Hadiths 19 and 20: "Be mindful of Allah" and modesty

Hadith 19: be mindful of Allah, He will protect you From Abu l-'Abbaas 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with them both): one day I was behind the Prophet ﷺ and he said to me: "O young boy, I will teach you some words: احْفَظِ اللَّهَ يَحْفَظْكَ، احْفَظِ اللَّهَ تَجِدْهُ تُجَاهَكَ، إِذَا سَأَلْتَ فَاسْأَلِ اللَّهَ، وَإِذَا اسْتَعَنْتَ فَاسْتَعِنْ بِاللَّهِ Be mindful of Allah, He will protect you; be mindful of Allah, you will find Him before you. When you ask, ask Allah; when you seek help, seek it from Allah. And know that if the whole community gathered to benefit you with something, it would benefit you only with what Allah has already written for you; and if it gathered to harm you with something, it would harm you only with what Allah has already written against you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried." Source: At-Tirmidhi 2516, who grades it "ḥasan ṣaḥiiḥ". Another version (Aḥmad [À VÉRIFIER : numéro]) adds: "Make yourself known to Allah in ease, He will know you in hardship… Know that victory comes with patience, relief with distress, and that with hardship comes ease."

The commentary • "Be mindful of Allah": Ibn Rajab explains: guard His limits, His rights, His commands and His prohibitions; first of all, prayer, purity, the tongue and the gaze. The reward is of the same kind: Allah protects the person in his religion, family, health and property. • "You will find Him before you": with His help, His support and His protection. • Asking Allah: supplication is worship. Asking people for help in what they are able to do is permitted, but the heart relies on Allah. • Destiny: the sentence about the gathered community frees the heart from fear of people and from hope placed in them. This does not remove causes: one acts, then relies on Allah. • The setting: a young boy, on a mount behind the Prophet ﷺ. Scholars see here a method of education: teaching faith early, in short sentences, in a moment of closeness.

In daily life • Guard one concrete thing this week: prayer on time, or your gaze, or your tongue. • Teach this hadith to your children, as a family, in the car, at bedtime.

Hadith 20: if you feel no shame, do as you wish From Abu Mas'uud 'Uqba ibn 'Amr al-Anṣaari al-Badri (may Allah be pleased with him): the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: إِنَّ مِمَّا أَدْرَكَ النَّاسُ مِنْ كَلَامِ النُّبُوَّةِ الْأُولَى: إِذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحِ فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْتَ "Among what people have retained of the words of the first prophecy: if you feel no shame, do as you wish." Source: Bukhari 3483 (and 6120).

The commentary • "The first prophecy": this saying comes from earlier prophets; it has remained known among people. Modesty (al-ḥayaa') is part of what all the messengers taught. • Two meanings, reported by An-Nawawi and Ibn Rajab: 1) a threat: whoever has lost modesty will do anything, and will answer for it, as when it is said "do what you will" (41:40); 2) a permission: if an act is not one you would be ashamed of before Allah, do it. Ibn Daqiiq al-'Iid also mentions a third meaning, a command expressed as a statement [À VÉRIFIER : formulation]. • Two kinds of modesty: the innate one, and the one acquired by knowing Allah and His closeness. "Modesty is part of faith" (Bukhari 24, Muslim 36) [À VÉRIFIER : numéros]; "modesty brings nothing but good" (Bukhari 6117, Muslim 37). • False modesty: shyness that prevents one from learning, telling the truth or enjoining good is not praiseworthy modesty, the commentators explain.

In daily life • What you would not do in front of a respected person, do not do in front of Allah, who sees you. • Keep modesty in clothing, words, humour and what you post. • Do not be ashamed to ask a question about religion: modesty does not prevent learning.

The text: Surah Aṭ-Ṭalaaq (65), verse 3 وَيَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُ ۚ وَمَنْ يَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَى اللَّهِ فَهُوَ حَسْبُهُ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ بَالِغُ أَمْرِهِ ۚ قَدْ جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدْرًا ﴿٣﴾

Meaning: "…and He provides for him from where he does not expect. And whoever puts his trust in Allah, He is sufficient for him. Allah accomplishes what He wills, and He has set a measure for everything." The previous verse ends with: "And whoever fears Allah, He makes a way out for him." Like hadith 19, it links fear of Allah, trust in Him and destiny.

Arabic text: Tanzil Quran Text (Simple, version 1.0.2), © 2008-2010 Tanzil.net, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence, reproduced without any change (http://tanzil.net). Each verse is on its own line, followed by its number; the basmala, which the Tanzil file places at the start of the first verse, is written on its own line.

Understanding the lesson

Explanation Hadith 19 is, according to Ibn Rajab, one of the greatest about the relationship between the human being and Allah. It fits in a few sentences: take care of Allah's rights, and He will take care of you; turn to Him for everything; know that people can do nothing outside what He has written. It is a liberation: one no longer lives in fear of people nor waiting for their approval. Hadith 20 shows the inner brake that all the prophets taught: modesty. When it disappears, no limit remains. It is nourished by knowledge of Allah: knowing that He sees (hadith 2) gives rise to modesty before Him. Together, the two hadiths form a complete education: trust in Allah that makes one strong, and modesty that makes one dignified.

Lessons to draw from it • Be mindful of Allah in concrete points: prayer, purity, tongue, gaze. • Ask Allah first, even for small things; use means without attaching one's heart to them. • Do not fear people to the point of disobeying Allah, nor hope from them more than from Allah. • Keep modesty in appearance, words and screens, without false shyness before knowledge. • Teach faith to children early, in short words and in moments of closeness.

Key points to remember • Hadith 19 (At-Tirmidhi 2516): احْفَظِ اللَّهَ يَحْفَظْكَ. • "The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried." • Hadith 20 (Bukhari 3483): إِذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحِ فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْتَ. • Two meanings: a threat, or permission to do what one is not ashamed of before Allah. • Modesty is part of faith and brings nothing but good.

The main message Be mindful of Allah and He will protect you; keep modesty before Him, and you will be free before people and dignified in everything.