Adopt Forgiveness and Forbearance

With regard to moral qualities that relate to the attainment of virtue, the Promised Messiah(as) says:

Of these, the first moral quality is forgiveness, that is, to forgive someone’s sins. The virtue in this is that the person who commits a sin causes harm to someone else and, therefore, becomes liable to be punished or to be put in jail or to be fined or be chastised with direct action. Thus, to forgive him, if forgiveness is appropriate, would be a good deed. In this connection the teaching of the Holy Qur’an is: 1

That is, the virtuous are those who suppress their anger when it is appropriate and forgive when it is appropriate to forgive sins.

A bad deed should be requited with an equal amount and in situations where forgiveness of sin is corrective without causing any harm — that is, forgiveness is granted when the occasion warrants and not otherwise — then it merits reward. (Islami Usul ki Philosophy, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 10, p. 351)

There is a famous tradition of the Holy Prophet(sa) that many have heard. Pointing towards his chest, the Holy Prophet(sa) said: ‘Taqwa lies in here.’ That is to say, that pure and matchless taqwa, if it were to be found anywhere, lived only in the heart of the Holy Prophet(sa). Besides taqwa there is nothing else in his heart.

So, O people, O community of believers, for you the everlasting instruction is that the example you have to emulate is the model of the Holy Prophet(sa). So, search your hearts. Are you making efforts at imbuing yourselves with taqwa by emulating the example of the Holy Prophet(sa)? Do you also have the fear of Allah, and is His love in yourselves? As a result, do you have sympathy for and do you do good towards His creation?

Now I place before you the tradition in full:

Hazrat Abu Hurairah(ra) narrates that the Holy Prophet(sa) said: ‘Do not be jealous of one another. Do not quarrel among yourselves. Do not entertain malice against each other. Do not have enmities against one another. None of you should overbid on a contract that has been settled by the other. O servants of Allah, be brothers to one another. A Muslim is a brother to another Muslim. He does not oppress his brother. He does not derogate him nor thinks low of him.’ Then pointing towards his chest the Holy Prophet(sa) said three times, ‘Taqwa is in here. It is enough evil for a man to think low of his brother. The blood, property and honour of every Muslim are unlawful for another Muslim.’ (Sahih Muslim, Kitab-ul- Birri was-Silah, Babu Tahrimi-Zulmil Muslimi Wa Khadhlih)