Explanation of the words of Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) regarding what he quoted: "
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful:
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned a number of hadiths regarding gentleness with Muslims. Among them is the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
The arrowhead: the arrows that are shot, whose tips are always sharp and penetrate whatever they hit. If a person holds them, he protects people from their harm. If he leaves them as they are, they might harm someone. Perhaps someone comes quickly and gets scratched by them, or the man passing by people with them open and not held might scratch them as well.
The same applies to a stick. If you have a stick with you, hold it vertically, meaning keep its head pointing to the sky and do not hold it horizontally, because if you hold it horizontally, you will harm the people behind you, and you might also harm the people in front of you. The same applies to an umbrella. If you have an umbrella with you and you are in the market, hold it up so that you do not harm people.
So, anything that harms Muslims or is feared to harm them, a person should avoid it, because harming Muslims is not a light matter. Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Ahzab 33:58]
Among the hadiths he mentioned is the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), that al-Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib and al-Aqra’ ibn Habis were with him. Al-Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib is the son of Fatimah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so his grandfather on his mother’s side is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and his father is Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him) paternal cousin. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) loved al-Hasan and al-Husayn because they were his grandsons, and he preferred al-Hasan over al-Husayn, because al-Hasan is better than al-Husayn. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said about al-Hasan:Sunan an-Nasa'i 1410Sahih (Darussalam) And the matter turned out as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said. When the fitnah occurred during the time of Mu’awiyah, and the caliphate passed to al-Hasan after his father Ali ibn Abi Talib, he (may Allah be pleased with him) relinquished the caliphate to Mu’awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan to spare the blood of the Muslims, because he knew that people were wicked and that they might come to him and deceive him, as they did with his brother al-Husayn ibn Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). The people of Iraq deceived him, and the great massacre occurred at Karbala, and al-Husayn was killed.
As for al-Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him), he relinquished the caliphate to Mu’awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, and that became a confirmation of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sahih al-Bukhari 3629
Al-Aqra’ ibn Habis, one of the leaders of Banu Tamim, was with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). It is common for Bedouins and those like them to be rough. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) kissed al-Hasan, and al-Aqra’ said: “I have ten children, and I have not kissed one of them.” I seek refuge in Allah; his heart was hard. He had not kissed them, even if they were small! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) looked at him and said:Sunan Abi Dawud 5218Sahih (Al-Albani) Meaning that he who does not show mercy to the servants of Allah, Allah will not show mercy to him. It is understood from this that he who shows mercy to the servants of Allah, Allah will show mercy to him, and that is the case. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: So, in this is evidence that it is recommended for a person to show mercy to children and the like, and that it is recommended for a person to kiss his sons, his daughters’ sons, and his sons’ sons, to kiss them out of mercy for them and following the example of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).
As for what some people do, and I seek refuge in Allah, of roughness and harshness toward children, you will find, for example, that he does not allow his child to attend his gathering, nor does he allow his child to ask for anything. And if he sees him with the men, he rebukes him and says: “Go away, leave.” This is contrary to the Sunnah and contrary to mercy. Where is this character in our manners now? Now, if a person finds his child in the mosque, he takes him out, let alone carrying him in prayer.
One day, he was in prostration, and al-Hasan or al-Husayn came to him and climbed on him, making him his mount. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prolonged his prostration. When he finished the prayer, he said:
وكان يخطب الناس يوماً على المنبر، فأقبل الحسن والحسين وعليهما ثوبان جديدان يعثران بهما ، فنزل النبي صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم وحملهما بين يديه وقال : صدق الله : إِنَّمَا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلادُكُمْ فِتْنَةٌ ، نظرت إليى هذين الصبيين يعثران And he was preaching to the people one day on the pulpit, when al-Hasan and al-Husayn came forward wearing two new garments that they were tripping over, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) descended and carried them in front of him and said: “True is Allah: ‘Indeed, your wealth and your children are a trial.’” I looked at these two young boys tripping over Meaning that he did not feel at ease until he came down and carried them.
In all of this and the like, there is evidence that it is recommended for a person to show mercy to children and be gentle with them, and that this is a cause for the mercy of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). We ask Allah to encompass us and you with His mercy, gentleness, and goodness.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned a number of hadiths regarding gentleness with Muslims. Among them is the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Whoever passes through any of our mosques or markets with an arrow in his hand, let him hold it or its tips
مَن مرَّ في شيء من مساجدنا أو أسواقنا وفي يده نصل فيمسك بها أو بأطرافهاThe arrowhead: the arrows that are shot, whose tips are always sharp and penetrate whatever they hit. If a person holds them, he protects people from their harm. If he leaves them as they are, they might harm someone. Perhaps someone comes quickly and gets scratched by them, or the man passing by people with them open and not held might scratch them as well.
