Rejecting an excuse shown by a Muslim is makrûh (behaviour disliked by Prophet ‘sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sal-lam’. It is stated in a hadîth-i-sherîf: “It is a sin not to accept an excuse shown by your Muslim Brother.” Accepting excuses and overlooking faults are Attributes of Allâhu ta’âlâ. Allâhu ta’âlâ will be wrathful towards a person who does not adapt himself to these Attributes, and He will torment him. There are three ways of showing excuses. The first way is to rue, saying, “Why did I do so,” or to explain yourself, saying, “I did so for this (or that) reason.” The second way is to apologize, saying, “I wish I hadn’t done so,” or “Yes, I did so, but I shall not do so again.” The third way is to deny what you have done. Saying “I did it but I will not do it again,” would be tawba. A Believer will wait for an excuse to be shown in order to forgive the offender.
Hypocrites [1] want others’ faults to be exposed. Rasûlullah ‘sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sal-lam’ states in the following hadîth-i-sherîfs: “You should be chaste. Do not commit ugly things. Also, make your wives chaste.” And “If you yourselves are chaste, your wives will also be chaste. If you are kind to your parents, your children will also be kind to you. A person who does not accept an excuse of another Muslim will not drink water from the Kawthar lake in the Hereafter ‘Âkhirat’.” This hadîth-i-sherîf concerns the Muslim who does not know that his Muslim brother committed an evil action and also he doesn’t know that his excuse is a lie. For rejecting his excuse would mean sû-i-zan about another Muslim.” Accepting his excuse although you know that he is lying means to forgive him. Forgiving in such cases is not obligatory (wâjib); yet it is a meritorious act (mustahab), (which yields much thawâb).
If one rejects the truth when one hears it, it is obstinacy (inâd). Obstinacy (inâd) is caused by hypocrisy, hatred (hiqd), jealousy, or tama’ . Rasûlullah ‘sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sal-lam’ said, “The person whom Allâhu ta’âlâ loathes most is the one who is too obstinate to admit the truth.” It is stated in another hadîth-i-sherîf “A Believer (Mu’min) will be dignified and soft.” A dignified person will show the easy way in worldly affairs.
In contary, he will be like a hard rock regarding affairs pertaining to religion. A mountain may wear out with time but a Believer’s faith will never wear out.
Rejection an excuse is one of the malady of heart. It is very difficult a person to accept one’s excuse, who has malady of conceit in his heart. Such people will face the truth of above mentioned hadîth-i-sherîf: “A person who does not accept an excuse of another Muslim will not drink water from the Kawthar lake in the Hereafter ‘Âkhirat’.”
Ref: This paragraphes are quoted from the book “Ethics of Islam” page 153, which is the translation of the book Berîka written by Abû Sa’îd Muhammad bin MustafâHâdimî ‘rahima hullâhu ta’âlâ’, who passed away in 1176 Hijrî, 1762 A.D. in Konya / Turkey and the book Akhlâq-i-Alâî written in Turkish by Alî bin Amrullah ‘rahimahullâhu ta’âlâ,’ who passed away in 979 Hijrî, 1572 A.D. in Edirne / Turkey. You can find the whole book and the other valuable books in the web site www.hakikatkitabevi.com.tr and download in PDF format for Adobe Acrobat Reader, EPUB format for iPhone-iPad-Mac devices and MOBI format for Amazon Kindle device.
[1] Hypocrisy (nifâq) is a person’s inwardly being different from what he pretends to be. When a person who has disbelief in his heart says he is a Believer with his speech, his action is religious hypocrisy. If a person who has the animosity in his heart pretends friendship with his behavior, this would be a worldly hypocrisy. The worst kind of disbelief is religious hypocrisy. Rasûlullah ‘sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sal-lam’ said in his hadîth-i-sherîf: “A hypocrite has three signs: he lies, he does not keep his promise, and he violates the trust shown to him.” A person of this type is a hypocrite even if he says he is a Muslim and even if he performs “salât” prayer.
Turkey Tribune
