A Ruler Must Deal with His Subjects with Compassion and Mercy
Written by: Imran Ayyub Lahori
➊ Narration of Jarīr ibn ʿAbdullāh (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«من لا يرحم الناس لا يرحمه الله»
"Whoever does not show mercy to people, Allah will not show mercy to him."
References: [Muslim: 2319, Kitāb al-Faḍāʾil; Bukhārī: 6013; Tirmidhī: 1922; Aḥmad: 3/40]
➋ Narration of Ibn Masʿūd (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«من لم يرحم الناس لم يرحمه الله»
"He who does not show mercy to people, Allah will not show mercy to him."
References: [Ḥasan li-ghayrihi: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2254, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Ṭabarānī with a ḥasan chain]
➌ Narration of ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«الراحمون يرحمهم الرحمن ، ارحموا من فى الأرض يرحمكم من فى السماء»
"The merciful are shown mercy by the Most Merciful. Show mercy to those on earth, and He who is in the heaven will show mercy to you."
References: [Ḥasan li-ghayrihi: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2256, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Abū Dāwūd: 4941; Tirmidhī: 1924]
➍ Narration of Abū Mūsā (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«لن تؤمنوا حتى تراحموا … إنه ليس برحمة أحدكم صاحبه ، ولكنها رحمة العامة»
"You will not truly believe until you have mercy on one another." They said: "O Messenger of Allah! All of us are merciful." He said: "It is not the mercy one of you shows to his companion, but rather it is mercy for all people."
References: [Ḥasan li-ghayrihi: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2253, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Ṭabarānī with trustworthy narrators]
➎ Narration of Anas ibn Mālik (RA):
He said: We were in a house in which a group of Muhājirīn and Anṣār were present. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to us. Each person hoped that the Prophet ﷺ would sit beside him. Then the Prophet ﷺ stood at the door, grasped its two posts, and said:
«الائمة من قريش ، إذا استرحموا رحــمــوا ، وإذا حكموا عدلوا ، وإذا عاهدوا وفوا ، فمن لم يفعل ذلك فعليه لعنة الله والملائكة والناس أجمعين»
"The leaders will be from Quraysh. When mercy is sought from them, they will show mercy. When they judge, they will judge justly. When they make a covenant, they will fulfill it. But whoever does not do this, upon him is the curse of Allah, the angels, and all people."
References: [Ṣaḥīḥ: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2259, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Aḥmad: 3/129; Abū Yaʿlā: 4023, 4033; Ṭabarānī al-Kabīr with a ḥasan chain]
Written by: Imran Ayyub Lahori
❖ Prophetic Guidance on Mercy and Governance
➊ Narration of Jarīr ibn ʿAbdullāh (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«من لا يرحم الناس لا يرحمه الله»
"Whoever does not show mercy to people, Allah will not show mercy to him."
References: [Muslim: 2319, Kitāb al-Faḍāʾil; Bukhārī: 6013; Tirmidhī: 1922; Aḥmad: 3/40]
➋ Narration of Ibn Masʿūd (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«من لم يرحم الناس لم يرحمه الله»
"He who does not show mercy to people, Allah will not show mercy to him."
References: [Ḥasan li-ghayrihi: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2254, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Ṭabarānī with a ḥasan chain]
➌ Narration of ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«الراحمون يرحمهم الرحمن ، ارحموا من فى الأرض يرحمكم من فى السماء»
"The merciful are shown mercy by the Most Merciful. Show mercy to those on earth, and He who is in the heaven will show mercy to you."
References: [Ḥasan li-ghayrihi: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2256, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Abū Dāwūd: 4941; Tirmidhī: 1924]
➍ Narration of Abū Mūsā (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«لن تؤمنوا حتى تراحموا … إنه ليس برحمة أحدكم صاحبه ، ولكنها رحمة العامة»
"You will not truly believe until you have mercy on one another." They said: "O Messenger of Allah! All of us are merciful." He said: "It is not the mercy one of you shows to his companion, but rather it is mercy for all people."
References: [Ḥasan li-ghayrihi: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2253, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Ṭabarānī with trustworthy narrators]
➎ Narration of Anas ibn Mālik (RA):
He said: We were in a house in which a group of Muhājirīn and Anṣār were present. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to us. Each person hoped that the Prophet ﷺ would sit beside him. Then the Prophet ﷺ stood at the door, grasped its two posts, and said:
«الائمة من قريش ، إذا استرحموا رحــمــوا ، وإذا حكموا عدلوا ، وإذا عاهدوا وفوا ، فمن لم يفعل ذلك فعليه لعنة الله والملائكة والناس أجمعين»
"The leaders will be from Quraysh. When mercy is sought from them, they will show mercy. When they judge, they will judge justly. When they make a covenant, they will fulfill it. But whoever does not do this, upon him is the curse of Allah, the angels, and all people."
References: [Ṣaḥīḥ: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb: 2259, Kitāb al-Qaḍāʾ; Aḥmad: 3/129; Abū Yaʿlā: 4023, 4033; Ṭabarānī al-Kabīr with a ḥasan chain]
