The greatest of deeds are three

Aa’isha (radiyAllaahu anha) said:

"The first calamity to befall this Ummah after the demise of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) is overeating,because when a nation fills their bellies too much,their bodies become obese,their hearts become weak and their carnal passions get out of control."

[Targheeb wat Tarheeb]

"The battlefield is the heart of man" - Ibn Qayyim Al- Jawziyyah
Uddat as-Sabireen wa Dhakirat ash-Shakireen

"Blessed is he whose own faults keep him from seeing the faults of others."
Ali Ibn abi Talib (r.a)

Dunnun Al Misri said: " The ailment of the body is in sickness and that of the heart is in sins. A delicious meal can not benefit the body when the person is sick and likewise, the heart can not taste the sweetness of worship if it is full of sins."

Hatim Bin Al-A’sim said:

“If a respectable good man sits with you, you would be watching every word you utter so that you do not say something wrong. Yet, you know that your words are watched by Allah but you still do not watch the words you utter!” 
[Al'Daa Wa Al Dawaa, by Ibn Al-Qayyim]

Al- Shafie rahimahullah said:
'The greatest of deeds are three:"To give generously out of the few what you have , to be devoted to Allah in loneliness and to say the truth in the face of someone who is hoped and feared"'

Taken from " Don't be sad" by Aidh Al Qarni

I swear by Allaah (jalla wa a'la), and His Name I swear and I swear, that if even if your eyes were to melt down from crying in fear of Him and in yearning for Him, and even if you were to live in this world as long as it will last, making constant offering combined with every type of worship in thankfulness towards His Magnificent and countless blessing upon you, it would not be sufficient as a demonstration of gratitude for His guiding you to Islaam!'

– Ali ibn Abi Talib (radiAllaahu anhu)

Maymoon bin Mihran:

"Remembering Allah by your tongue is good, but the best remembrance of Allah is when one remembers Allah when he is doing a sin so he leaves it."

(Jaami' All-'Uloom Wa Al-Hikam 1/252-254)

Ibn Hibban: 

"Where kindness does not benefit, neither does violence."

(ar-Rawdhah, p. 216)

Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya: 

"There is no doubt that enabling women to mix with men is the basis of all calamities and evils, and it is one of the greatest causes of calamity that affects everybody, as well as being one of the causes of corruption in public and private affairs. Mixing of men with women is the cause of a great deal of immoral actions and zina, and it is one of the causes of widespread death and ongoing plagues."

(Al-Turuq al-Hukmiyyah p. 407)

Khalid ibn Ma’dan:

"Whoever seeks praise by going against the truth, Allah will throw it back upon him as blame, and whoever faces blame in order to conform to the truth, Allah will return it as praise for him."

(Al-Dhahabi, Siyar A’lam Al-Nubala' 4/540)

Ibn Taymiyyah (ra) said:" Believer doesn't seek quarrel or revenge, nor does he find blame or fault in others."

Isa Ibn Maryam passed by gathering of Jews who spoke evil words to him to which he responded with kindness. It was said to him, "Why do you reply to their evil with good?" And he answered, "Each person spends from that which he has."


Ibraaheem at Tamimi said: "When a man wrongs me, I pay him back with an act of mercy."


“When people help one another in sin and transgression, they finish by hating each other.”
-Ibn Taymiyyah


A man said to Hasan Al Basri : "Does Ibless sleep?" He said: "If he slept we would have a break !"

Source: Ibn Al Jawzi 'Talbisu Iblees' page 52


'Oh writer! An Angel watches over all you write. Make your writing meaningful for it will eventually return to you and you will be questioned about what you wrote.'
- Ali ibn Abu Talib (radiAllahu anhu)


Imam al-Shafi':

"Seek the response to your du'as when the armies meet, and the prayer is called, and when rain falls"

(al-Umm, al-Sahihah #1469)


'One, who adopts patience, will never be deprived of success though it may take a long time to reach him.'
-Ali ibn Abi Talib


Eesa Ibn Maryam:
"Piety is in three: in speech, in in sight, and in silence. Whoever's speech is not in the remembrance (of Allah) has spoken nonsense. Whoever looks without trying to learn a lesson has forgotten (his true purpose). And whoever's silence is not accompanied with reflection has been heedless" .


