Hadiths Emphasizing the Importance of Maintaining Family Ties
Numerous hadiths in Islamic tradition highlight the significance of maintaining familial relationships and warn against severing them. Among these hadiths are:
- The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) stated: “Indeed, Allah created creation, and when He completed His creation, the womb (rahim) said: ‘O Lord, here I am seeking refuge against being severed.’ Allah replied: ‘Indeed, I will maintain those who maintain you, and I will sever those who sever you.’ Then He instructed: ‘So read if you wish: ‘Then do you perhaps hope that if you were given authority, you would cause corruption in the land and sever your ties of kinship?'”
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said: “Allah said: ‘I am the Most Merciful, and it is the womb. I have named it after Myself. Whoever connects it, I will connect him, and whoever severs it, I will sever him.’
- Additionally, the Prophet (peace be upon him) remarked: “The womb is suspended from the Throne and says: ‘Whoever connects me, Allah will connect him, and whoever severs me, Allah will sever him.’
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) advised: “Indeed, Allah instructs you regarding your mothers, then your mothers again, then your fathers, and then those closest to you.”
- Furthermore, he urged: “Your relatives, your relatives.”
- He also said: “Whoever wishes to connect with his father in his grave should connect with his father’s siblings after him.”
Hadiths Encouraging Family Relationships
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) emphasized: “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should honor his guest, maintain connections with his kin, and either speak good or remain silent.”
- He addressed the people, saying: “Spread peace, feed others, maintain family ties, and pray at night while the people are asleep, and you will enter paradise in peace.”
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated: “Whoever is pleased to have an increase in his provision and be granted a longer lifespan should maintain his family ties.”
- He clarified: “The true maintainer is not the one who reciprocates; rather, the true maintainer is the one who, when his ties are severed, connects with them.”
- He remarked: “Charity given to the needy is indeed charity, and charity given to a relative is twofold: charity and connection.”
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) also stated: “Whoever fears his Lord and maintains family ties will see an extension in his lifespan and an increase in his wealth, and he will be loved by his people.”
- He stated: “Charity and maintaining family ties increase one’s lifespan and avert a bad death.”
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) also mentioned: “The best charity is that given to a relative who harbors enmity.”
- He concluded: “The best of virtues is to connect with those who sever you, give to those who withhold from you, and pardon those who wrong you.”
Hadiths on the Consequences of Severing Family Ties
There are specific hadiths that address the repercussions faced by those who sever family ties:
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) asserted: “The deeds of the children of Adam are presented before Allah every Thursday evening, and the actions of the severer of family ties are not accepted.”
- He cautioned: “The severer of family ties will not enter paradise.”
- Moreover, he stated: “No sin is more deserving of Allah hastening punishment in this world, along with the torment prepared for him in the Hereafter than oppression and severing family ties.”
- He added: “Mercy does not descend upon a people among whom there is a severer of family ties.”
Quranic Verses on Maintaining Family Ties
The Holy Quran contains various verses that encourage maintaining family relationships and warn against severing them. Some of these verses include:
- Allah, the Almighty, said: “So do you think that if you were to gain power, you would cause corruption in the land and sever your family ties? Such are the ones upon whom Allah has cast His curse and made them deaf and blinded their sight.”
- Allah stated: “And those who maintain what Allah has ordered to be connected and fear their Lord and are afraid of the evil of accountability.”
- Allah also declared: “And the relatives are more worthy of each other in the Book of Allah.”
- Furthermore, Allah mentioned: “Indeed, Allah does not shy away from presenting a parable, even if it is a mosquito or anything above it. As for those who believe, they know it is the truth from their Lord; but as for those who disbelieve, they say: ‘What did Allah intend by this example?’ He misleads many by it and guides many by it. And He does not mislead except the defiantly disobedient – those who break their covenant with Allah after its binding and sever what Allah has commanded to be connected and cause corruption in the land. It is they who are the losers.”
- Additionally, Allah commands: “Indeed, Allah commands you to be just and to be good and to give to relatives; and He forbids you from immorality, wrongdoing, and transgression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded.”