1. Kindness to Parents
عن أبي هُرَيْرَةَ قال قال رَجُلٌ يا رَسُولَ اللهِ من أَحَقُّ الناس بِحُسْنِ الصُّحْبَةِ قال أُمُّكَ ثُمَّ أُمُّكَ ثُمَّ أُمُّكَ ثُمَّ أَبُوكَ ثُمَّ أَدْنَاكَ أَدْنَاكَ
Abu Hurayrah (rta) said: “A person asked: ‘O Messenger of God! Who amongst people is the most deserving of my good treatment?’ He replied: ‘Your mother, then your mother, then your mother, then your father, then your nearest relatives according to their order [of nearness].’”1
عن يَزِيدَ بن أبي حَبِيبٍ أَنَّ نَاعِمًا مولى أُمِّ سَلَمَةَ حدثه أَنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بن عَمْرِو بن الْعَاصِ قال أَقْبَلَ رَجُلٌ إلى نَبِيِّ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال أُبَايِعُكَ على الْهِجْرَةِ وَالْجِهَادِ أَبْتَغِي الْأَجْرَ من اللَّهِ قال فَهَلْ من وَالِدَيْكَ أَحَدٌ حَيٌّ قال نعم بَلْ كلاهما قال فتبتغى الْأَجْرَ من اللَّهِ قال نعم قال فَارْجِعْ إلى وَالِدَيْكَ فَأَحْسِنْ صُحْبَتَهُمَا
Yazid ibn Abi Habib reported that Na‘im, the freed slave of Umm Salamah reported to him that ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘As (rta) said: “A person came to the Prophet (sws) of God and said: “I [would like to] pledge allegiance to you for migration and jihad seeking reward only from God.” He [the Prophet (sws)] replied: “Is any of your parents alive?” The person said: “Yes; in fact both are alive.” The Prophet (sws) further asked: “Do you want to seek reward from God?” He replied: “Yes.” At this, the Prophet (sws) said: “Go back to your parents and treat them with kindness.”2
عن أبيه عن أبي هُرَيْرَةَ عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال رَغِمَ أَنْفُ ثُمَّ رَغِمَ أَنْفُ ثُمَّ رَغِمَ أَنْفُ قِيلَ من يا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قال من أَدْرَكَ أَبَوَيْهِ عِنْدَ الْكِبَرِ أَحَدَهُمَا أو كِلَيْهِمَا فلم يَدْخُلْ الْجَنَّةَ
Abu Hurayrah (rta) reported that the Prophet (sws) said: “Let him be humbled into dust; let him be humbled into dust; let him be humbled into dust.” It was asked: “Who O God’s Messenger?” He said: “He who found either or both of his parents during their old age, but [still] did not enter Paradise [by serving them].”3
2. Kindness to the Friends’ of Parents
عن عبد اللَّهِ بن عُمَرَ أَنَّ النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال أَبَرُّ الْبِرِّ أَنْ يَصِلَ الرَّجُلُ وُدَّ أبيه
‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (rta) reported that God’s Prophet (sws) said: “The finest act of virtue is that a person should be kind to the loved ones of his father.”4
3. Knowledge of Virtue and Vice
عن النَّوَّاسِ بن سِمْعَانَ الْأَنْصَارِيِّ قال سَأَلْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم عن الْبِرِّ وَالْإِثْمِ فقال الْبِرُّ حُسْنُ الْخُلُقِ وَالْإِثْمُ ما حَاكَ في صَدْرِكَ وَكَرِهْتَ أَنْ يَطَّلِعَ عليه الناس
Al-Nawwas ibn Sim‘an al-Ansari (rta) said: “I asked God’s Messenger (sws) about virtue and vice. He replied: “Virtue is good conduct and vice is what pinches your heart and you would not like people to know about it.”5
4. Honouring Kinship Ties
عن مُحَمَّدِ بن جُبَيْرِ بن مُطْعِمٍ عن أبيه عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال لَا يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ قَاطِعٌ
Jubayr ibn Mut‘im (rta) reported on the authority of his father that the Prophet (sws) said: “The severer [of ties of kinship] will not enter Paradise.”6
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1. Abu al-Husayn Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj al-Qushayri. Al-Jami‘ al-sahih, vol. 4 (Beirut: Dar ihya’ al-turath al-‘arabi, n.d.), 1974, (no. 2548).
2. Ibid., vol. 4, 1975, (no. 2549).
3. Ibid., vol. 4, 1978, (no. 2551).
4. Ibid., vol. 4, 1979, (no. 2552).
5. Ibid., vol. 4, 1980, (no. 2553).
6. Ibid., vol. 4, 1981, (no. 2556).