Mercy on those on Earth

Assalaamu alaikum [peace be to you],


The last Messenger of the God, Mohammed -peace be upon him- is a source of wisdom for all aspiring Muslims and many non-muslims. his words changed the backward ignorant Arabs and made them into a great nation. these same words keep shaping people's life all around the world. you don't need to be a Muslim in order to recognize and appreciate the beauty of the teachings of Mohammed -peace be upon him-, as many of his teachings can be taken as life guidelines for anyone who wants to be a better human being.

Today, I'd like to talk a little about poor and needy people and how they are seen through the words of Mohammed -peace be upon him-.
One of the great reforms that the Prophet Mohammed -peace be upon him- brought was the rights and treatment of the poor. Prior to the restoration of Islam by the last prophet of the God, the pagan Arabs used to look down on the poor, oppress them, mistreat them and take advantage of them. the poor people were basically an insignificant portion of society that did not matter. However so, with the Prophet Mohammed -peace be upon him- that all changed, the Muslims were now obliged to look after the poor, and were required to spend of their wealth to help the poor out. this is a divine order, not simply an optional courtesy.

The Prophet Mohammed -peace be upon him- once said in his supplication: "O Allah, grant me life as a poor man, cause me to die as a poor man and resurrect me in the company of the poor..." His wife asked him why he said that, and he replied: "Because (the poor) will enter Paradise (before) the rich.*" he added "Do not turn away a poor man... even if all you can give is half a date. If you love the poor and bring them near you, God will bring you near Him on the Day of Resurrection."

The prophet -peace be upon him- also said:
"Allah, the God, the Mighty and Exalted, will say on the Day of judgement, 'O Son of Adam, I was ill and you did not visit Me.' The man will say, 'O Lord, how could I visit You when You are the Lord of the worlds?' He will say, 'Do you not know that My servant** so-and-so was ill and you did not visit him? Do you not know that if you had visited him, you would have found Me with him? O son of Adam, I asked you for food and you did not feed Me?' He will say, 'O Lord, how could I feed You when You are the Lord of the worlds?' He will say, 'Do you not know that My servant so-and-so asked you for food and you did not feed him? Do you not know that if you had fed him, you would have found that with Me. O son of Adam, I asked you for water and you did not give it to Me.' He will say, 'O Lord, how could I give You water when You are the Lord of the worlds?' He will say, 'My servant so-and-so asked you for water and you did not give it to him. Do you not know that if you had given him water, you would have found that with Me?'"

The prophet Mohammed -peace be upon him- said:
“Those who have mercy will receive the mercy of the Most Merciful***. Have mercy on those who are on earth, the One in heavens will have mercy on you.”
Our mercy should extend even to animals, for they too are included in “those who are on earth”. Once the Prophet -peace be upon him- said: "While a man was walking he felt thirsty and went down a well and drank water from it. On coming out of it, he saw a dog panting and eating mud because of excessive thirst. The man said, 'This (dog) is suffering from the same problem as that of mine. So he (went down the well), filled his shoe with water, caught hold of it with his teeth and climbed up and watered the dog. Allah thanked him for his (good) deed and forgave him (his sins)." The people asked, "O Allah's Apostle! Is there a reward for us in serving (the) animals?" He replied, "Yes, there is a reward for serving any living thing."




<sup>* why would the poor enter paradise before the rich?
in the day of judgment, man will give account to the God for all what he did in this earthly life. mainly 5 things:
1- his youth how did he spend it?
2- his time how did he use it?
3 & 4- his wealth how did he get it? and how did he spend it?
5- his knowledge how did he benefit from it?
so the poor will not be asked about 3 and 4. their judgment will be shorter than the rich. that's why wealth is not regarded as honor, but a great responsibility.

** why is man regarded as a servant of the God?
in Islam, we believe the God is the creator of the whole universe, he is the owner, the lord and master of all that exists. and all his creation is under his command. so all are his servants and can do nothing but what he allows. man is an honored creation of the God, but he is still under God's command. he is the caretaker of the earth and is supposed to manage it following the guidelines of the God. so man is a servant of the God.

*** Who is the Most Merciful?
The Most merciful is one of the names of the God. in Islam, the God has 99 names, among them, Allah (the one true God), Ar-Rahman (The Most Greacious), Ar-Raheem (The Most Merciful), Al-Ghafoor (The Forgiver of sins), Al-Hadee (The Guide), An-Noor (The Light), Al-'adl (The Justice) and many many others. all are very beautiful names representing the Qualities of the God. I will talk more about them later in sha'Allah...</sup>


I hope that's beneficial.


More on the prophet Mohammed -peace be upon him-:
prophetofislam.com
prophetictimeline.com
pbuh.us

If I am right, it's from the God, if wrong, it's from myself.

Wassalaamu alaikum