The Book of Faith-06a

The reciter: Abd ibn Humayd narrated to us, Abd al-Razzaq narrated to us, Ma'mar informed us, from al-Zuhri, with this chain of narration, and he said: .

The Shaykh : His statement: Does the meaning refer to admonishing him about it or admonishing him regarding it? That is, is he saying, "Do not be shy," or is he saying, "Be shy"? ... The apparent meaning, and Allah knows best, is that the context indicates he is admonishing him regarding shyness, that he is immersed in shyness, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Shyness is part of faith. It is also possible that he was not shy, and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) wanted to encourage him to be shy, saying: Shyness is part of faith. But whether it is this or that, if a person is so shy that he refrains from speaking what he should speak or doing what he should do, then this shyness is not praiseworthy; rather, it is cowardice and weakness. And the person who does whatever he pleases without regard is also in error. In my view, his statement means: he is forbidding him from its excess.