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| Social Values in Islâm Ishaq Y. Qutub, Ph.D. Every aspect of human relationship is
governed by social values. In Islam all values affecting man are based
upon the Qur'anic concept that each human being is endowed by the Almighty
God with the highest potential for doing good to himself and to his
society, and so he is capable of achieving the highest level of moral and
spiritual development and that his personality must be respected. The
Qur'an takes note of diversities of race, color, language, wealth etc.,
which serve their own useful purposes in the social scheme, and describes
them as signs of Allah for those who hear and possess knowledge. The
Qur'an states that Allah has divided mankind into tribes and nations for
greater facility of intercourse. Neither membership in a tribe nor
citizenship in a state confers any privilege nor are they source of honor.
The true source of honor in the sight of Allah (God) is a righteous life.
In his Farewell Address, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said, "You are all
brothers, and are all equal. None of you can claim any privilege or any
superiority over any other." Islam has established a universal
brotherhood. It is stressed that a true brotherhood can be established
only by virtue of mankind’s relationship with one another through Allah.
Other factors e.g. common interests, common pursuits, common occupations
may help to foster friendship and brotherhood. Islam considers the family as the basic
unit of human society. The foundation of a family is laid through
marriage. The relationship between husband, wife is children should be
strong and ever- lasting. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) noted once, "The
best among you is he who treats the members of his family best." In
order to maintain harmony within the family, Islam looked down upon
divorce and considered it as the most obnoxious in the sight of Allah but
if the relationship between the husband and wife is no longer endurable,
it can be resorted to divorce with the object to provide the opportunity
for a better and decent life. Great stress is laid on the proper
upbringing and training of children. Infanticide, which was a common
practice during certain periods of human history, is prohibited. Special
concern was given to proper upbringing of girls. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)
said, "A person who is blessed with a daughter or daughters and makes
no discrimination between them and his sons and brings them up with
kindness and affection will be as close to paradise as my forefinger and
middle ringer are to each other." While stressing kindness and
affection toward children and uniformly treating all children tenderly, he
did not approve of undue indulgence. The Qur'an lays great stress on kindness
toward neighbors, and in the same way the treatment of the needy and the
wayfarer. Orphans have been made the objects of particular care. Their
proper upbringing and the due administration of their property must be
ensured. Detailed directions are laid down with regard to the guardianship
of minors. Another feature of Islam is that it aims at
merging all sections of society into a single community so that all
persons may feel them selves to be members of the same family. Islam
encourages simple ways of life and to dispense with artificial ceremonial
and superficial standards of living. Islam recognized that there must be
diversity of all kinds in a healthy society, and that it is not only
futile but also harmful to covet that in which others excel. Each must
exercise his or her owns capacities and talents and strives to promote
both individual and common good. Begging is prohibited except in me of
extreme need. Various aspects of good manners are insisted upon. In Surah
3 1, Vs. 18 Allah says "Turn not thy face away from people in pride,
nor walk in the earth haughtily; surely Allah loves not any arrogant
boaster. Moderate thy pace when walking and soften thy voice when
speaking". As for group activities Islam recognizes
three types of public associations; first, those formed for the purpose of
promoting the general welfare, in other words, charitable associations and
the like. Second, the object of which is to promote the spread and
propagation of knowledge and investigation and research into the sciences,
arts, philosophies etc., third, those established for the purpose of
peaceful settlement of disputes and for removing causes of friction,
whether in domestic, national, political or international spheres, and
thereby promoting peace among mankind. When people are gathered together
for a common purpose, they should behave in an orderly manner, and should
not leave or disperse without permission. All people should behave with
dignity and particular attention must be paid to maintenance of order in
public places. Persons using public places must take care that no undue
inconvenience is occasioned to others using the same, nor should any
person be exposed to risk or injury. The obligation is laid upon everyone to
urge others toward good ness and to seek to restrain them from evil, but
with kindness and affection. Spying, backbiting and undue suspicion must
be avoided. It is a duty of every Muslim constantly to seek increase of
knowledge. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) went so far as to add, "A word of
wisdom is the lost property of a Muslim. He should seize it wherever he
finds it." The Prophet (PBUH) was very insistent upon
kindness towards animals. On one occasion he noticed a dove in anguish
flying around agitatedly and discovered that somebody had caught its
offspring. He was very annoyed and asked the person to restore the
offspring to the mother immediately. Perhaps the most comprehensive
directive within the domain of social values is: "Help one another in
righteousness and virtue but help not one another in transgression."
When Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said on one occasion, "Help your brother
whether oppressor or oppressed", he was asked "We understand
what you mean by going to the help of a brother who is oppressed, but how
shall we help a brother who is an oppressor?" The Prophet (PBUH)
replied, "By restraining him from oppressing others." Regarding the moral and spiritual values,
an essential element in the effort toward achievement of moral and
spiritual excellence is the certainty that however low a person may have
fallen, it is always possible for him to rise. Islam teaches that Allah
has created mankind in accord with the nature designed by him. It is true
that each person is subject to influences of heredity, upbringing, and
environment, but these can, where necessary, be corrected or eliminated.
Evil comes from outside and can be kept out or having entered, can be
discarded. As for vice and virtue, Islam considers the
lowest grade of vice that conduct which causes injury to others; for
instance, all aggression against the person, property, interests or honor
of fellow being. Most of these are crimes; the rest are civil wrongs and
are punishable. All of them are moral offenses. As for virtue, there are
three grades of virtues prescribed by Islam: The first (lowest) is
described as equity or equitable dealing. This means to do good equal to
the good one receives from others. Furthermore, it means that when one
suffers a wrong, one should not impose or insist upon the imposition of a
penalty in excess of the wrong suffered. The second is that of conscious
beneficence, the doing of greater good in return for good and the doing of
good without expectation of any return, and forgiveness of wrong if in the
circumstances, may reasonably be expected that forgiveness would help the
wrongdoer reform himself. The third is the instinctive beneficence that
flows out from one as love and affection flow out toward one's kindred.
Cultivation to having been acquired deliberately, -it would be the highest
moral quality; it would manifest itself toward a wrongdoer not only in
forgiveness, but also in benevolence. Social customs may constitute a hindrance
in the way of moral development. In the scale of values, moral progress
must be placed higher than conformity to social customs and habits, which
have no value beyond the fact that they have been observed over a long
period of time. Such customs become burdensome impositions and should be
discarded. All avenues from which evil might should be watched and
guarded. Islam inspires faith in vivid realization
of the existence of a Beneficent Creator, without partners, associates or
equals. Islam teaches that each human being can and should establish
direct communion with Allah through faith, through acceptance of Divine
Guidance and through righteous conduct. On the basis of man's relationship
to his fellow beings through God, the Creator of all, it lays the
foundations of a true universal brotherhood, excluding the privilege and
discrimination based on color, race, nationality or an office, status or
wealth. In short, Islam sets forth and places at
man's disposal a most effective means of achieving the purpose of life. Of
all Allah's numberless bounties bestowed upon mankind it is one of the
greatest and most precious, and it is indispensable for the beneficent
growth of man in the epoch now unfolding before him.
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