Reciprocal Rights (risalatu 'l-huquq)

E. Rights of Womb Relatives

  1. It is the right of your mother that you should appreciate that she carried you as nobody carries any-body, and fed you the fruits of her heart which no-body feeds anybody, and protected you with her sense of hearing, vision, hands, legs, hairs, cuticles and [in short] with all her organs, gladly, cheerfully and carefully, suffering patiently all the worries, pains, difficulties and sorrows [of pregnancy] ,

till the hands of God removed you from her [body] and brought you into this world. Then she did not care if she went hungry as long as you ate, if she was naked as long as you were clothed, if she was thirsty as long as you drank, if she was in the sun as long as you were in the shade, favouring you with every comfort through her own sufferings and giving up her own sleep in order to put you to sleep.

And [remember that] her womb was your abode, and her lap your refuge, and her breast your feeder, and her whole existence your protection; it was she, not you, who braved the heat and cold of this world for your safety.

Therefore you must remain thankful to her accord-ingly, and you cannot thank her except with the help and assistance of God.

  1. As for the right of your father is that you should realize that he is your root and you are his branch. Without him, you would not be. Therefore, whenever you notice anything in yourself which pleases you, know that your father is the main root of that blessing [of God] upon you. So praise God and thank Him in that measure. And there is no power save in God.

23 As for the right of your child is that you should know that he is from you and is connected to you, with all his virtue and vice of the worldly affairs; and that you are responsible for instructing him in good manners, guiding him towards his Lord, helping him to follow His commands which concerns you and him; and you will be rewarded or punished [according to your success or failure in this guidance].

Therefore, you should endeavour to bring him up as a person who will be beautified by his good influence [upon his child] of the worldly affairs [and who wishes to be] vindicated in the presence of his Lord concerning his responsibility towards his child by good guardianship and by taking God's dues from that child. And there is no power save in God.

  1. As for the right of your brother is that you should know that he is your hand which you extend, your back [support] which you recline upon, your strength which you rely on, and your power by which you attack [your enemies] . Therefore, take him not as a weapon for disobedience to God, nor as an equipment to wrong the right of God; and do not shirk from assisting him against his own self [i.e., warn him to desist from evils], and helping him against his enemy, and shielding him from his satans, giving him sincere advice; and go forward to him for the sake of God. Then, if he obeys his Lord and properly answers His call [it is good for all]; otherwise God, rather than your brother, should be your choice and object of your reverence. [i.e., If your brother goes against the shari `ah and does not listen to your exhortations and warnings, you should have no connection with him].

  2. As for the right of the master who has favoured you [by freeing you from slavery] is that you must realize that he has spent his wealth for you and brought you out from the lowliness of slavery and its estrangement to the pride of freedom and its sociabil-ity. He has freed you from the captivity of possession and loosened the bonds of slavehood from you. He made the fragrance of honour available to you and removed you from the prison of tyranny and kept hardships away from you, and opened his tongue of justice for your benefit,

and opened the whole world for you. He has made you your own master, and un-locked your fetters, and given you the chance to wor-ship and obey your Lord exclusively [without having to spend a part of your time in the service of your master]; and by freeing you he suffered loss in his property.

Therefore you should know that after your relatives, he, more than anybody else, has rights over you, in your life as well as in death; and he is the person most deserving of your help, assistance and aid for the sake of God. Therefore, if he needs something from you, do not keep it from him. 26. As for the right of the slave whom you have favoured [by freeing him from slavery] is that you must know that God has made you his protection, shield, help and refuge, and made him a means and cause between you and Himself. Therefore, it is proper that He should protect you from the Fire [i.e., by freeing that slave you are securing a guarantee against Hell].

This freeing will bring reward from God in the life hereafter; and in this world, God has given you his inheritance if he has no relative at all. This relationship is in recognition of the wealth which you have spent upon him and in appreciation of your giving him his rights [by freeing him] even although you suffered material loss.

On the other hand, if you do not care for him, fear that his inheritance will not prove agreeable to you. And there is no power save in God. 27. As for the right of one who does a kindly act (dhil ma`ruf) towards you is that you should thank him and remember his kindness; and spread good words for him, and sincerely pray for him in that which is between you and God, the Sublime. Because, if you did so, you would have thanked him secretly and openly. After that, if it is possible to repay him by your deeds, do so; otherwise keep a watch for such an opportunity, setting your heart on it.

  1. As for the right of the muezzin is that you should know that he reminds you of your Lord and calls you to your share [in the grace of God], and that he is your best helper in performing your duty laid down for you by God. So you should thank him for it as you thank one who has done kindness to you; and even if, in your house, you are suspicious of him, do not degrade him in his work for God; and know that he, without any doubt, is a grace of God for you. Therefore you should deal with [this] grace of God in a good way, thanking God for it in all conditions. And there is no power save in God.

  2. As for the right of your imam in your ritual

prayer is that you should know that he has taken on the role of mediator between you and God and your delegate to your Lord. He spoke for you, but you did not speak for him; he supplicated for you, but you did not supplicate for him; he asked [God] for you, but you did not ask for him. He has relieved you from the anxiety of standing before God and asking from Him for yourself, but you have not relieved him from this. Then, if there was any defect in any of the above actions, he, and not you, will be held answerable for it; if he committed a mistake you are not going to share it with him [though you are not better than him] . Thus, he protected your soul with his self and saved your prayer by his prayer; so you must be thankful to him for it. And there is no power and no strength save in God.

