The Absurdity Of The Arrogant People

                                “That Home of the Hereafter We

                             assign it to those who do not seek

                             haughtiness on earth, nor yet to

                             spread corruption, and the sequel is

                             for the God-fearing. Whosoever shall

                             come (before God) with good deed

                            will gain further good therefrom, and

                            anyone who shall come with evil deed

                            - (know that) they who do evil deeds

                            will not be requited with more than

                            (the like of) what they have done”

                                             (Qur’an, 28:83-84).

God has given every human being a certain peculiarity, but made all equal in value and gave each one a wide scope of action under a very stable criterion that He ordained. Anyone thinking that he or she is superior to others surely is wrong.

The equality in value comes together with a variety in faculties and capabilities, as this is the only way for mankind to manage a cooperation they absolutely need.

God says: “ and We have raised some of them by degrees above others so that they might avail themselves of one another’s help..” (43:32). Without variety in faculties and understanding, life cannot take its course.

God says in the Qur’an: “And had your Lord so willed, He could surely have made all mankind one single community; but (He willed it otherwise, and so) they continue to hold divergent views (all of them,) save those upon whom your Lord has given mercy. And to this end has He created them (all)..” (11:118-119).

This inevitable cooperation between people of diversity also cannot occur harmoniously unless the society agrees upon a certain moral standard as a stable criterion.

The moral standard needed by society cannot be established correctly without bias for one party or another, except if it comes from the Almighty God Who created them all. That’s why God has given them the necessary ordinances (thorough His messengers, the last of them being Muhammad - peace be upon them all), as a basic criterion.

If the society agrees upon this criterion to be exercised, it means they testify that they are all equal in rights and duty, and that God is the only deity and His ordinances should be taken as the basic rule. Hence thinking that one person or one tribe is superior to others should be excluded completely: “O mankind! We have indeed created you from a male and a female, and made you nations and tribes that you may come to know one another. Truly the noblest of you in the sight of God is the most God-fearing among you. Truly God is Knower, Aware” (49:13).

The Qur’an ridicules those who behave haughtily with others: “And do not walk on earth with haughty self-conceit, for, you can never rend the earth asunder, nor attain the mountains in height” (17:37). And in fact, arrogance or insolence, or undue elation at one’s power or capacity or one’s beauty, is the first step to many evils.

The Qur’an recounts the admonition of Luqman to his son: “And do not turn your cheek disdainfully from people and do not walk haughtily on earth, for, behold, God does not love anyone who, out of self-conceit, acts in a boastful manner” (31:18).  Luqman was an example of wisdom who realized that the best and wise life in this world is based upon the highest hope in the inner life. For him true human wisdom is also divine wisdom: the two cannot be separated conformably from worshiping God alone. Hence we have to be good to mankind, without feeling any haughtiness upon others.

This life is just an interlude, a preparation for the real life, which is in the Hereafter. This world’s vanities are to be taken for what they are worth. They should not be allowed to deflect our minds from the requirements of the inner life that really matters.

God says: “And the life of this world is nothing but a passing delight and a play, and the life in the Hereafter is indeed the only (true) life, if they only knew” (29:64).

A Wise And Great Stance

In the eighth year of Hijrah (= Migration to Medina), and after the conquest of Makkah, Muslims under the leadership of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) had to face the fighters of Taif, who consist of men from the tribes of Hawazin and Thaqif. These tribes called for a gathering to discuss how to react to the triumph of Muslims who had already recovered Makkah. They decided to fight against the Muslims. The gathering was presided by Malik bin Auf from Hawazin, who asked the fighters to take with them their families and wealth, mainly camels and sheep. They started encampment at a valley called Awtas, half-way between Makkah and Taif.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) marched to Hunain, near Awtas. His army consisted of twelve thousand soldiers; ten from Medina and two thousand who joined them from Makkah. This army reached a narrow and steep side in the valley of Hunain. As they seemed over-confident with their number, they said: “We will not be defeated today because of deficiency in our numbers”.  Although the Hawazin and Thaqif were only about three thousand, the Muslims were taken in a severe ambush by Hawazin. The situation became so alarming, that the Mulims’ lines were shattered in a few hours of fighting; they ran for their lives in every direction, as recorded by God in the Qur’an: “God has already helped you on many fields, and on the day of Hunain, when your vast numbers were pleasing to you; but it availed you nothing and the earth, for its breadth it was straitened for you, then you turned back, retreating” (9:25).

But the Prophet (peace be upon him), just as it happened in Uhud three years earlier, held his ground with a few Muslims around him. He asked Al-‘Abbas, his uncle who had a strong voice to shout at the top of his voice and call his people: “O Ansar! O comrades of the Pledge of Ridwan!” They answered: Here we are O Prophet! Here we are O Prophet! About a hundred of the Ansar dismounted their fleeing camels, which they could not control. They all came and joined the very close companions, and gathered around the Prophet. Among them were Abubakr, Omar, Ali, Al-Abbas, Usamah bin zaid, Abusufyan bin Alharith.

Now that the tiny minority of Muslims came back and joined the Prophet (peace be upon him) with renewed belief and motivation, they charged the enemy, and the fortunes of the battle were reversed, and God helped them: “Then God sent down His (gift of) inner peace upon His messenger and upon the believers, and sent down legions which you could not see, and chastised those who were bent on denying the truth: for such is the recompense of all who deny the truth” (9:26).

When they were sincere and steadfast, although less in number, God helped them. So they reversed the outcome of the battle and won it, as God recounted the sincerity and steadfastness of the fighters of Bani Israel under the leadership of Talut: “How often a little company has overcome a numerous company by God’s leave, and God is with those who are patient” (2:249).

