When you are greeted with a greeting, greet in return with what is better than it, or (at least) return it equally. Certainly, Allah is Ever a Careful Account Taker of all things.” [al-Nisa: 86] It’s part of our akhlaq to consider the positive actions of others upon us. When someone does you good, it’s actually from your Iman (faith) to remember it and try to return that good one day. In this verse, Allah `azza wa jall takes one of the smallest deeds that perhaps is from the human nature to do – the expression of greeting – and He uses it to teach us how to treat people around us and how to effectively live in society. When someone greets you, try to go a step further in your return greet and add words of goodness (e.g. if they say ‘As-salamu `alaykum’, do your best to say, ‘Wa `alaykum salaam wa rahmatullah’ and even add ‘wa barakatuh’). If someone smiles at you, smile back. If someone defends you one day, then defend them back when they have right to that. If they help you out, then always be aware of their situation so you can help them too. Be alert to the positive actions of others around you, and be a person filled with life. Do not be a dead person walking amongst the living. It’s very interesting that in the verse above, Allah says, ‘When you are greeted (huyyitum) with a greeting (tahiyyatin), greet in return (fa-hayyu)…’ – the words for ‘greet‘ actually come from the same root as ‘Hayy‘ and ‘Hayat‘ which means ‘life‘… So you get the feeling that the implication here goes far beyond just greeting. It’s actions which bring about life in the life of a person… Whenever someone does something which adds to your life (hayat) in a positive manner, then add something positive to their life too, whatever it may be. And returning good for good is indeed one of the greatest ways of putting life into the lives of others because it sets off a circle of positivity, appreciation, and goodness not just in that individual but in the whole of society. “Is the reward for good [anything] but good?” [al-Rahman: 60] -via Fajr Blog
Posted on: Fri, 04 Jul 2014 10:13:20 +0000
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