Qur'anic Reflections

Day 8 : No judgements

There is a beautiful quality that all the Prophets had in common. 

Concern for their ummah. 

Think of Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him when he'd spend nights crying and pleading to Allah that He forgive us and guide us. 

Think of his bloodied feet in Taif where he didn't let the angels crush the town because he thought there would still be hope for them. 

Think of Ibrahim AS when he was informed of the birth of his son, Ishaq when he was a 100 years old and then informed of the Azab that was impending on the people of Lut, he forgot about his own happiness and started worrying and hoping that the azab would be delayed. 

One can never spread the message of Islam, one can never enjoin good and forbid evil unless and until one's love and concern for people is pure and unattached with any judgements. 

Ever wondered why that person that you advised something about didn't listen to your advice? 

Because we have forgotten the sincerity that goes with it. 

As we become increasingly aware of what is right and what is wrong, we start to see people as two shades of black and white. 

But near Allah, everyone is welcome. 

The breaker, the broken, the sinner, the sincere, the hated, the loved. 

Allah welcomes everyone. 

Allah forgives everyone. 

Then who are you and I to judge? 

Abdullah ibn Mas'ud reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "No one who has the weight of a seed of arrogance in his heart will enter Paradise." Someone said, "But a man loves to have beautiful clothes and shoes." The Prophet said, "Verily, Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty. Arrogance means rejecting the truth and looking down on people."

Source: Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 91

When we study the life of the companions of the Prophet, we come to know that not everyone came with a clean past.  

Umar RA, one of the Ashra Mubasshara (those who received the glad tidings of Paradise in the world itself)  was an Islamophobe who wanted to harm the Prophet Peace be upon him. 

Khalid bin Waleed RA, sword of Allah, was the reason Muslims encountered heavy losses in the battle of Uhud. 

Abu Darr Al Ghifary, the Truthful, was a highway robberer. 

If the Prophet Peace be upon him had judged them for being who they were in the past, how would he see the goodness that they held? 

When you judge people based on what is apparent to you, you discourage them from discovering the potential they have inside of them, that hasn't seen the right direction yet. 

The non hijabi may have a heart purer than your niqabi self. 

The brother who swears by the day must be a sorrowful repenter by the night. 

People aren't all that they seem. People are more than just ticks that check into separate boxes. 

People are diverse with different problems. 

People need other people to help them, not judge them. 

Here's a verse for us all to reflect : 

وَاللَّذَانِ يَأْتِيَانِهَا مِنْكُمْ فَآذُوهُمَا ۖ فَإِنْ تَابَا وَأَصْلَحَا فَأَعْرِضُوا عَنْهُمَا ۗ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ تَوَّابًا رَحِيمًا

(Sahih International)
And the two who commit it among you, dishonor them both. But if they repent and correct themselves, leave them alone. Indeed, Allah is ever Accepting of repentance and Merciful.

-Sura An-Nisa', Ayah 16

Mind you, this verse is speaking about people accused of adultery which is one of the major sins in Islam and if people who've sinned to such an extent will be forgiven the moment they turn back and repent then what good is us judging them for a sin Allah no longer holds them accountable to? 

Judgment is for Allah alone. He forgives who He wills and punishes who He wills. He knows what is in the hearts while we do not. 

Which is why Allah dislikes people making assumptions about each other because nobody has ilm about the unseen. 

Being judgemental is also hypocritical because we don't know what sins we are doing intentionally or otherwise. 

Omar RA always said that whenever you look for mistakes in someone else and look first within. 

And honestly, we have so much work to do ourselves, so much more we have to build ourself, than one would barely find the time or energy to nitpick and hate on others. 

Be a beacon of support for your brothers and sisters, not a source of dismissal.

Be that extra helping hand, not that finger that points. 

Be that source of sincere help, not unrelenting criticism. 

For we are all human, 

And we're all inevitably going to sin.