Fear Allah wherever you are; follow a bad deed with a good deed and it will erase it; and treat people with good morals

Arabic text

‌عَنْ ‌أَبِي ‌ذَرٍّ، ‌جُنْدُبِ ‌بْنِ ‌جُنَادَةَ، ‌وَأَبِي ‌عَبْدِ ‌الرَّحْمَنِ، ‌مُعَاذِ بْنِ جَبَلٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: «اتَّقِ اللَّهَ حَيْثُمَا كُنْت، وَأَتْبِعْ السَّيِّئَةَ الْحَسَنَةَ تَمْحُهَا، وَخَالِقْ النَّاسَ بِخُلُقٍ حَسَنٍ».

Translation

Abu Dharr, Jundub ibn Junādah, and Abu ‘Abdur-Rahmān, Mu‘ādh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Fear Allah wherever you are; follow a bad deed with a good deed and it will erase it; and treat people with good morals."

Explanation

The Prophet (ﷺ) enjoins three things: First: fear of Allah, by fulfilling the duties and avoiding the prohibitions, in every place, time, and condition, and in secret and public, and at good times and bad ones, and so on. Second: If you fall into a sin, do a good deed after it, like prayer, charity, an act of kindness, upholding kinship ties, repentance, etc., for that erases the sin. Third: Treat people with good morals, like smiling at them, showing them gentleness and leniency, doing good to them, and averting harm from them.

Benefits

• The Hadīth shows Allah's grace toward His servants through His mercy, forgiveness, and pardon.
• The Hadīth comprises three rights: the right of Allah, which is to fear Him; the right of oneself, which is to perform good deeds after bad ones; and the right of people, which is to treat them with noble manners.
• The Hadīth encourages us to do good deeds after bad ones and to possess good morals. These two are among the traits of piety, and he singled them out to clarify them.

Topics

• Virtues and Manners
• Jurisprudence of Ethics
• Praiseworthy Morals