Kindness Toward
Fellow Citizens

Two gentlemen came to meet me. They were Muslims and lived in Britain. During the conversation, I said to them that a Muslim should have love for his homeland—British Muslims should love Britain, and American Muslims should love America.

They said, “Even if the people there hate us, should we still love them?” I said, “Yes.”

Then I narrated this hadith to them: “Never debase your character by saying that if people treat you well, you will treat them well, and if they harm you, then you will do worse to them. Instead, become accustomed to being good to those who are good to you and not wronging those who harm you.” (Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith No. 2007)

This shows that Islamic ethics are not based on tit-for-tat behaviour. Islamic ethics are based on one-sided, unilateral moral conduct. (Diary, 28 July 2011)