- Category: ,PROPHET ﷺ
- Language: ENGLISH
- Format: PDF
When Prophet Muḥammad (S) was divinely sent, he found that it was a common practice for people to be bad neighbours. Everybody used to wrong their neighbour and treat him badly. Moreover, people did not see that this behaviour was a fault or a blemish to one’s character. Ja’far ibn abu Talib- the cousin of Prophet Muḥammad (S) – described briefly the then common practice while talking to Negus, King of Ethiopia, as saying: ‘We were a nation of ignorance and evil. We used to break our family ties and treat neighbours badly”.
Therefore, a neighbour did not feel safe from his neighbour’s evil, but rather expected evil from his neighbour at anytime. So, the Prophet (S) came and raised the value of being a good neighbour, giving the neighbour more rights that helped secure the community and establish the rules of love, security, safety, and co-operation among people.
The rights of neighbours in the message of Muhammad (Peace be upon him):
The Qur’an came to confirm the rights of neighbours and recommend Muslims to treat them justly. Allah the Almighty says, “Serve Allah, and join not any partners with Him; and do good- to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those in need, neighbours who are near, neighbours who are strangers, the companion by your side, the wayfarer (you meet), (Al-Nisaa’, 4: 36).
Commenting on this verse, Ibn Kathir said, “The word al-Jar dhi al-Qurba means the neighbour who is also a relative, and the words al-jar al-Junub means the neighbour who is not a relative. Some scholars are reported to have said, “The words al-Jar dhi al-Qurba mean the Muslim neighbour and the words al-jar al-Junub stand for the non-Muslim neighbour and both opinions recommend the good treatment of neighbours.
