If he has wronged you unintentionally...

If he has wronged you unintentionally, it is not proper to punish him intentionally. Rather you should be kind to and gentle with him. Invitation to Pardon Very few people are able to totally avoid violating the rights of others whether intentionally or unintentionally. If people are urged to take revenge whenever they can do so, then there will be an escalation of harsh social encounters. Attacks for taking revenge are of an unpredictable nature and no one can control their severity.

Usually they will be harsh. Even if they are measurable and controllable, they never seem to be exactly equal to compensate for the wrong that was done from the views of both parties involved. Therefore, even if one side wants to be fair and exactly punish the other side in an amount equal to the original misdeed, the other party does not agree and will be urged to take revenge himself. Thus, the fighting will continue on and on.

The only possible way to stop this chain of revenge taking is forgiving. If we think we will realize that there is no real benefit in taking revenge, since it will only bring temporary relief for us. Yet the satisfaction we can get from pardoning the other party is much more spiritually rewarding and long-lasting. This issue has been delicately addressed in the Holy Qur’an and Islamic literature, and pardoning has been declared an important duty for Muslims.

First, let us consider the Qur’anic verses that Imam Sajjad referred to. Seeking Help from the Believers Seeking help from other believers is one of the signs of believers. The Holy Qur’an says: وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَهُمُ الْبَغْيُ هُمْ يَنتَصِرُونَ “And those who, when an oppressive wrong is inflicted on them, (are not cowed but) help and defend themselves.” [The Holy Qur’an, al-Shura 42:39] What we can learn from this verse is that those whose help is sought are duty-bound to help.

That implies that both the believer who is being oppressed and other believers are responsible to help defend against the oppressor. This is also stated in the following verse of the Holy Qur’an: وَإِنِ اسْتَنصَرُوكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ فَعَلَيْكُمُ النَّصْرُ “… But if they seek your aid in religion, it is your duty to help them.” [The Holy Qur’an, al-Anfal 8:72] This responsibility placed on the believer’s shoulders to help each other at times of oppression warns the oppressors.

They will then know that other believers will not sit idle if a believer is oppressed.

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