Insights and Sayings on Injustice
Prophetic Sayings about Injustice
Among the prophetic sayings regarding injustice, its consequences, and the severity of its sin are the following:
- The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “There are three invocations that are surely accepted: the invocation of the oppressed, the invocation of the traveler, and the invocation of a parent against their child.”
- One of the supplications of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was: “O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the hardships of travel, the sadness of returning, the loss of faith after having it, from the invocation of the oppressed, and from the unpleasantness in family and wealth.”
- The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stated: “If anyone has a grievance against his brother regarding his honor or any matter, let him seek to make amends today, before there come a day when there will be no dinar or dirham. If he has good deeds, he will be taken from them according to the extent of the grievance. If he has no good deeds, some of the wrongdoer’s sins will be taken and laid upon him.”
- The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) narrated from his Lord (Exalted is He): “O My servants, indeed I have forbidden injustice upon Myself, and made it forbidden among you, so do not wrong one another… O My servants, your deeds are recorded, and I shall grant you the full measure of them. Whoever finds good should praise Allah, and whoever finds other than that should blame no one but himself. In another narration: ‘I have prohibited injustice upon My Self and upon My servants, so do not act unjustly.’
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Do you know who the bankrupt is? They said: The bankrupt among us is the one without dirham or goods. He said: The bankrupt from my nation will come on the Day of Resurrection with prayers, fasting, and charity, but will have insulted this person, slandered that one, consumed the wealth of another, shed the blood of someone else, and struck this one, so his good deeds will be given to this one, and those good deeds will be given to that one. If his good deeds are exhausted before his wrongdoings are settled, some of their sins will be taken and cast upon him, and he will be thrown into the Fire.”
- The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) cautioned: “Beware of injustice, for indeed injustice will be darkness on the Day of Resurrection. And beware of miserliness, for miserliness destroyed those before you, leading them to shed each other’s blood and to violate their sacred bounds.”
Sayings of the Righteous and Scholars on Injustice
Here are some insights shared by righteous predecessors regarding injustice:
- Abu Darda said: “Beware of the invocation of the orphan and the oppressed, for it travels at night while people are asleep.”
- Maimun Ibn Mehran commented on the verse: “And do not think that Allah is unaware of what the wrongdoers do” (Quran 14:42), stating, “This is a warning for the oppressors and consolation for the victims.”
- Muslim Ibn Yasar overheard a man invoking harm upon another and said: “Leave the oppressor to his injustice, for it will reach him faster than your invocation against him, unless he repents with good deeds, which is unlikely.”
- Ibn Sirin remarked: “It is an injustice to your brother to mention his worst qualities while concealing his good ones.”
- Caliph Abu Jafar Al-Mansur stated: “The least rational among people is the one who wrongs someone beneath him.”
- Umar Ibn Abdul Aziz advised: “When your power over others drives you to act unjustly, remember Allah’s power over you.”
- Shurayh Al-Kindi said: “The oppressor awaits punishment while the oppressed awaits victory.”
- Ali Ibn Yahya Al-Muharimi stated: “Injustice removes blessings, brings poverty, and leads to the demise of nations.”
- Ibn Taymiyyah, the scholar of Islam, said:
- “The essence of evils is injustice.”
- “Injustice is placing something in its incorrect position.”
- “Allah loves knowledge and fairness in speech, while He detests ignorance and injustice.”
- “The oppressed, if they show patience and righteousness, shall ultimately prevail.”