2-The Value of Words in Islam
All praise for Allah Who has honored man and has created him in the best of forms. Praise for Allah Who has endowed man with the ability to speak with his tongue as one of His greatest bounties. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, the only God Who has no partner. In the Divine Book, Allah says:”See you not how Allah sets forth a parable? A goodly word like a goodly tree, whose root is firmly fixed, and its branches (reach) to the heavens (i.e. very high). It brings forth its fruits at all times, by the leave of its Lord. Allah sets forth parables for mankind in order that they may receive admonition (remember).”(14:24-25). I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad, servant of Allah is His beloved messenger and the noblest of all mankind. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, his companions, and all those who follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
O believers,
I remind myself first and all of you to be God-fearing and pious. I also urge all of us to obey Him, the Exalted, Who says:”O you who believe! Keep your duty to Allah and fear Him and speak (always) the truth. He will direct you to do righteous deeds and will forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) , he has indeed attained the highest achievement (i.e. he will be saved from the Hell-fire and will be admitted to Paradise.”(33:70-71).
Allah, the Exalted, has endowed us with words we utter in order to communicate with each other, express our feelings, and reveal our intentions. The tongue is a great endowment of Allah which may be used to praise and thank Him for which one earns reward. Allah, the Exalted says:”Have we not made for him two eyes, And a tongue and two lips?”
(90:8-9-).Nevertheless, some words may earn us the greatest reward and others may lead to the worst punishment. The tongue has either power of good or bad. Allah has ordained Muslim not to belittle the value of his words, and not to utter words of no use or have no control over his speech or his ability to foresee the repercussions of his saying. Allah, the Exalted, says:”Not a word does he (or she) utter but there is a watcher by him ready (to record it).”(50:18). Allah has praised the believers who refrain from vain pursuits (curiosity), gossip and backbiting. In His divine revelation, Allah says:” and those who avoid vain talks”(23:3).
On the other hand, utterances such as the two shahada which are the proclamation of Islam, remembering Allah, and greeting someone have their valuable impact and benefits.
O servants of Allah,
Allah has warned us of the bad effect of useless talk or that which does not concern us, because we exert both physical and mental energy to no avail and we waste our time. Indeed, scientific research has shown that talking too much and gossiping require energy that might affect both our physical and mental health. Malik bin Dinar said:” if your heart hardens, your body becomes weak, and you have little (provision), then know that you have talked about that which does not concern you.”
O believers,
We are responsible for every word we say especially when it may harm others either through gossip and backbiting or telling lies. Indeed, by uttering just one word “divorce” a man can destroy a coherent family, another careless word may infringe upon relations between friends, partners or loved ones. Marriage, divorce, financial transactions and contracts all require verbal or written wordings. Each and every word we utter is recorded and one day we will stand accountable for this record. It has been narrated that, Muaz ibn Jabbal (may Allah have mercy on him), companion of the prophet (peace be upon him) , once asked the Messenger of Allah, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to tell him about an act that will cause him to enter Paradise and be protected from the fire. The prophet (peace be upon him) said “Guard your tongue”. Muaz ibn Jabbal asked” Shall we be questioned about our utterances?” The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:”Most people will be thrown into Hell-face down-because of the transgressions of their tongues.”Another hadith highlights the same issue:”Every morning all the limbs of a person plead with his tongue:” Fear Allah for our sake, for our fate is tied to yours. If you follow the straight path so shall we. And if you go astray so shall we.”
O servants of Allah,
Almighty Allah has created this great universe with one word. Allah says:”Verily, when He intends a thing, His Command is, “be”, and it is!”(36:82). It takes few words to build, love each other and strengthen unity, those are key words that may earn us the reward of Allah and the pleasure of people, and it takes few words to destroy, spread animosity, and division earning us the wrath of Allah and the disrespect of people. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) says: “A servant unthinkingly says something pleasing to Allah Most High for which Allah raise him whole degrees. And a servant unthinkingly says something detested by Allah, Most high, for which he plunges into hell.”
Communication entails a big responsibility requiring everyone of us to think and reflect on the far reaching consequences before uttering any word, especially those who are engaged in thoughts that may spread, or may impact people’s life. It has been narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was asked:”O Messenger of Allah, which of the Muslims is best?” and he said: ”He who the Muslims are safe from his tongue and his hand.”
May Allah bestow upon us the power to obey Him, and those He has ordained us to obey…
We implore you, O Allah, to make the Glorious Qur’an the light of our heart. We beseech you to help us recite its words and apply its rulings and follow the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