Abu Darda (ra) said:
" To reproach your brother for something is better than to lose him altogether"


Umar Ibn al-Khattaab:

"Whoever tries to claim something that is not theirs in order to impress others, Allah will disgrace them"

('Ilaam v2 p 432)


Imam ash-Shaafi'ee (rahimahullah) said:
" Increase in worship before your responsibilities increase. Then you won't have time to worship as much. " [Siyar v. 10 p. 49]



"There is no laughter except that it is eventually followed up with weeping." - Ibn Sirin (ra)


Imaam Ash-Shafi’ee said to Yoonus bin Abdil-A‘laa:

“O Aboo Moosa, know that pleasing all people is an unattainable goal and there is no way to be completely safe from them. Therefore, see where your righteous benefit lies, and adhere by it; and leave people and all they indulge in.”

[Al-‘Uzlah, Page 79]

Overlooking the faults of one's brothers

Overlooking the faults of one's brothers

Show forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the foolish [i.e. don't punish them]. (Qur 'an 7: 199)


It is not right for you to forsake your brother because of one or two faults that you find in him, especially if the rest of his character is honorable. As we know, perfection for any one of us is unattainable.

Al-Kindi said:
"How is it that you want your friend to possess a specific pattern of characteristics when your soul which is the closest of souls to you - does not always obey your commands? What right do you then have to expect another person's soul to follow your orders?"


Even as he is now, so were you yourselves before till Allah conferred on you His Favors [i.e. guided you to Islam]... (Qur'an 4: 94)


So ascribe not purity to yourselves. He knows best him who fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him. (Qur'an: 53: 32)


It is enough for you that you are satisfied with the main part of your brother's character.

Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
"To reproach your brother for something is better than to lose him altogether."

Some of the wise said:
"We are still not satisfied with ourselves, so how then can we expect ourselves to be satisfied with others."


It has also been said:
"Don't remain aloof from someone who impresses you with a good character and sound judgment because of some minor fault that is surrounded by an ocean of virtues. You will not find, as long as you live, a person so cultivated that he is free from blemish and sin. Contemplate your own self and how it often errs and strays. This kind of introspection makes your demand on others more balanced and makes you more sympathetic to the sinner."


An Arab poet said:
"Who is the one whose character is untainted,
Sufficient worthiness for someone is that his defects can be counted."

It has been said that one's suspicions concerning one's brother should not ruin a good mutual trust that has been tested over time.
Ja'far ibn Muhammad said to his son. "O' my son, whoever among your brothers becomes angry with you three times, and on each occasion speaks only the truth about you, take him as a close friend."

Al-Hasan ibn Wahb said,
"From the rights of mutual love is to forgive and overlook shortcomings."

So overlook their faults with gracious forgiveness. (Qur 'an 15: 85)


Ibn Roomi said:
"These are people and the world, and there is no doing away with dust
That irritates the eyes or spoils the drink.
From the lack of fairness is to expect refinement
In the world, while you yourself are unrefined."

And had it not been for the Grace of Allah and His Mercy on you, not one of you would ever have been pure from sins. (Qur 'an 24: 21)


A poet said:
"You seek a cultivated person who is free from defects, but does the aloe exude a pleasant odor without smoke."

He knows best him who fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him. (Qur'an 53: 32)

When a man wrongs me

Ibraheem at-Tamimi once said:
"When a man wrongs me, i pay him back with an act of mercy"

Allah caused people to forget their faults.

