Everyone has heard that ‛Amr bin ‛Abd Wudd spat in Imām...

Everyone has heard that ‛Amr bin ‛Abd Wudd spat in Imām ‛Alī's (a) face when they were at war. Imām ‛Alī (a) did not kill him at that moment; instead he waited for a little while and then chopped his head off. After people asked him why he hesitated, he said that if he would have killed him at that moment he would have been acting according to personal anger which is wrong.

Tribalism Another kind of anger is coming to the aid of some one with whom you have some kind of relationship even though he is in the wrong. For example, if a person in your family commits a crime and you help him only because he is a member of your family. One must help the oppressed not the oppressor, even if the oppressor is one's child. Sometimes people help out members of their own gang, even if they are oppressors, just because they are from the same gang.

Tribalism Is Against The Divine Decree Imām Sajjād (a) said that negative tribalism is when a person thinks that a bad person from his tribe is better than good people from another tribe.[^3] They think that a terrible person is good only because he is a member of their tribe or family. Loving One’s Family And Tribalism Are Two Different Things I will also mention the point that one must love one’s family. This is a natural feeling that Allah put in man. One must also love one’s friends.

He must help his family and his friends, but what is disliked and bad is helping out a friend or a family member even when he is an oppressor. One must help his family and friends, but not in oppression. One must not differentiate between family members and other people when it comes to oppression. One must always act in accordance to justice.

Imām Sādiq (a) said: “The army on the right side is just and the opposing army acts in accordance with tribalism.” One must help the oppressed even if one's son is the oppressor and even if his help will hurt his son. One must help the oppressed even if the help that he gives will hurt his own self. The Qurān says the following about this: “Stand up for justice… even if it is against your own selves.” ^4 For example, suppose one of your friends or relatives got in a fight and he was in the right.

Here you should give witness to help your friend or relative. But, if you know that the other person was in the right you must give witness against your friend or relative. This should not be exclusive to the courtroom, but in any case that you must give witness.