The enjoining good and forbidding evil
O you who have believed in Allaah as your Lord, Islaam as a religion and Muhammad (pbuh) as a Messenger and Prophet! Allaah says that which translates as: “And let there be [arising] from you a nation inviting to [all that is] good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and those will be the successful.” (Aal ‘Imraan: 104) and also: “You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allaah. If only the People of the Scripture had believed, it would have been better for them. Among them are believers, but most of them are defiantly disobedient.” (Aal ‘Imraan: 110).
This praise of the nation of Muhammad (pbuh) is due to the fact that it is a nation whose conduct and behaviour is in accordance with what their Lord commands and this nation will always exist. This is a nation who love goodness and invite to it and who hate evil and forbid it. It is when a nation lives in blindness and heedlessness and fails to enjoin good and forbid evil, that everything becomes reversed; what is praiseworthy becomes dispraised and goodness becomes cursed,
Allaah says that which translates as: “Cursed were those who disbelieved among the Children of Israel by the tongue of David and of Jesus, the son of Mary. That was because they disobeyed and [habitually] transgressed.” (Al-Maa’idah: 78) Was this the only reason for the curses? No! Because Allaah says that which translates as: “They used not to prevent one another from wrongdoing that they did. How wretched was that which they were doing.” (Al-Maa’idah: 79).
Indeed they immobilised the obligation of enjoining good and forbidding evil; one of them would witness his friend indulging in evil and yet never forbid or guide him, and that was why the curses of Allaah befell them.
Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allaah be pleased with him, said: "They (i.e., the children of Israel) were cursed in the Old Testament (Torah), New Testament, Psalms and Furqaan (i.e., the Qur’aan)". How severe is such a curse on him who sees evil and does not prevent, forbid or warn against it.
The Prophet (pbuh) said: “When the children of Israel committed sins, their scholars forbade them from doing so, but they did not stop; but their scholars continued to sit with them and eat and drink with them. So Allaah caused their hearts to differ and made Prophets Daawood and ‘Eesaa, son of Maryam, curse them “…Because they disobeyed and [habitually] transgressed.” (Al-Maa’idah: 78)” (Ahmad).
Ibn Mas’ood, may Allaah be pleased with him, narrated that the prophet (pbuh) said: “The children of Israel began their decline when a man used to meet another (who committed sins) and say to him: 'O you! Fear Allaah and refrain from what you are doing because it is forbidden.' But this did not prevent him from being with him the next day and sitting, eating and drinking with him. So when they (i.e., the children of Israel) did that, Allaah made their hearts differ “…Because they disobeyed and [habitually] transgressed.” (Al-Maa’idah: 78)” then he (pbuh) said, “No, I swear by Allaah! You must enjoin good and forbid evil, prevent the oppressor from oppressing others and force him to abide by the truth” (Abu Daawood).
There are many other Ahaadeeth which mention enjoining good and forbidding evil, such as the saying of the Prophet (pbuh): “I swear by the One in Whose Hand my soul is! You must enjoin good and forbid evil, or Allaah will send upon you punishment from Him, then you will supplicate to Him but He will not respond to you”.
Beloved brothers! As a way of implementing these Ahaadeeth, and escaping the punishments that are warned about in them, we must enjoin good and forbid evil, each according to his ability and circumstances.
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Calling to the right guidance and forbidding depravity
. Allah, the Exalted, says:"And invite (men) to (believe in) your lord [i.e., in the Oneness (Tauhid) of Allah - (1) Oneness of the Rububiyah of Allah; (2) Oneness of the worship of Allah; (3) Oneness of the Name and Qualities of Allah]. (28:87)
"Invite (mankind, O Muhammad (PBUH)) to the way of your lord (i.e., Islam) with wisdom (i.e., with the Divine Revelation and the Qur'an and fair preaching)".(16:125)
"Help you one another in Al-Birr and At-Taqwa (virtue, righteousness and piety)". (5:2)
. Abu Mas'ud 'Uqbah bin 'Amr Al-Ansari Al-Badri (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "Whoever guides someone to virtue will be rewarded equivalent to him who practices that good action".
[Muslim]
13 Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "If anyone calls others to follow right guidance, his reward will be equivalent to those who follow him (in righteousness) without their reward being diminished in any respect, and if anyone invites others to follow error, the sin, will be equivalent to that of the people who follow him (in sinfulness) without their sins being diminished in any respect".
[Muslim].
'Invitation' and 'Call' stand to mean here that someone induces others to virtue or seduces to sin by means of his speech or action. We come to know from this Hadith that one who becomes a medium for either of them is
. Sahl bin Sa'd (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said on the day of the Khaibar Battle, "I will give this banner to a person at whose hands Allah will grant victory; a man who loves Allah and His Messenger (PBUH), and Allah and His Messenger love him also." The people spent the night thinking as to whom it would be given. When it was morning, the people hastened to Messenger of Allah (PBUH). Every one of them was hoping that the banner would be given to him. He (the Prophet (PBUH)) asked, "Where is 'Ali bin Abu Talib?" They said: "O Messenger of Allah! His eyes are sore." He (PBUH) then sent for him and when he came, Messenger of Allah (PBUH) applied his saliva to his eyes and supplicated. 'Ali (May Allah be pleased with him) recovered as if he had no ailment at all. He (PBUH) conferred upon him the banner. 'Ali (May Allah be pleased with him) said: ''O Messenger of Allah, shall I fight against them until they are like us?" Thereupon he (the Prophet (PBUH)) said, "Advance cautiously until you reach their open places; thereafter, invite them to Islam and inform them what is obligatory for them from the Rights of Allah, for, by Allah, if Allah guides even one person through you that is better for you than possessing a whole lot of red camels".
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
Besides mentioning the excellence of 'Ali (May Allah be pleased with him) and the miracle of the Prophet (PBUH), this Hadith tells about the procedure of Jihad. According to procedure, first of all, polytheists and infidels should be invited to Islam, and if they reject the invitation, then Jihad be made against them. Jihad is such an action that if at its initial stage, that is to say at the stage of invitation, some people accept the guidance, then the people who will participate in Jihad will get the reward of good deeds done by those who would join
. Anas bin Malik (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: A young man from the tribe of Aslam said, "O Messenger of Allah (PBUH), I wish to fight (in the Cause of Allah) but I do not have anything to equip myself with (for fighting)". He (the Prophet (PBUH)) said, "Go to so-and-so, for he had equipped himself (for fighting) but he fell ill." So he (the young man) went to him and said, "Messenger of Allah (PBUH) sends you his greetings and says that you should give me the equipment that you have provided yourself with." The man said (to his wife or servant): "O so-and-so, give him the equipment I have collected for myself and do not withhold anything from him. By Allah, if you withhold anything from him, we will not be blessed therein".[Muslim]
We learn from this Hadith that if a person has made preparations for doing some good deed but he is unable to do it due to illness or some other genuine reason, and he gives the material to be used for that purpose to someone else then he will also be equally eligible to the reward of that good deed.
Rather than spending wealth in the way of Allah, those who withhold it, displease Allah, and their wealth becomes deprived of His Blessing.