The same applies to a stick. If you have a stick with you, hold it vertically, meaning keep its head pointing to the sky and do not hold it horizontally, because if you hold it horizontally, you will harm the people behind you, and you might also harm the people in front of you. The same applies to an umbrella. If you have an umbrella with you and you are in the market, hold it up so that you do not harm people.
So, anything that harms Muslims or is feared to harm them, a person should avoid it, because harming Muslims is not a light matter. Allah the Exalted said:
And those who harm believing men and believing women for [something] other than what they have earned have certainly born upon themselves a slander and manifest sin.
وَالَّذِينَ يُؤْذُونَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ بِغَيْرِ مَا اكْتَسَبُوا فَقَدِ احْتَمَلُوا بُهْتَاناً وَإِثْماً مُبِيناًAmong the hadiths he mentioned is the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), that al-Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib and al-Aqra’ ibn Habis were with him. Al-Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib is the son of Fatimah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so his grandfather on his mother’s side is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and his father is Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him) paternal cousin. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) loved al-Hasan and al-Husayn because they were his grandsons, and he preferred al-Hasan over al-Husayn, because al-Hasan is better than al-Husayn. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said about al-Hasan:
This son of mine is a leader (Sayyid) and Allah may make peace between two large groups of Muslims
إن ابني هذا سيد، ولعلّ الله أن يصلح به بين فئتين من المسلمينAs for al-Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him), he relinquished the caliphate to Mu’awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, and that became a confirmation of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
I hope that Allah will help him bring about reconciliation between two Muslim groups.
ولعل الله أن يصلح به بين فئتين من المسلمينAl-Aqra’ ibn Habis, one of the leaders of Banu Tamim, was with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). It is common for Bedouins and those like them to be rough. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) kissed al-Hasan, and al-Aqra’ said: “I have ten children, and I have not kissed one of them.” I seek refuge in Allah; his heart was hard. He had not kissed them, even if they were small! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) looked at him and said:
He who does not show tenderness will not be shown tenderness.
مَن لا يَرحم لا يُرحمThe merciful ones are shown mercy by the Most Merciful.
الراحمون يرحمهم الرحمنAs for what some people do, and I seek refuge in Allah, of roughness and harshness toward children, you will find, for example, that he does not allow his child to attend his gathering, nor does he allow his child to ask for anything. And if he sees him with the men, he rebukes him and says: “Go away, leave.” This is contrary to the Sunnah and contrary to mercy.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to lead the people in one of the two afternoon prayers, either the Asr or the Dhuhr. Then his granddaughter Umm Kulthum came to him, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would carry her while he was leading the people in prayer. When he stood, he would carry her, and when he prostrated, he would put her down
كان النبي عيه الصلاة والسلام يصلي بالناس إحدى صلاتي العشي، إما العصر وإما الظهر ، فجاءته بنت بنته ، أُمامة فكان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يحملها وهو يصلي بالناس ، إذا قام حملها ، وإذا سجد وضعهاOne day, he was in prostration, and al-Hasan or al-Husayn came to him and climbed on him, making him his mount. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prolonged his prostration. When he finished the prayer, he said:
Indeed, my son has ridden me, and I disliked to rise until he had satisfied his desire.
إن ابني ارتحلني وإني كرهت أن أقوم حتى يقضي نهمتهوكان يخطب الناس يوماً على المنبر، فأقبل الحسن والحسين وعليهما ثوبان جديدان يعثران بهما ، فنزل النبي صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم وحملهما بين يديه وقال : صدق الله : إِنَّمَا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلادُكُمْ فِتْنَةٌ ، نظرت إليى هذين الصبيين يعثران And he was preaching to the people one day on the pulpit, when al-Hasan and al-Husayn came forward wearing two new garments that they were tripping over, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) descended and carried them in front of him and said: “True is Allah: ‘Indeed, your wealth and your children are a trial.’” I looked at these two young boys tripping over Meaning that he did not feel at ease until he came down and carried them.
In all of this and the like, there is evidence that it is recommended for a person to show mercy to children and be gentle with them, and that this is a cause for the mercy of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). We ask Allah to encompass us and you with His mercy, gentleness, and goodness.