HUMANITY IN GENERAL
According to Islamic teachings, all of humanity is God’s family. There is a narration in Baihaqi where the Prophet of Islam said that all human beings are like God’s family, and the most beloved person to God is the one who treats His family (the people) in the best way (Musnad Al-Bazzar, Hadith No. 6947). Altaf Husain Hali (1837-1914), a renowned Urdu poet and writer, beautifully conveys this concept in a verse:
Yeh pehla sabaq tha kitab-e-huda ka
Ki hai sari makhluq kunba khuda ka
This was the first lesson in the Book of Guidance
That all creatures are members of God’s family.
In the Sunan an-Nasai, there is a report narrated by Zayd ibn Arqam, in which he says that when the Prophet of Islam would wake up in the last part of the night and finish the Tahajjud prayer, he would engage in remembrance and supplication. During this time, he would say the following words: “O God, I bear witness that all your servants are brothers to each other.” (Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith No. 1508)
The command for the Tahajjud prayer was revealed in Makkah, so this practice began during the Makkah period. Hadiths tell us that after the Tahajjud prayer, the Prophet of Islam would recite various supplications. However, this specific supplication, in which the Prophet testifies to human brotherhood, particularly belongs to the Makkan period.
As is known, during this time, the people of Quresh were causing great harm to the Prophet and his Companions. Even so, in the solitude of the night, the Prophet would remember them with feelings of brotherhood.
This shows that the ideal human being that Islam envisions is one whose heart continues to overflow with feelings of brotherhood for others—even if people become his enemies, even if they seek to destroy him. Even in such a situation, he harbours no ill-will toward them. Instead, in his solitude, he calls upon God as his witness and declares his enduring goodwill.
Islam instills a spirit of compassion within a person. Whoever truly begins to practice Islam becomes gentle and merciful toward all human beings.
