Qur'anic Reflections

Day 13 : Forbid Evil

كُنْتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ ۗ وَلَوْ آمَنَ أَهْلُ الْكِتَابِ لَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَهُمْ ۚ مِنْهُمُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَأَكْثَرُهُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ

(Sahih International)
You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah . If only the People of the Scripture had believed, it would have been better for them. Among them are believers, but most of them are defiantly disobedient.

-Sura Aal-E-Imran, Ayah 110

It is a great honour indeed, to be called the best nation by Allah. 

When the Qur'an praises a nation, it isn't just limited to a pat on the back, it also imparts with the appreciation, the work it needs to do, to deserve that title. 

We are the Ummah of the Prophet Peace be upon him who came to the world with the final message-- The Qur'an. 

The Furqan--the one that differentiates between good and evil, it is a book that requires action, never willing to sit passively on the shelf. 

It gives us enough to know what evil is and how to fight it. So when a mumin is encountered with a situation where he is confronted with an evil, what would he do? 

He must forbid It. 

In any way he can. 

Abu sa’Id al-Khudri said:

I head the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: If any one you sees something objectionable, he should change it with his hand if he can change it with his hand. (The narrator Hammad broke the rest of the tradition which was completed by Ibn al-‘Ala’.) But if he cannot (do so), he should do it with his tongue, and if he cannot (do so with) his tongue he should do it in his heart, that being the weakest form of faith.

Even in the verse and in this Hadith, forbidding evil is linked to one's iman. This is because we are the community, the nation that were sent forth to continue the work of the Prophets. We were sent to take forth the message of Islam, to spread the light of knowledge to the rest of the world. 

It is a part of Iman to want for your brother what you want for yourself. So when you see someone doing something objectionable, it must bother you, it must pain your heart, it must make you think of ways in which you can stop your fellow sister in Islam/ humanity from doing it. 

We need to uplift each other as Muslims and as human beings. We need to help each other rise above and away from the shackles of sins that hold us down. 

It is certainly not an easy task. We stand at risk of interfering with someone else's business and the very person you want to save, will start to dislike what you're saying. 

So you need to start with baby steps. 

Start with enjoining good first. Share a good word with the people you love everyday.

Once you provide someone with the knowledge of what is right, you've already taken the first step towards stopping them from doing the opposite. 

Start with recognizing what is bad. Start with the realisation in your heart that, what you have witnessed is wrong or unjust in some way. You may not have the courage to stop it yet, but know that It is wrong. 

It is not an insignificant thing. To recognise evil as clear evil is a blessing from Allah. There are so many others who can't tell the difference anymore, because Shaytan has beautified their deeds for them. 

When you are done with this, take the next step. 

Use your tongue, your pen, your words. Speak out against what is wrong, against oppression, injustice and tyranny. 

Speak when you feel your friend is going the wrong way. Not with misplaced sense of superiority, but with concern and love for them, genuinely wishing the best for them.

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Help your brother whether he is an oppressor or an oppressed," A man said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! I will help him if he is oppressed, but if he is an oppressor, how shall I help him?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "By preventing him from oppressing (others), for that is how to help him." (Sahih Bukhari)

The highest step, and I pray that Allah gives us the strength and courage to attain this level, is to stop it with your own hands. 

It is then that you make the most difference in someone's life and society. 

It is a gradual process that needs both wisdom and strength of Iman, and you may not reach the pinnacle just yet. 

But make sure you keep on trying.