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Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| Order of precedence in fostering kinship |
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| Abu_Atheek |
| 02/15/03 at 06:25:52 |
| [slm] [center]Order of precedence in fostering kinship [i]By Adil Salahi[/i][/center] The Prophet (peace be upon him), as it is well known, has classified the fostering of ties of kinship among the main duties every Muslim should observe. In an answer to a question by a Bedouin on what actions bring a man closer to heaven and take him away from hell, the Prophet listed four duties: To worship God alone without associating partners with Him, regular attendance to prayer, the payment of zakah and the fostering of ties of kinship. The Prophet, then, places this last duty as next in importance only to the topmost duties of Islam required of every Muslim. Indeed, the fostering of ties of kinship has been stressed by the Prophet on numerous occasions and in a variety of ways. We have, for example, the following Hadith which describes these ties as a creature addressing God Himself: Abu Hurairah quotes the Prophet as saying: "God has created all creatures. When He had finished, kinship stood up. God said: "What is it?" She answered, "This I do as I seek refuge with You from being severed." God said, "Will you be content if I bestow My grace on the one who fosters you and cut off the one who severs you?" She answered: "I will indeed, my Lord." He said, "I grant you that." (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim and An-Nassaie). The Prophet describes kinship here as a living creature. She can be nurtured and fostered, and on the other hand, she can be adversely affected when she is ignored and severed. She cannot motivate people into fostering her unless the motivation comes from God Himself. She realizes her inability to persuade people to give her the right sort of treatment and she, therefore, appeals to God for help. God's response is most gratifying to her. He promises to bestow His grace on people who foster their ties of kinship and deprive those who sever such ties of His own grace. This description by the Prophet of kinship as a living creature is most effective. As we read it, the first thought in our minds is that it is a figurative description. The Prophet uses this metaphor to emphasize the importance of kinship and the honor gained by any person who fosters his ties with his relatives and the deprivation which is sure to befall the one who severs such ties. We can take this description, however, at its face value. Any abstract idea can, by God's will, take shape and be embodied in a physical form. This presents no difficulty to God. It is not difficult for us to imagine that kinship was given a form in this particular instance and spoke to God directly. The Hadith in its Arabic form admits a third explanation. An angel may have stood up to speak for kinship. The answer would have been given to him in order to be conveyed by the Prophet to mankind. Whichever one of the three explanations we prefer, the message of the Hadith is clear. God is pleased with anyone who fosters His ties of kinship and bestows His grace on him. This idea is emphasized by the Prophet in several Hadiths. One related by Al-Bukhari on the authority of Aisha, the Prophet's wife, states: "Kinship is one aspect of God's mercy. He who fosters it shall be rewarded by God, and he who severs it shall be cut off by God." The same Hadith, in almost the same wording, is transmitted by Al-Bukhari in his book "Al-Adab Al-Mufrad" on the authority of Abdullah ibn Amr with the addition, "It will have a highly eloquent, expressive tongue on the Day of Resurrection." The addition means that kinship will argue for or against people, according to what attitude they take of it in this life. Her argument will be highly effective considering its great eloquence and power of expression. It would not have been given this power by God on the Day of Resurrection if He does not consider its case to be important. This Hadith, then, serves as a warning to people that the sort of relationship they choose to maintain with their kinsfolk is bound to affect their destiny in the hereafter. Their reward will be highly increased if they have fostered their ties of kinship in this life. A question arises here about what is meant by one's relatives in this context. Is every relative entitled to the same sort of good treatment the Prophet is emphasizing in these Hadiths? This very question has been put to the Prophet by Bakr ibn Al-Harith Al-Anmari. The Prophet answered: "Your mother and father, your sister and brother, and your relative who comes next in line. It is a binding duty and a kinship that has to be fostered." (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, At-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawood). This Hadith provides us with a definite order of relatives who have the strongest claims on us. Commentators on the Sunnah point out here that although the Prophet uses here the conjunction "and", this signifies an order of priority. A mother's claim takes precedence over that of the father, which in turn comes ahead of the claims of sisters and brothers. We have already spoken at length about the claims of parents to receive the kindest of treatments by their children. It is only logical that they also would have the strongest claim from the point of view of fostering one's ties of kinship. None is closer to a person than his parents. This Hadith and others which speak of the ties of kinship make it clear that other relatives have also a strong claim on one's affection and material help. It is only to be expected that sisters and brothers will take precedence over other relatives. They are, therefore, specifically mentioned by the Prophet as having the next strongest claim. Other relatives come next according to their close relation. We note here that the Prophet mentions the mother ahead of the father and the sister ahead of the brother. This is in line with the Islamic view that women must be looked after by their men's relatives. In the normal state of affairs, a sister is likely to need help more than a brother. Moreover, she is less likely to be able to repay her brother's kindness. Hence, the Prophet gives sisters precedence over their brothers. This applies throughout this sort of relationship. Women relatives always take precedence over their male counterparts in having a stronger claim to one's help and kindness. [i]Islam in Perspective - Arab News - 17 April 1998[/i] |
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