Islam is a School of Kindness

I also felt drawn towards Islam because I found it to be a school of kindness. Islam encourages doing good with all its universal, humane sense, and commands kindness in all its forms and purposes, thus making it a most wonderful virtue.

Kindness is doing good, but this virtue has taken on the meaning of "Benevolence"; that is, the "charity" which a person gives to the poor and the needy as a consolation for their poverty and neediness.

In its essence and ultimate goal, kindness is when the well-doer alleviates the suffering of the person to whom he gives charity, and palliates his defeat and misery. It is the solidarity of one human being with another, to make the person who is suffering and disadvantaged feel that he is not lonely in this world, and that he has brethren who share his distress and happiness.

Kindness makes the Muslim - who follows the teachings of his religion - a partner of every sufferer in this world.

But the Most Kind is Allah -the Great and Almighty - to Whom all the hearts turn whenever misfortune befalls people and adversity overwhelms them.

Allah has established kindness and commanded it, not only for the sake of the person to whom one is being kind but also for the doer of good as well :

"But do thou good, as Allah has been good to thee", [The Story : 77].

"If ye did well, ye did well for yourselves, if ye did evil, (ye did it) against yourselves", [The Night Journey : 7].

Allah commands justice, the doing of good, and liberality to kith and kin, and he forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion (The Bee : 90).

Also worth pointing out is the fact that the Holy Quran has made kindness one of the greatest virtues with which a believer's soul can be endued :

"Who can be better in religion than one who submits his whole self to Allah, does good and follows the way of Abraham the true in faith ?" [Women : 125].

The Muslim who does good ranks top on the ladder which brings the Righteous a degree closer to Allah and to the gates of Heaven. The following verse came to reinforce the previous one :

"Whoever submits his whole self to Allah, and is a doer of good, has grasped indeed the most trustworthy hand-hold", [Luqman : 22].

The"trustworthy hand-hold" is the bond that binds the created to the Creator, thus earning His Mercy and His good pleasure.

To awaken in the believers the desire to do good, Allah says :

"He that doeth good shall have ten times as much to his credit", [Cattle : 160].

The Almighty promised the doers of good something even better when He said :

"If any do good, good will (accrue) to them therefrom; and they will be secure from terror that day", [The Ant : 89].

Ten times as much in this world, and security from terror and reward in the Hereafter, that is the compensation Allah has promised the doers of good. What Muslim would not hasten to do good when he hears this promise coming from Allah Himself ?

In deference to those who do good, the Holy Quran, naming their attributes, also declares them the most pious and the most virtuous :

"As the Righteous, they will be in the midst of the Gardens and Springs, Taking joy in the things which their Lord gives them, because, before then, they lived a good life. They were in the habit of sleeping but little by night. And in the hours of early dawn, they (were found) praying for forgiveness. And in their wealth and possessions (was remembered) the right of the (needy), him who asked, and him who (for some reason) was prevented (from Asking)", [The Winnowing Winds : 15-19].

As we have said at the beginning of this chapter, Kindness, or doing good, has a broad and comprehensive sense that far exceeds its familiar and common meaning. For example, striving in the cause of Allah is doing good :

"And those who strive in Our (cause) We will certainly guide them to Our paths : for verily Allah is with those who do right", [The Spider : 69].

So, a person who strives to exalt the Word of Allah to the heights and to uphold His religion, and makes kindness, justice, right, and mercy prevail, this person is considered one of the doers of good. He will receive from Allah the recompense He has promised others in this world and in the Hereafter.

That will also be the case with those who follow in the path initiated by the Prophet and Messenger of Allah :

"And he who brings the Truth and he who confirms (and supports) it, such are the men who do right. They shall have all that they wish for, in the presence of their Lord : such is the reward of those who do good", [The Troops : 33-34].

Forgiveness is also Kindness and doing good :

"But forgive them, and overlook (their misdeeds) : for Allah loveth those who are kind", [The Table Spread : 13].