"I have met people in my city who seem the most righteous but they went out and started exposing people so Allah made their faults apparent. I know other people who have faults but because they are quiet Allah caused people to forget their faults."

- Imam Mālik rahimahu Llah -

From the pain of all others by his own pain"

"A person, if he is wise and pious
Is busied from others faults by his own blame 
Just as the sick person is distracted 
From the pain of all others by his own pain"

الاشتغال بع ىًب اليفس ع ع ىًب الآخسيً
أشغمو عن عيوب غيره ورعو
المرء إن كان عاقلا ورعا
عن وجع الناس كميم وجعو
كما العميل السقيم أشغمو

-Imam ash Shafie (ra)

Too much criticism leads to hate and bad behaviour.

'Ali Bin Abi Talib: "Do not criticize too much. Too much criticism leads to hate and bad behaviour. 
-[ar-Rawdhah, p.182]

The intelligent one must avoid envy

Abū Ḥātim (Ibn Ḥibbān) said,
”The intelligent one must avoid envy in every circumstance, for indeed the least of jealousy is being displeased with the Decree and wishing for the opposite of what Allāh, the Most High, has decreed for His slaves, and thereafter the heart being wrapped in wanting to see the blessing removed from the Muslim. The soul of the envier never finds rest and his body never finds relaxation unless he sees the blessing removed from his brother. But how impossible is that! How impossible that the Decree should aid the envier and what is in his inner self.”
(Rawḍat al-ʻUqalāʾ)

Don't search for the faults of others...

Al-Imaam Abu Haatim Ibn Hibbaan Al-Bustee said in his book entitled Rawdat-ul-‘Uqalaa wa Nuzhat-ul-Fudalaa: 

“It is obligatory upon the intelligent person not to search for the faults of others, and to busy himself with trying to correct his own faults. Verily, he who busies himself with his own faults rather than the faults of others will have peace of body and mind. Every time he realizes one of his own faults, the similar faults of his brother have less importance to him. However, he who busies himself with the faults of others instead of his own, tires himself out, and his heart becomes blind (to his own faults), and he begins to make excuses for not correcting his own faults.”


Rawdat-ul-‘Uqalaa wa Nuzhat-ul-Fudalaa (Page 131).


Al-Imaam Ibn Hibbaan also said: 

“Spying is one of the branches of hypocrisy, and thinking the best (of others) is one of the branches of faith. The intelligent person thinks the best of his brothers, and is personally concerned about the grievances and sorrows of his brother. However the ignorant person assumes the worst about his brothers and is unconcerned about the grievances and sorrows of his brother.”

Rawdat-ul-‘Uqalaa wa Nuzhat-ul-Fudalaa (Page 131).

The person who makes fun of others

as-Sa'di:

"The person who makes fun of others is oftentimes worse than them. To make fun of people only springs from a heart that is full of bad characters."

(Taysir-ul-Karim, p. 801)

If you see that one of you has slipped

Umar ibn al-Khattāb:
"If you see that one of you has slipped, correct him, pray for him and do not help Shaytan against him (by insulting him, etc.)." 

(Tafseer al-Qurtubi, 15/256)

There is no rest for the person

There is no rest for the person who has envy and there is no love for the person who has bad manners.
-Ali ibn Abi Taalib radiyaAllaahu 'anhu

don’t look at him as a sinner

"If one night you see someone committing a sin, tomorrow don’t look at him as a sinner, he may have repented during the night and you didn’t know." -Ali (R.A)

Declare your Jihad on thirteen enemies.

“Declare your Jihad on thirteen enemies.
What you cannot see:
Egoism, Arrogance,
Conceit, Selfishness, Greed, Lust, Intolerance, Anger, Lying, Cheating, Gossiping and Slandering. 
If you can master and destroy them, then you will be ready to fight the enemy you can see.”

