. J ࢁ e u (cont.)

He said, "Whatever you hate to have people see you doing, you also should not do while you are alone."1 1 For more on this point, see ibn al-Qayyim, al-Jawaab al-Kaafi, pp. 127-128. 2 Quoted in al-Muqaddam, p. 35. 3 This hadith is recorded by Ahmad in al-Zuhd. Al-Albaani concludes that it is hasan. See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Silsilat al-Ahaadeeth al-Saheeha (Damascus: al-Maktab al-Islaami, 1 979), vol. 2, pp. 376-377. Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi Al-Muqaddam stated that if a person feels shame in front of others but feels no shame toward himself, this means that he is denigrating himself and does not have the same kind of respect for himself that he has for others. Al­ Muqaddam then quoted one of the early scholars who said, "If a person does a deed in private which he would be ashamed to do in public, then his own self has no weight in his own eyes."2 What Does not Form Part of the Praiseworthy, Islamic Hayaa ' There are many acts that people perform in the name of shyness and bashfulness that do not fall under the Islamic definition of hayaa'. The Islamic definition of hayaa' differs slightly than the natural concept of hayaa'. Islamic hayaa' leads one to avoid evil deeds and to fulfill others' rights. A basic difference between the two types of hayaa' is that being silent or afraid to speak in the presence of falsehood or oppression does not form part of Islamic hayaa'. Ibn al-Salaah stated that such behavior is not hayaa' at all. Instead, it is weakness, fear, cowardice and treachery.3 Al-Qurtubi wrote, The Prophet (peace be upon him) himself followed the path of hayaa', ordered others to it and encouraged others concerning it. However, hayaa' did not keep him from speaking the truth or following a command of the religion. He was, in this way, clinging to Allah's words, "And Allah does not shy away from the truth" (al-Ahzaab 53). This is part of the completeness, perfection and justice of hayaa'. If a person goes to an extreme concerning hayaa', such that it keeps him from speaking the truth, then he no longer has hayaa' toward the Creator. He only has hayaa' toward the creation. Such a person has been prevented from attaining the benefits of hayaa'. He is characterized by hypocrisy and acting for show. Having hayaa' with respect to Allah is the foundation and basis. Allah has the most right that one be shy toward Him. One must protect and guard this foundation, since it is beneficial.4 Therefore, hayaa' cannot be used as an excuse for not ordering what is good or preventing what is evil. If a person does not do these acts on the basis of hayaa', then, as al-Qurtubi implied, he has the wrong form of hayaa'. He 1 Recorded by al-Dhiya and others. According to al-Albaani, it is hasan. See al-Albaani, Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Sahiha, vol. 3, p. 43. 2 Al-Muqaddam, p. 3 1 . 3 Quoted in al-Nawawi, Sharh sahih, vol. 2 , p. 5 . Al-Baitaar points out that what makes the situation even worse is that these people think they are doing something good: having hayaa'. Hence, they try to increase such a characteristic in themselves. This is nothing but evil and ignorance, al-Baitaar states. Al-Baitaar, p. 129. 4 Quoted in al-Munaawi, vol. 1 , p. 487. Hadith #20: "lf you feel no shame, then . . . " does not have the proper hayaa' toward Allah although he may have some form of hayaa' toward mankind. Abu Saeed al-Khudri narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Verily, fear of the people must not keep one from speaking a truth he knows."1 After narrating this hadith, Abu Saeed said, "We have seen things but we feared the people [and, therefore, we remained silent]." Then he started crying. One also should not allow his shyness to keep himself from doing what is correct. For example, nowadays, even Muslims ridicule and embarrass other Muslims who apply Islam. Muslim sisters ridicule other sisters who wear the complete and proper hijaab. Muslim men who grow their beards or dress modestly are also ridiculed. One cannot allow one's shyness toward those people to change his behavior and actions if they are correct and proper according to the Quran and sunnah. Ubaid ibn Umair once said, "One must give preference to having hayaa' toward Allah over having hayaa' toward the people."2 Another area in which one should not allow hayaa' to prevent him from attaining his desired goal is the seeking of knowledge. It is reported that Ali said, "The one who does not have knowledge should not be too shy to ask until he gets knowledge.