So is patience:

"And be steadfast in patience; for verily Allah will not suffer the reward of the righteous to perish", [Hud : 115].

The recurrence of such words as "Verily Allah is with those who do right", "They shall have all that they wish for, in the presence of their Lord",  and "for verily Allah will not suffer the reward of the righteous to perish" is no doubt a basic incentive to encourage the believers to do good and to be kind in return for which they will earn the good pleasure of Allah; that is, the greatest compensation a believer can dream of.

As is clear from the contexts of the verses, the good pleasure of Allah covers both this world and the Hereafter, because He - the Great and Almighty - is the Lord of the Worlds, Master of the Day of Judgment, Lord of this world and the Hereafter, to Whom is the return.

The Quran has named the categories of people who deserve kindness more than anyone else, and commanded the faithful to be kind to them. Of these parents come first, which is natural because they are the origin. Children are the branches which feed on the sap of the root, or rather on its last spark of life; then they grow up, blossom, put forth leaves, and bear fruit, drawing their strength from the root which penetrates deeply into the soil, clinging to it. There can be no branches without roots, just as children cannot grow up without parental sacrifices; for parents are the source, the shield and the light. Allah says in His Holy Book :

"Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy 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, even as they cherish me in childhood", [The Night Journey : 23-24].

It becomes clear, therefore, that kindness to parents ranks immediately  below the worship of Allah - the One and Only; it perhaps comes with it at the same time.

I do not think that there is nowadays a state or a nation in the world that has honored parents with such beautiful words and in the same way Islam has been honoring them for one-thousand and three-hundred years.

In the Ten Commandments which God sent down to Moses - peace be upon him - on Mount Sinai, one Commandment - the Fourth or Fifth - says verbatim : 

"Give honor to your father and mother, so that your life may be longer in the land which the Lord God is giving you", [Exodus 20:13].

We must note the following: a) the brevity of the Commandment; that is, it contains no details or explication; b) it enjoins honor, not kindness.

The Holy Quran has humanized honor, turning it into kindness which comes from the heart, the conscience and from the faith of the believer who is avid for the Mercy of Allah and who is anxious about his own fate after his death.

In the Torah, reward is limited to this world : the long life on earth which the "Lord God is giving you".

In the Quran, reward is granted in both this world and the Hereafter; or better still, the good pleasure of Allah takes up a large part of the recompense.

Concerning the details which are absent in the Torah but present in the Quran, suffice it to mention the following :

It is not permissible for the Muslim to let his parents hear a word in which they may sense a complaint; for he cannot utter even the word "ugh!" which is the least grumbling expression in the language. Similarly, the Muslim cannot say a word of contempt to them; on the contrary, Allah has commanded him to "address them in terms of honor".

The highest beauty and the peak of humaneness are yet to be found in these words : "And out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say : 'My Lord! Bestow on them thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood'".

Any explanation of these words, no matter how eloquent, would only make the verse lose the beauty of its expressiveness and effulgence. Humility is not permissible in Islam, except towards one's parents, because in this case it reaches the pinnacle of mercy. The more one lowers and humiliates oneself as an expression of mercy towards one's parent, the higher one climbs on the ladder of loftiness.

Along the chain of people whom Allah commanded that they be treated kindly are : "kinsfolks, orphans, those in need, neighbors who are near neighbors who are strangers, the companion by your side, the way-farer (ye meet) and what your right-hand possesses", [Women : 36].

In this chain, we will stop to consider the orphans, the needy, the way-farer, and the slaves.

The Orphans

Whether in the Holy Quran or in the Sunna, Orphans occupy a notable place in Islam; for being kind to the orphan and treating him with compassion is almost one of the pillars of Islam. This is so because, in its essence and spirit, Islam is a religion of mercy which emanates from Allah - Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

An orphan is a child who, having lost his father, remains in the custody of his mother who raises him and provides for him. If the mother is not a woman of means, capable of discharging her obligations towards her fatherless children, and should she be incapable of assuming these  educational and social duties, kindness towards her orphan children becomes the duty of Muslims.