Imam al Ghazali

Speak the truth even if it is against yourself

Luqmaan said to his son “Speak the truth even if it is against yourself and do not care about who is getting angry”

— [Aadab ush-Share’ah 1/74]

secrets are revealed when one asks others for advice

Ibn Hibban: 

"The wise one has to know that secrets are revealed when one asks others for advice. He should therefore only consult the smart one, the sincere adviser, the loving and the religious."

(ar-Rawdhah, p. 192)

Don't show pleasure in somebody's downfall

"Don't show pleasure in somebody's downfall, for you have no knowledge of what the future holds in store for you" - Ali bin Abi Talib rahimahullah

Learn [to perfect] your intentions

Yahya Bin Abee Kathir once mentioned:

"Learn [to perfect] your intentions, because your intentions will help you reach what your actions will never be able to reach."

Jaami'al Uloom wal-Hikam

If you can not be of benefit to the muslims, then do not harm them

'If you can not be of benefit to the muslims, then do not harm them; if you can not make them happy, then do not make them sorrowful; if you cannot please them, then do not abuse them; and if you can not praise them, then do not disparage them' - Yahya bin Muadh

“Do you think I have paid her back?”

“Do you think I have paid her back?”

Ibn Al-Jawzi writes:

عن زرعة أن رجلا أتى عمر فقال: إن لي أما بلغ بها الكبر أنها لا تقضي حاجتها إلا وظهري لها مطية أوَضّئها وأصرف وجهي عنها، فهل أديت حقها ؟ قال: لا، قال: أليس قد حملتها على ظهري وحبست ع

ليها نفسي ؟ قال: إنها كانت تصنع ذلك وهي تتمنى بقاءك وأنت تصنع ذلك وأنت تتمنى فراقها


Zur’ah ibn Ibraaheem narrated that a man came to ‘Umar and said to him: “I have an old mother who is unable to go answer the call of nature, so I carry her on my back. I also help her perform ablution while turning my face away from her (out of respect). Have I fulfilled my duty towards her?”
‘Umar said, “No.” The man said, “Even though I carry her on my back and exert myself in her service”
‘Umar said: “She used to do the same for you when you were young, while hoping that you will live. As for you, you await when she will go away (die).”

["Al-Birr was-Silah", 35]

Do not respond to anyone until you have understood their words

Yahyaa ibn Khaalid (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

لَا تُرَدَّ عَلَى أَحَدٍ جَوَاباً حَتَى تَفْهَمُ كَلَامَهُ

Do not respond to anyone until you have understood their words,

فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ يَصْرِ فُكَ عَنْ جَوَابِ كَلَامِهِ إِلَى غَيْرِهِ وَ يُؤَكِّدُ اَلجَهْلَ عَلَيْكَ

For that will cause you to respond to what they have not said, and thus confirm your own ignorance.

وَ لَكِنِ اَفْهَمْ عَنْهُ، فَإِذَا فَهِمْتَهُ فَأَجِبْهُ، وَ لَا تَتَعَجَّلْ بِالجَوَابِ قَبْل َالِاسْتِفْهَامِ

Rather you must understand his speech properly. So when you understand him, then respond. And do not rush to answer before asking for clarity.

وَ لَا تَسْتَحْيِ أَنْ تَسْتَفْهِمَ إِذَا لَمْ تَفْهَمْ، فَإِنَّ اَلجَوَابَ قَبْلَ اَلْفَهْمِ حُمْقٌ

And do not be shy to seek clarity when you do not understand. For verily answering before understanding is sheer idiocy!

وَ إِذَا جَهِلْتَ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَسْأَلَ، فَيَبْدُو لَكَ

So if you do not know before asking, then ask! Then it will come to you.

فَسُؤَالُكَ وَاسْتِفْهَامُكَ أَحْمَدُ بِكَ وَ خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنَ السُّكُوتِ عَلَى الْعَيِّ.

Your questioning and seeking clarity is more praiseworthy and better for you then being silent and incapable of expressing yourself!