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Explanation of the Meaning of Brotherhood in the !ad"th:

None of you believes until he wants for his brother what he
would want for himself.
by
Shaykh Muhammad A al-Akiti
Question: In the Arba!!n of al-Nawaw", the thirteenth #ad"th
talks about brotherhood. Im$m al-Nawaw" says the ukhuwwa
in this #ad"th is that of Ban" %dam (i.e., of all humanity).
Could you say more on this #ad"th, and what other scholars
have said on its meaning and implications?
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!e "ad#th is that of Anas Ibn M$lik (may All$h be well pleased
with him!):
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[literally: None of you believes until he wants for his brother
what he would want for himself.]
1
1
Related by Ab% &Aw$na, al-'ay$lis#, A"mad, &Abd ibn (am#d, al-D$rim#, al-Bukh$r#,
Muslim, Ibn M$jah, al-Tirmidh#, al-Nas$#, al-R%y$n#, Ab% Ya&l$, Ibn (ibb$n, al-'abar$n#,
al-Qu)$&#, al-Bayhaq#, Ibn Ab# Shayba and al-Daylam# with variants.
1
According to the famous author of the Ris!la in M$lik# qh,
Im$m Ibn Ab# Zayd al-Qayraw$n# as related by Im$m al-
Nawaw# in his Minh!j of "ad#th
2
this "ad#th is the last of the
four "ad#ths that constitute the famous Sum of Good Adab
[Jim!& Adab al-Khayr], the rst three being:
1. to speak little;
2. to mind ones own business;
3. not to be angry,
and in fact, according to many scholars then and now, this "ad#th
is one of the core principles of our religion and way of life [U"#l
al-D$n].
From the outset, it must be noted that all scholars are in agree-
ment that $m!n in the matn of this "ad#th is to be qualied and
that what is denied of $m!n here is in fact the complete im!n
[kam!l/tamm/nih!yat/%aq$qat al-$m!n], not $m!n or faith itself.
!erefore, it must not become a question of a Muslim having
$m!n or not when he or she does not love his fellow brother
(that is to say, it is not a question of Muslim vs. K!r).
Im$ms al-Nawaw# and Ibn al-&Im$d (may All$h be pleased
with them both!), for instance, were among our scholars who un-
derstood brotherhood in this "ad#th (from the phrase: li-akh$hi
[his brother] in the matn) to include all of humanity, i.e., the
brotherhood of mankind (in the other taw$l, brotherhood
simply refers to Muslims). In fact, Im$m Najm al-D#n al-'%f#, the
(anbal# mufassir, more plainly than any other medieval inter-
preter of this "ad#th, used the expression ma%abbat al-ins!n [the
love for mankind].
3
!is, it turns out, is not astonishing, for his
own Mujtahid Im$m related a "ad#th (reproduced below) that
bears out the full relevance of our topic.
2
al-Nawaw#, Shar% &a%$% Muslim, 2:210.
3
'%f#, Ta&y$n, 125.
2
!e implication of ma%abba [love] with respect to brotherhood,
whether taken in its universal sense (of mankind) or in its limited
sense (of Muslims only), is that we wish for him what we wish for
ourselves as well. So in the case of Muslims, for example, our wish
is for him to remain in Islam while for the non-Muslim, on the
other hand, our wish is for him to be in Islam; the motivation for
this love, of course, should be none other than the sincere con-
cern, ultimately, for well-being in the Herea*er. In fact, according
to Im$m al-Ghaz$l# (may All$h be pleased with him!), this prin-
ciple is the acme of suk#n, i.e., being at peace with the rest of
creation, of which the sum is in fact, good manners or good Adab
among people. And the peak of good Adab, says the (ujjat al-
Isl$m, is that you do not burden people according to your own
pleasure, but burden yourselves according to their pleasures so
long as they do not violate the Shar$&a.
4
!e most judicious explanation of this "ad#th, indeed, was
given by the collector, Im$m al-Nawaw# himself (and the same
shar% was again related, but later ascribed by some to another
Sha&# jurist, the meticulous Ibn al-&Im$d):
It is better for that [saying of the Prophet, may All$h's
blessings and peace be upon him!] to be interpreted in the
sense of universal brotherhood, so that it includes the non-
Muslim and the Muslim. !us he wants for his non-Muslim
brother what he would want for himself, that is [read: min li-
l-bayan] his converting to Islam; just as he wants for his
Muslim brother his remaining in Islam. !at is why it is
recommended to supplicate for divine guidance [Hid!ya] on
behalf of the non-Muslim.
5
4
al-Ghaz$l#, Ayyuh! l-Walad, 131.
5
al-Nawaw#, Shar% Arba&$n, 123.
3
Let us close with another version of this "ad#th, a most appro-
priate one for our discussion, and this is the version of the
Mujtahid Im$m A"mad (as well as of Ab% Ya&l$, Ibn (ibb$n, and
al-R$&# the latter apparently through Ibn &Umar; may All$h be
well pleased with them all!):
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[A man will not achieve true $m!n until he wants for (other)
men what he would want for himself of the good.]
Remarkably, this version has all three provisos that are indis-
pensable for the teacher to explain and teach this "ad#th: 'aq$qa,
N!s, and Khayr. M! sh! All!hu k!na! !is shows why we should
never limit ourselves (our scholars call those of us who su+er
from this condition q!"ir$n: people of limited insight) by
reading a "ad#th or the Qur$n literally [(!hiran] or hurriedly
[mur#q al-sahm]: for we will end up injuring ourselves! May
All$h keep us far from that malady and give us the patience to
open our hearts and minds instead: ,m#n!
May this be su+icient and benecial!
Muhammad A al-Akiti
Oxford
8Rama)$n1425
23October 2004
4
Select Bibliography
al-Ghaz$l#. Ayyuh! l-Walad. Edited by &Al# Mu"yi al-D#n &Al# al-
Qarahd$gh#. Cairo: Dar al-I&ti-$m, 1983.
al-Nawaw#. al-Minh!j f$ Shar% Sa%$% Muslim. Edited by Wahbah al-
Zu"ayl# and &Al# &Abd al-(am#d Ab% l-Khayr. 7 vols. Damascus:
D$r al-Khayr, 1994.
al-Nawaw#. Shar% al-Arba&$n 'ad$than al-Nawawiyya. Edited by &Abd
al-&Aziz &Izz al-D#n al-Sayraw$n. Beirut: D$r Qutayba, 1990.
al-'%f#. al-Ta&y$n f$ Shar% al-Arba&$n. Edited by A"mad (ajj
Mu"ammad &Uthm$n. Mecca: al-Maktaba al-Makkiyya, 1998.
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