O ‘Ā’ishah, indeed, Allah is gentle and He loves gentleness, and He gives for gentleness what He does not give for violence and what He does not give for anything else

Arabic text

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ أُمِّ المُؤْمِنين رضي الله عنها زَوْجِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: «يَا عَائِشَةُ إِنَّ اللهَ رَفِيقٌ يُحِبُّ الرِّفْقَ، وَيُعْطِي عَلَى الرِّفْقِ مَا لَا يُعْطِي عَلَى الْعُنْفِ، وَمَا لَا يُعْطِي عَلَى مَا سِوَاهُ».

Translation

‘Ā’ishah, the Mother of the believers (may Allah be pleased with her) and wife of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O ‘Ā’ishah, indeed, Allah is gentle and He loves gentleness, and He gives for gentleness what He does not give for violence and what He does not give for anything else."

Explanation

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged the Mother of the Believers, ‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), to be gentle, informing that Allah deals gently and kindly with His servants and wants ease for them, not hardship. He does not burden them beyond their capacity and loves that His servant adopts gentleness and ease in dealing with others, avoiding harshness or severity. He added that Allah Almighty grants for gentleness and kindness in this world a praiseworthy reputation, attainment of goals, and ease in pursuing one's affairs. And in the Hereafter, He grants a great reward, greater than what He gives for violence, harshness, or severity, because gentleness brings results that nothing else can bring.

Benefits

• Encouraging gentleness and prohibiting violence.
• The high status of gentleness among the noble traits of character.
• The gentle person deserves beautiful praise and great reward from Allah Almighty.
• As-Sindi said: Harshness stands in opposition to gentleness. One who calls people to guidance with gentleness and kindness is better than one who calls with severity and harshness, as long as the situation responds equally to both approaches. But if the situation only responds to one of the two, then that which suits the situation becomes necessary. And Allah knows best the true reality of every situation.

Topics

• Virtues and Manners
• Jurisprudence of Ethics
• Praiseworthy Morals