. Li (cont.)

Therefore, Abdullah ibn Amr decided to spend some time with that man to see what was the key to his being one of the people of Paradise. He told the man that he had a dispute with his father and vowed not to stay with him for three days. He asked the man if he would host him for three days. The man replied positively. During the three days, Abdullah did not notice anything special about his deeds; in particular, he did not even find him performing the late-night prayers. At the end of the three days, Abdullah was somewhat belittling to himself the man's actions. Therefore, he told the man what happened, that he did not actually argue with his father but that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had stated that he was a man from Paradise. So he asked him what must be the secret of the matter. The man told him, "All that I do is what you have seen." Then when Abdullah turned away, he called him back and said, "There is nothing other than what you have seen-- but also I find in my soul no act of deception toward any Muslim nor do I have envy toward anyone for the blessings that Allah has bestowed upon him." Abdullah said, "This is what makes you reach [Paradise]."1 How to Free Oneself of the Disease or Effects of Hasad The disease of has ad is very dangerous for one's religion and feelings of brotherhood. If a person has such a disease, he should do what he can to remove it. Taataay has suggested the following steps to help remove hasad from one's heart: (1) The person should remind himself of the evil effects of hasad, both with respect to this life and the Hereafter. When he sees how it hurts his friendship and interaction with othershow he cannot even approach them with a clean hearthe should realize that he is the person who is losing. When he thinks about how displeasing this quality is to Allah, that should also move him to try to purify himself from this disease. (2) If the feeling of hasad comes to him, he should do whatever he can to repel it, whether that implies reading the Quran, performing a prayer and so forth. 1 Recorded by Ahmad. Sultaan says that according to al-Albaani, it is hasan. See Sultaan, p. 302. According to al-Haithami, the narrators in Ahmad's chain are narrators found in the Sahih collections. That is definitely the case and the hadith looks authentic. It also has supporting evidence in narrations by al-Bazzaar. See al-Darweesh, Bughyat al-Raaid, vol. 8, pp. 1 50-1 5 1 ; al-Haithami, Kash/ al-Astaar, vol. 2 , pp. 409-410; al-Banna, vol. 1 9, p. 237. Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi (3) At the very least, he should realize that if he does not act upon his hasad and limits it to just a thought in his mind that he cannot fight off, he may still remain sinless. Therefore, he must do whatever he can to keep himself from acting upon his feelings of has ad. Indeed, on the contrary, he should improve his actions toward the one that he has such feelings for. In this way, he might even earn Allah's pleasure.1 (4) In addition, the person should realize that the true bounties are the bounties of the Hereafter and not the bounties of this world. If he concentrates on those and works to achieve those, he will be preoccupied with greater bounties and he will not worry about what others are receiving of this world. How to Behave Toward Those who Commitllasad This hadith is a very important hadith concerning the relationship between believers. In this portion of the hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) stated that Muslims should not be envious toward one another. There are some steps that can be taken when envy does appear. These steps can protect the person from the envy of others and may also help in removing that envy from society.2 When a person is afflicted and hurt by the envy of others, he should take the following steps: (1) The person himself should repent to Allah and ask forgiveness for his own sins. In general, one's opponents and enemies will not get the better of him except due to the sins that he himself has committed. Allah says, ,,.. J / / ,,.. .#' ,,,. Q .J • ., ,,,. / .,. t" ., '"1 Ɔ ,,,. .. e' l ,,, ..... Dz ,,.. T ¥ J ,,,. ,... ;..\ , .... .... -ૣ\o...'2.-'L.J • ૤...W ඤ '---' ඥ . , ඦ· ,., \.,4 . v J--.J - - · · · - if \ · · ../ ,;' ... .... ,,,. ,:' ,,,. .... "And whatever misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much" (al-Shoora 30). (2) The person should put his trust in Allah. Whenever a person puts his trust in Allah, Allah suffices for him.