Kindness here goes beyond material handouts to doing good deeds in all fields so as to alleviate the suffering of the orphan children who find consolation in the sympathy of the believers towards them and in their material and moral support and social assistance.

This will prevent orphans from straying away from the straight path and will keep them from sinking deeply into the quagmire of ignorance and debauchery and from becoming a burden on society, trouble-makers and a threat to security.

The verses which enjoin kindness towards orphans abound, of these we will quote the following :

"To orphans restore their property (when they reach their age), nor substitute (your) worthless things for (their) good ones; and devour not their substance (by mixing it up with your own)", [Women : 2].

"Those who unjustly eat up the property of orphans, eat up a fire into their own bodies; they will soon be enduring a blazing fire", [Women : 10].

"Did he not find thee an orphan and give thee shelter (and care) ? … Therefore treat not the orphan with harshness", [The Morning Hours : 6 and 9].

The Needy and the Way-farer

Like the orphans, the needy, those people to whom life has not been too kind, do deserve the sympathy of the faithful. Kindness towards them is a duty that springs from the essence and spirit of Islam, as is the case with the way-farer and the slave.

The way-farer, this stranger for whom the road is a shelter and a sanctuary, acquires the status of a relative or kinsman when he loses his money, or runs out of it. In this case, kindness towards him is one of the duties of the Muslim.

When the way-farer finds that people are kind to him and sympathetic, he will not resort to such actions as those that Allah has proscribed, i.e. burglary, trickery, stealing, or threatening people's life; on the contrary, he will thank those who have been kind to him, and he will continue his traveling, praising his Lord and Creator.  

The Slave

Regarding the slave, the best good deed one can do for him is to set him free. In the context of slavery, there are degrees of kindness all of which revolve around one and the same axis: being kind to a slave and respecting his humanity of which he is indebted to Allah alone - Most Gracious, Most Merciful - and not to any other human being, no matter how high his social status and goal are.

If in the Holy Quran there is no clear text that proscribes slavery; the verses which deal with it and enjoin kindness and compassion towards the slaves and freeing them, will allow us to confirm that in Islam there is no slave and master; there are the believers, all of whom are brothers. They all stand equal, the most honored amongst them are the most pious.

Concerning the Prophet, words such as "slave" or "bondsman" used to hurt him; that was why his words and deeds were aimed at freeing the slaves :

"If a person slaps or strikes his slave, his expiation is to free him."

"Fear Allah in that which your right hand possesses; give them from the food you eat. Clothe them from the clothes you wear, and do not ask them to do work which they are physically unable to do; do not torture people. Allah has made you their owners; but had He willed, He would have made them your owners."

These words, which do sink under the burden of mercy, are pregnant with wisdom : "had He willed, He would have made them your owners".

One day a man went to see the Prophet, and he said to him : "O Messenger of Allah! Tell me of a deed that would bring me closer to Heaven, and take me far away from Hell". The Prophet replied : "Help the human being and free the bondman". This Hadith needs no further explanation or commentary.

Some of the many verses which enjoin kindness towards the bondman and freeing him are :

"Allah will not call you to account for what is futile in your oaths, but He will call you to account for your deliberate oaths : for expiation, ten indigent persons, on a scale of the average for the food of your families; or clothe them or give a slave his freedom", [The Table Spread : 89].

"If one kills a believer, it is ordained that he should free a believing slave, and pay compensation for the deceased's family", [Women : 92].

Usama Ibn Zayd, who was the son of the Prophet's slave, demonstrated great skills and qualifications. The Prophet appointed him commander of one of the armies in which Abu Bakr and Omar served as soldiers under Usama's command.

That is the spirit of Islam!