At the beginning...

At the beginning, it may be necessary for him to impose upon himself the attitude necessitated by this virtue, notwithstanding his inner inclination to the contrary, until jealousy is overcome and nasthah becomes an established trait of his character. Harassing and Insulting Others This kind of behaviour is usually caused by jealousy and enmity, although it may also be rooted in greed (hasad), avarice (tama'), pride (takabbur), etc.

Thus, its source is either the Power of Anger or the Power of Passion, or both. In any case, harassment and. insulting of other Muslims is a major sin, and has been repeatedly condemned both in Qur’anic verses and traditions: And those who hurt believing men and believing women, without that they have earned it, they bear the guilt of slander and manifest sin.

(33:58) And in a tradition attributed to the Prophet (S) we read: من آذى مؤمنا فقد آذاني, ومن آذاني فقد آذى الله, ومن آذى الله فهو ملعون في التوراة والإنجيل والزبور والفرقان. Whoever hurts a believer, hurts me; whoever hurts me, hurts God: and whoever hurts God is the accursed of Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms, and the Qur’an.

(from Jami' al-akhbar) On the other hand, stopping someone from harassing and insulting others is a worthy act praised in several traditions, of which the following prophetic hadith is an example. ‏من زحزح عن طريق المسلمين شيئا ‏ ‏يؤذيهم, كتب الله له به حسنة ومن كتب له عنده حسنة أدخله الله بها الجنة.

‏ Whoever removes an annoying hurdle from the path of Muslims, God shall write for him a virtue, whose reward is Paradise.[^1] Frightening and Bothering Muslims This kind of behaviour is a branch of the above-mentioned vice, and is caused by either anger, ill-temperedness, or avarice. Its opposite is making others happy and removing their cause of sorrow or anxiety.

There are numerous traditions in praise of this virtue, such as the following from the Prophet (S): ان احب الأعمال إلى الله عز وجل إدخال السرور على المؤمنين. Indeed the most beloved action near God, the Almighty, is to make the believers happy. Indifference to the Affairs of Muslims Being indifferent to the affairs of Muslims is a moral vice caused by lethargy, spiritual weakness, or miserliness.

This vice is condemned in numerous traditions, an example of which is the following wellknown statement of the Prophet (S): من أصبح لا يهتم بأمور المسلمين فليس منهم ومن سمع رجلا ينادي يا للمسلمين فلم يجبه فليس بمسلم.