith]

Umar ibn AbdulAziz - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Can you tell me if this Wiki entry is accurate?

 

[JJWhite]

Can you tell me if this Wiki entry is accurate?

I didn't notice anything that contradicts what I know... there was stuff mentioned that I hadn't heard before, but I can't pass judgment on whether it's true or not and have no reason to believe it isn't.

The end quote of Shah Waliyyullaah though... that's just his personal speculation. Him saying he thought certain people were unique revivers of the religion doesn't make them so... (not saying they were or weren't.. just that that's an opinion statement.)

I wrote a play once (a few years ago) based very closely on a story from the life of 'Umar ibn 'Abdul 'Aziz for my daughter's fifth grade class to act out at a school event. It turned out beautifully if I say so myself.