The holy book, Quran reminds man of his various obligations and duties, which he has to fulfill in his life time. The first and foremost is of his duty and obligations towards the creator – Allah. And the next are his duties and obligations towards the mankind. Among them is man’s foremost duty towards himself in as much as to purify his own thoughts, mind and behavior and refine himself in all aspects of his living. His talk towards one and all should be respectful, affectionate and loving.
Luqman, while reminding his sons of his various duties, points out that the voice should not be raised while speaking with others and the worst of the voice is of the ass and the donkeys. When they bray, they bray so loud that it is unpleasant to the ears.
Charity is one of the obligations in Islam, to openly or secretly help those in distress and in need. To feed the poor and clothe the needful. To give alms from the wealth in a proportionate manner as laid down in the holy book. All this is very fine. But to speak a kind word to a wounded heart, to relieve pain of a heavily burdened mind and soul is far better than alms giving. When one cultures the mind and heart to refinement, a person becomes kindly and good hearted. It is goodness which is important for a society which aims at bringing an Islamic way of living. Soft and smooth words are honeyed words. They instill love and affection in the minds of the people, while harsh words breed cruelty and hard-heartedness. Allah desires people to live in peace, love and orderliness. This is possible when every individual adopts sweet language and shows kindness in every action more particularly in speech and outward behavior. Harsh behavior is due to mental aberrations and out of anger, jealousy and hatred. When these qualities are subdued and springs of love and affection burst forth from the heart, the speech of a person becomes soft, kind and loving. This spreads good culture and the society becomes well mannered and godly.
It so happens that some needy persons approach for help when a person does not have any means to help or is so busy in work that the needy person’s appearance is a great distraction. It is at this time that a person is faced with a test. It is at this hour one should show restrain and speak to the needy person in a kind and affectionate tone and not show anger or shout at the indigent person. Such behavior is not appreciated by Allah.
(The writer is editor of Sufi World. He can be reached at internationalsuficentre@ gmail.com