Now we will come to see the wise and great stance of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) when distributing the war spoils:

The accumulated spoils of the battle of Hunain were huge. The tribes of Hudhayl, Thaqif and their allies were among the richest in Arabia. What Muslims gained from this battle was tremendous spoils. According to the historians there were: twenty-four thousand camels, more than forty thousand heads of sheep, four thousand ounces of silver, and six thousand captives, men, women and children.

Before leaving the battlefield the Prophet (peace be upon him) distributed the bulk of the war spoils. He gave large portions of it to the “freed ones” from Quraysh (those who used to be his grimmest enemies but surrendered at the conquest of Makkah), but gave nothing to the Ansar and Muhajireen.

Abusufyan bin Harb, who was among the most esteemed personalities of Makkah, and who had just become Muslim after the conquest of Makkah was treated with great generosity; he was given a hundred camels and forty ounces of silver. He also asked for a gift for his son Yazid, and he was given another hundred camels and forty ounces of silver for him. Then he asked for his son Mu’awiyah, and he was given another hundred camels and forty ounces of silver.

Hakeem bin Hazm was given a hundred camels. He asked again and got another hundred camels. Suhayl bin ‘Amr, (who was the chief negotiator of the Quraysh at Hudaybiyah) received a hundred camels. And the Prophet gave tremendous wealth to some other personalities of Makkah who just became Muslims. The Prophet also distributed some of the spoils of considerable shares among the heads of the Bedouin tribes, that fought with the Muslims. However, nothing was given either to the Ansar or the Muhajireen, who felt unfairly treated. Especially among the Ansar, feelings of bitter indignation were running high.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) heard about the murmurings and resentments of the Ansar, so he called them for a meeting. When they were assembled in his council, he said to them: “O men of the Ansar, what is this statement I have heard of you? And what is this resentment in your hearts against me? Did I not find you poor, and God made you rich? Were you not enemies of one another, and God softened your hearts towards each other, and gave you peace and reconciliation?”

The Ansar answered: “Yes indeed, God and His Messenger are most kind and generous”.

The Prophet continued: “Are you angry with me, because of these trivialities of this world (meaning spoils), which I gave to these people (= the new Muslims) hoping to win over their hearts to Islam, while entrusting you to your faith and conviction? Are you not satisfied that men should take away flocks and herds, while you take back with you the Messenger of God? By Him, in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, but for the migration (the hijrah), I should like to have been one of the Ansar myself! If all men take one way, and the Ansar another, I will take the way of the Ansar, may God give mercy to the Ansar, their sons, and their sons’ sons!” The people wept until tears ran down their beards, as they said: “We are indeed satisfied with the Messenger of God as our lot and portion, O Messenger of God!”.

This wise stance that the Prophet has taken in the way he distributed the war spoils, in his dealing with the newly surrendered to God, and with those who were already firmed in their faith, was indeed great and remarkable!

To Everyone His Own Merit

                      “Ask your Lord to forgive you (your sins), and

                      then turn towards Him in repentance (so that)

                      He will grant you a goodly enjoyment of life (in

                      this base world) until a term set (by Him is

                      fulfilled); and (in the life to come) He will

                      bestow UPON EVERYONE POSSESSED OF MERIT

                      (a full reward for) HIS MERIT; but if you turn

                      away, then, verily, I dread for you the

                      chastisement of an awful Day” (Qur’an,11:3).

Everyone in this life does his/her own deeds, which differ in fact and quality, as people’s capacities. Each person deserves praise or blame, reward or penalty accordingly. In this (base) life, however, often justice is not served. This fact is observed perfectly by God, the Just, Who postpones the equity for the Day of Judgment, where He will grant everyone worthy, the full reward for his/her merit.

It is the duty of everybody to beware that their behavior or action, does not transgress God’s bound or other people’s dignity. More than that, it is recommended for everyone not to retaliate for each bad action from others, because everyone is at risk of doing unjust deeds intentionally or unintentionally.

God says: “And the requital of an evil deed is an evil deed like it; but whoever pardons and reconciles, his reward will be with God; truly, He does not like wrongdoers” (42:40). And because God observes everyone’s behavior and actions, it is necessary for believers to ask God for forgiveness, and to return to Him in repentance.

God reminds all of us of a great event, which tends to be forgotten during our everyday life: that everyone is bound to death. “Every human being is bound to death; and you will be REQUITED on whatever you have done IN FULL only on the Day of Resurrection, whereupon he that shall be drawn away from the Fire and brought into Paradise will indeed have gained a triumph: for the life of the (base) world is nothing but an enjoyment of self-delusion” (3:185).

On the Day of Resurrection, God says: “On that Day will people come forward, cut off from one another, to be shown their (past) deeds. So whoever does an atom’s weight of good shall see it, and whoever does an atom’s weight of evil shall see it” (99:6-8). But many people today, even among the so-called believers, do not heed all these warnings, that is why we find many of them supporting tyrants who kill millions of people, torture thousands and expel millions out of their homes, while God says: “And do not incline towards, or rely upon, those who are bent on evildoing lest the fire (of the Hereafter) touch you: for (then) you would have none to protect you from God, nor would you ever be succored (by Him)” (11:113).

Therefore, when we realize that everyone might commit a sin or shortening towards God, or towards people, we should from time to time make a reassessment, return to God in repentance, ask forgiveness from Him, and from whomever we may have wronged.

To conclude, let us follow God’s advice:

“Indulge (people) with forgiveness, and enjoin kindness, and turn away from the ignorant” (7:199).