The Message of Rights
Among the teachings of Islam, is The Message of Rights by the great Imam Zain Al-Abideen (peace be upon him). It has developed living approaches to human behavior, the development of a human life, and the building of a human civilization on foundations of all available factors of psychological stability and prevention of all kinds of anxiety, disorder, and any life complication. Imam Zain Al-Abideen looked deeply and comprehensively at the human being and studied all dimensions of his life and his relationships with his Creator, himself, his family, his society, his government, his teacher and so on, and so he set these rights for him and made him responsible for its care and maintenance. These duties were assigned to create a society in which justice prevails.
“In the Name of Allah, the All-merciful, the All-compassionate
Know - God have mercy upon you - that God has rights against you and that these encompass you in every movement through which you move, every rest through which you rest, every way-station in which you reside, every limb which you employ, and every instrument which you put to work. Some of these rights are greater and some less.
The greatest of God's rights against you is the right which He has made incumbent upon you for Himself and which is the root of all rights, then those which He has made incumbent upon you in yourself, from your crown to your foot, in keeping with the diversity of your organs.
He has given your tongue a right against you, your hearing a right against you, your sight a right against you, your hand a right against you, your leg a right against you, your stomach a right against you, and your private part a right against you. These are the seven organs through which acts take place.
“In the Name of Allah, the All-merciful, the All-compassionate
Know - God have mercy upon you - that God has rights against you and that these encompass you in every movement through which you move, every rest through which you rest, every way-station in which you reside, every limb which you employ, and every instrument which you put to work. Some of these rights are greater and some less.
The greatest of God's rights against you is the right which He has made incumbent upon you for Himself and which is the root of all rights, then those which He has made incumbent upon you in yourself, from your crown to your foot, in keeping with the diversity of your organs.
He has given your tongue a right against you, your hearing a right against you, your sight a right against you, your hand a right against you, your leg a right against you, your stomach a right against you, and your private part a right against you. These are the seven organs through which acts take place.
Then He gave your acts rights against you: He gave your ritual prayer a right against you, your fasting a right against you, your charity a right against you, your offering a right against you, and your acts a right against you.
Then these rights extend out from you to others who have rights against you. The most incumbent of them against you are the rights toward your leaders, then the rights toward your wards*, then the rights toward your womb [relatives].
From these rights branch out other rights. The rights of your leaders are three: The most incumbent upon you is the right of him who trains you through authority, then of him who trains you through knowledge, then of him who trains you through property.
The rights of your wards are three: The most incumbent upon you is the right of those who are your wards through authority, then the right of those who are your wards through knowledge - for the man of ignorance is the subject of the man of knowledge - then the right of those who are your wards through [guardianship], such as wives and what is owned by the right hand.
Then these rights extend out from you to others who have rights against you. The most incumbent of them against you are the rights toward your leaders, then the rights toward your wards*, then the rights toward your womb [relatives].
From these rights branch out other rights. The rights of your leaders are three: The most incumbent upon you is the right of him who trains you through authority, then of him who trains you through knowledge, then of him who trains you through property.
The rights of your wards are three: The most incumbent upon you is the right of those who are your wards through authority, then the right of those who are your wards through knowledge - for the man of ignorance is the subject of the man of knowledge - then the right of those who are your wards through [guardianship], such as wives and what is owned by the right hand.
The rights of your womb relatives are many; they are connected to you in the measure of the connection of the womb relationship. The most incumbent upon you is the right of your mother, then the right of your father, then the right of your child, then the right of your brother, then the next nearest, then the next nearest - the most worthy, then the next most worthy.
Then there is the right of your master who favors you [by freeing you from slavery], then the right of the slave whose favors reach you [by the fact that you free him], then the right of him who does a kindly act toward you, then the right of the prayer caller who calls you to the ritual prayer, then the right of the imam who leads the prayer, then the right of your sitting companion, then the right of your neighbour, then the right of your companion, then the right of your partner, then the right of your property, then the right of him who has a debt he must pay back to you, then the right of him to whom you owe a debt.
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Then the right of your associate, then the right of your adversary who has a claim against you, then the right of your adversary against whom you have a claim, then the right of him who asks you for advice, then the right of him whom you ask for advice, then the right of him who asks your counsel, then the right of him who counsels you, then the right of him who is older than you, then the right of him who is younger than you.
Then the right of him who asks from you, then the right of him from whom you ask, then the right of him who does something evil to you through word or deed, or him who makes you happy through word or deed, intentionally or unintentionally, then the right of the people of your creed, then the right of the people under your protection, then all rights in the measure of the causes of the states and the occurrence of events.
Then the right of him who asks from you, then the right of him from whom you ask, then the right of him who does something evil to you through word or deed, or him who makes you happy through word or deed, intentionally or unintentionally, then the right of the people of your creed, then the right of the people under your protection, then all rights in the measure of the causes of the states and the occurrence of events.
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Therefore happy is he whom God aids in the rights which He has made incumbent upon him, and whom He gives success, therein, and points in the proper direction!
Sources:
- https://www.al-islam.org/printpdf/book/export/html/19029
- Figure 1: https://www.bleaq.com/2016/nunzio-paci-update/nunzio-paci-update-03
- Figure 2: https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2019/important-works-from-the-najd-collection/frederick-goodall-the-madrasa
- Figure 4: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/626070785668452748/
- Figure 5: https://www.tumblr.com/search/call%20to%20allah
- Figure 6: https://www.jieweizhoufineart.com/workszoom/2250320
- Figure 7: https://www.deviantart.com/missysart/art/Grandfather-and-Granddaughter-327829236
1. The Greatest Right of God
The greatest right of God against you is that you worship Him without associating anything with Him. When you do that with sincerity, He has made it binding upon Himself to give you sufficiency in the affair of this world and the next.
Figure: https://fineartamerica.com/featured/multitude-of-worshippers-gregory-staton.html?product=art-print
2. The Right of your self
The right of your self (nafs) against you is that you employ it in obeying God; with this, you deliver to your tongue its right, to your hearing its right, to your sight its right, to your hand its right, to your leg its right, to your stomach its right, to your private part its right, and you seek help from God in all that.
3. The Right of the Tongue
The right of the tongue is that you consider it too noble for obscenity. Accustom it to good, refrain from any meddling in which there is nothing to be gained, express kindness to the people, and speak well about them.