  1. As for the right of [your] sitting companion is to treat him mildly, to give him a good company and to do him justice in conversation; and while looking at him do not take your eyes away from him at once; and, while talking, your aim should be to make him understand. And if you have gone to sit with him, you are at liberty to take your leave; but if he has come to sit with you, he has the option, and [in this case] you should not stand from that meeting with-out his permission. And there is no power save in God.

  2. As for the right of [your] neighbour is to safe-guard [his interest] in his absence, and respect him in his presence, and to help and assist him in both condi-tions. Do not look for his [hidden] shames and do not dig into his affairs in order to know any disgrace; but if you come to know it inadvertently without looking for it, become an impregnable castle to [hide] what you have learned and a thick cover for it, so much so that if spears penetrate into your heart to detect it they cannot touch it. Do not eavesdrop on him when he is unaware.

Do not leave him in hard-ship, and do not envy him in his comfort. Forgive his faults and forgo his slips. And if he behaves with you disgracefully you should not forget your forbearance, but deal with him peacefully. Be his shield against the tongue of abuse, and protect him from the treachery of those who pose as sincere to him [but are not]. And live with him a graceful life. And there is no power and no strength save in God.

  1. As for the right of [your] companion is that you should deal with him with grace as far as is poss-ible, and if it is not possible, then at least with justice; and that you should honour him as he honours you, and protect him as he protects you; and strive hard that he does not go ahead of you in any good deed between you and him; and if he surpasses you, you should repay it [with grace]; and do not fall short in the love which he deserves. Make it a point to remain sincere to him, to protect him, to assist him in obedi-ence to his Lord and to help him in any personal affairs of his which are not a sin against his Lord. And, lastly, you should be mercy for him, not a terror. And there is no power save in God.

  2. As for the right of the partner (sharik) is that if he is absent, you should suffice him in his affairs, and when he is present, you should work with him on equal footing. Do not make any decision without his decision, and do not act on your own opinion without exchanging views with him. You should guard his property for him, and betray him not in that of his affairs which is hard or of little importance sine it has been transmitted to us [from our ancestors] thus: "Verily, the hand of God is above the hands of two partners as long as they do not betray each other". And there is no power save in God.

  3. As for the right of [your] property is that you should not obtain it except by lawful means and you should not spend it except in lawful ways. Do not misplace it [i.e., do not use it in unlawful expenditure]; and do not remove it from truth [do not cheat in accounts, and do not spend unlawfully]. And, when the wealth is from God [as all wealth is] then use it only [to reach] God and to make it a way to God.

Through it you should not prefer above yourself he who will not praise you, rather he will not be a good successor to your inheritance and will not spend it in obedience to your Lord. Thus, you will be his helper in those [sins and transgressions]. And if, in spending the wealth which previously was yours, he looked after his own interest by obeying his Lord,

then he will take all the [spiritual] profit and you will carry the weight of sin, grief and shame, in addition to its consequence [in the Hereafter] , because you hoarded it in contravention of the rules of the shari`ah. And there is no power save in God.

  1. As for the right of him to whom you owe a debt is that, if you are well-to-do you should repay him this loan] , satisfy him, and make him needless of you; and do not make him waver [between his house and yours to demand what is his due] ; and do not tarry [in the repayment], because the Messenger of God, peace be upon him and his progeny, said: "The tarrying of the rich [in repaying his debt] is in injustice ". And if you are in straitened circumstances, then you should satisfy him with good words and amiable request [to allow an extension] , and send him away with gentleness; and though you have taken his wealth, so you should not mistreat him, because this is wickedness. And there is no power save in God.

  2. As for the right of the associate (khalit) is that you should neither mislead him, nor act dishonestly towards him, nor you lie to him, nor ignore him, nor deceive him. And do not behave [with the intention of breaking him down] like the enemy who gives no quarter. And, if he trusts you, try your utmost to justify his trust, and know that breach of trust is usury. And there is no power save in God.

  3. As for the right of the adversary (khasm) who has a claim against you is that, if what he claims against you is true, then you should not try to refute his evidence nor endeavour to invalidate his claim. Instead, you should be your own adversary in his favour, and be the judge against yourself, and be his witness for his claim without any need of [other] witnesses, because it is the right of God upon you.

And if what he claims is void, deal with him gently and put the fear [of God] in his heart, and adjure him by his religion and dull his edge against you by reminding him of God; and avoid superfluous and irrelevant talk, because such talk cannot remove the enmity of your adversary, and you will have committed a sin; because of such talk, your adversary will sharpen the sword of his enmity against you, as evil words create evil and courteous words rout out evil. And there is no power save in God.

  1. As for the right of the adversary against whom you have a claim is that, if what you claim against him is true, you should maintain polite moderation in speaking to him to describe that claim, because the sound of the claim itself is harsh enough. And explain your arguments gently ; give him time, make your talk clear, and deal with him kindly. And do not side-step from your proofs by quarrelling unnecessarily, as you may lose the track of your argument without gaining any advantage. And there is no power save in God.