The following questions relate to the second theme of the Qur’aan (Akhlaaq: Good Manners and Responsibilities Towards Others). It deserves more attention than I can give it, simply because it’s a key part of Islamic teachings. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is reported to have said: “I have (only) been sent to teach/perfect/complete noble manners.” Keep in mind: I am not a scholar, so I’ll let Islamic texts speak for themselves. Also, these are Islamic guidelines for your information, not laws meant to be enforced upon anyone.
Because Islam is based upon both faith and action, the Qur’aan and the Sunnah (traditions of the Prophet) mention guidelines for various relationships, including: man-God, man-other creation, and man-self.
Our responsibility toward God:
- Iman (belief) and Tawheed (oneness of God): “Say, He is God, One (Unique). God, the Eternal, the Absolute. He begets not, nor is He begotten, and there is none like unto Him.” (Qur’aan: 112) “And verily We have raised in every nation a messenger (proclaiming): Serve God and shun false idols/gods.” (16:36)
- Ibaadah (worship of God). “There is no messenger that We have sent before you but We have revealed to him, ‘There is no God except Me. So worship Me.” (21:25)
- Taqwaa (God-consciousness, mindfulness and awareness): “O believers: Have taqwaa of God and believe in His messenger. He (God) will give you a double portion of His mercy and will appoint for you a light wherein you shall walk, and He will forgive you. God is Forgiving, Merciful.” (57:28)
The default moral code is respect, peace and mercy to all (Muslim or not). Peace is the yearned for ideal, and we ask God for peace in our greetings and in our prayers. War is not a normal or even liked state/condition, but is allowed under strict conditions in Islam in order to return to a more free/just society. Vigilanteism is not accepted in Islam (i.e., random individuals claiming to be leaders who declare war on other states/individuals).
Our relations towards others:
- Parents: “Your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him, and be kind to your parents. Whether one or more attain old age in your life, say not to them a word of contempt nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor. And out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility and say, ‘My Lord! bestow on them Thy Mercy, as they cherished me in childhood.’” (Quran 17: 23-24)
- Spouses: “And among His signs is this, that He created for you spouses from among yourselves that you may dwell in tranquillity with them, and He has put love and mercy between your hearts. Verily in that are signs for those who reflect.” (30:21) “They are your garments and you are their garments…” (Qur’aan 2:187). “The best of you are those who are best to your wives.” – Prophet Muhammad
- Children: “And do not kill your children out of fear of poverty. I shall provide for them and for you, too…” [17:31] and “He who does not love children or honor the elderly is not one of us.” and “Every one of you (people) is a shepherd. And every one is responsible for whatever falls under his responsibility. A man is like a shepherd of his own family, and he is responsible for them.” and “It is sufficient sin for a man if he neglects those on whom he is obliged to spend.” - sayings of Prophet Muhammad.
- Neighbors: “Serve God, and join not any partners with Him; and do good to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those in need, neighbors who are near, neighbors who are strangers, the companion by your side, the wayfarer, your dependents: For God loves not the arrogant, the vainglorious.” [4:36] “He has not complete faith, who eats to his satisfaction and sleeps comfortably at night while his neighbor goes hungry.” – Prophet Muhammad
- General Population: “O mankind! We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly, the most honored of you in the sight of God is the greatest of you in piety (taqwaa). God is All-Knowing, All Aware” (49:13) And “Keep in mind! All of humanity is from Adam, and Adam was fashioned from dust. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab; a white has no superiority over black, nor does a black have any superiority over a white; [none have superiority over another] except by piety and good action.” and “Harm no one so that no one may harm you.” - sayings of Prophet Muhammad.
- Muslims: “The believers, men and women, are protectors of one another. They enjoin the good and forbid evil, they observe regular prayers, pay charity, and obey God and His Messenger. On them will God pour His mercy: for God is Exalted in power, Wise.” (9:71), and “You do not have complete faith until you want for your brother what you want for yourself.” - Prophet Muhammad
- People of the Book and non-Muslims: “We believe in God, and in what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Isma’il, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and in (the Books) given to Moses, Jesus, and the prophets, from their Lord: We make no distinction between one and another among them, and to God do we submit.” [3:84], and “And dispute ye not with the People of the Book except with means better (than mere disputation) unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury): but say “We believe in the Revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you; Our God and your God is one; and it is to Him that we submit.” [29:46] And “Beware! Whoever is cruel and hard on a non-Muslim minority, curtails their rights, burdens them with more than they can bear, or takes anything from them against their free will; I (Prophet Muhammad) will complain against the person on the Day of Judgment.” – Prophet Muhammad.
- Environment/Animals: “And seek not mischief/corruption in the land. Indeed, God does not like mischief-makers/corruptors.” [28:77] “And there is no creature on (or within) the earth or a bird that flies with its wings except that they are nations (communities) like you.” [6:38] Also, the Prophet was asked: “Messenger of God, are we rewarded for kindness towards animals?” He said, “There is a reward for kindness to every living thing.”
- Those who bother, mock or annoy: “And the servants of the Beneficent God are those who walk on the earth in humbleness, and when the ignorant address them, they say: Peace.” [25:63]
- Against enemies in war (which is naturally allowed when attacked for self-defense, when a peace treaty is broken, or to defend others from tyranny): “Fight in the cause of God against those who fight you, but do not transgress limits. God does not love transgressors.” (2:190), and “If they seek peace, then seek you peace. And trust in God for He is the One that hears and knows all things.” (8:61), and “Had God not checked one set of people by means of another, the earth would indeed have been full of mischief; but God is full of bounty to all the worlds” (2:251), and “If any one slew a person – unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land – it would be as if he slew the whole people.” (5:32) and “God forbids you not, with regards to those who fight you not for [your] faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them; for God loves those who are just.” (60:8)
- To value our life and what God gave us, and to work for what is best in this life and the next:
- “I have prepared for My righteous servants what no eye has ever seen and no ear has ever heard, nor has it occurred to any human heart.” - Sacred Hadith
- “Do you think that We have created you with no purpose, and that you will not be returned to Us? The true Sovereign is too exalted above that.” (23:115-116)
- “Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day are signs for those of understanding, who remember God while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], “Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You [above such a thing]; so protect us from the punishment of the Fire.” [3:189-191].
- To be patient when tested to earn more of His Grace:
- “Assuredly We will try/test you with something of danger and hunger and loss of some worldly goods, and of lives and the fruits of your labor. But give glad tidings to those who are patient in adversity–those who, when calamity befalls them, say, ‘Truly, to God we belong and, truly, to Him we shall return.’” [ 2:155-156]
- “Iman (faith) is to believe in God, His angels, His messengers, His books, The Day of Judgment, and in the Divine Decree, the good and the bad (of it), the bitter and the sweet (of it).” - Prophet Muhammad
- To seek truth, understanding, and guidance:
- “Do they not think deeply about themselves? God has not created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them except with truth and for an appointed term.” [30:8]
- “Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim.” – Prophet Muhammad
- “Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate, the Master of the Day of Judgment. To You do we worship, and to You do we ask for help. Guide us to the straight path – the path of those upon whom You have bestowed favors, not of those against whom You are angry, nor of those who are astray.” [1:1-7]
- To value our life and what God gave us, and to work for what is best in this life and the next:
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