Seeking the Truth, Upholding Honesty.( Abdullah Cheng)
Dear brothers and sisters,
Among the most important attributes that a believer should have in order to become pious and gain the blessings of Allah, is to seek the truth and speak the truth. To find out what is the reality, and and to tell others what is the reality.
In Surah Al-Ahzab, in the verse which Allah describes the qualities of the believing men and women, Allah mentions:
إِنَّ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ وَٱلْمُسْلِمَـٰتِ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنَـٰتِ وَٱلْقَـٰنِتِينَ وَٱلْقَـٰنِتَـٰتِ وَٱلصَّـٰدِقِينَ
وَٱلصَّـٰدِقَـٰتِ
“Muslim men and women, believing men and women, devout men and women, truthful men and women… all of them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward” [33:35]
It is a characteristic that is not only encouraged in Islam, but even in societies that don’t have Islam appreciate the values of truthfulness and honesty.
And one of the best examples to that is none other than our beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Even before he started receiving the revelation and become a Prophet, even when he was living during the time of Jahiliyyah, he had a special title that was given to him by his people, the tribe of Quraysh, and no one else had this title. People used to call him “Al-Sadiq Al-Ameen”, which means “The Truthful, The Trustworthy”. People trust him so much that they can be at total peace even when they let him safekeep their valuable possessions.
And because they knew that he was Al-Sadiq Al-Ameen, when the Prophet ﷺ started to preach the message of Islam, they couldn’t accuse him of being a liar. At the beginning of his Da’wah in Makkah, the Prophet ﷺ climbed onto Mount Safa, and he asked the Quraysh: “If I were to tell you that an army was behind this mountain and ready to attack us, would you believe what I say?” And the people all replied: “Yes, for we have never found you telling a lie.”
Even when they are trying to oppose against him, they had to call him different names, like a poet, magician, a soothsayer, a madman. Even when they called him a liar, they couldn’t give any proof or example to back up this claim.
And it’s also because of his trustworthiness, many among the Sahabah accepted Islam, especially the earliest and closest ones to the Prophet (ﷺ), including Khadijah, Abu Bakr, Ali, Zaid ibn Harithah. It was because of the credibility and reputation he had built up in the past, they didn’t even hesitate to believe in his message.
And this goes to show us how important it is to be honest and truthful when it comes to sharing the message of Islam to others. If people are able to see how truthful you are as a person, it becomes a lot easier to accept whatever message you are bringing because of the level of trust they have for you.
However at the same time, people can still reject your message, not because you are not truthful, but because knowing the truth can be bitter, and people refrain from accepting the truth, because of arrogance and heedlessness. And this is not something that only non-Muslims are struggling when it comes to accepting Islam, but even for Muslims when learning about our own religion.
For example, in many cultures, when we are facing the dilemma of either telling the truth or avoiding conflicts, many people would choose to avoid conflicts rather than speaking the truth. Because they understand the consequences of speaking the truth. People may not be interested, people may feel uncomfortable, people may dislike them. And they don’t want to lose the friendship and benefit they get from these people.
But in Islam, seeking the truth and speaking the truth sometimes is more important than just maintaining peace, and there are certain times when it’s more important to tell the truth, and there are times when it’s worse to tell a lie.
For example, when it comes to the matter of religion, the worst type of lie is to lie against Allah and His Messenger.
وَلَا تَقُولُوا۟ لِمَا تَصِفُ أَلْسِنَتُكُمُ ٱلْكَذِبَ هَـٰذَا حَلَـٰلٌۭ وَهَـٰذَا حَرَامٌۭ لِّتَفْتَرُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْكَذِبَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَفْتَرُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْكَذِبَ لَا يُفْلِحُونَ
Do not falsely declare with your tongues, “This is Halal, and that is Haram,” fabricating lies against Allah. Indeed, those who fabricate lies against Allah will never succeed. [16:116]
To say things that are Halal to be Haram, and to say things that are Haram to be Halal. Most people understand the consequences of watering down our religion and oversimplifying it, but it’s also not correct to simply making everything Haram just because they want to be strict. Rather we should seek for the correct knowledge, and correct knowledge is always what is aligned with the reality.
When it comes to taking oaths and swearing, it is also mandatory for us to fulfill them, or we should just keep silent.
And regarding business and transactions between people, the Prophet ﷺ mentioned that: If they are honest and open during their transaction, then there will be Barakah in the transaction, but if they tell lies and hide anything, the Barakah will be lost. [Sunan an-Nasa'i 4457]
It may sound easy to speak the truth and be truthful, but if we lose the big picture and only focus on the short term benefits, it is very easy to say things that are against the reality. And we need to remember that hiding the truth and making up lies are only going to be exposed sooner or later at some point when the truth is in front of us, as Allah says in the Qur’an:
وَقُلْ جَآءَ ٱلْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ ٱلْبَـٰطِلُ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلْبَـٰطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقًۭا
And declare, “The truth has come and falsehood has vanished. Indeed, falsehood is bound to vanish.” [17:81]
May Allah make us among those who are truthful in our words and our actions, may Allah purify our hearts from falsehood and hypocrisy, and may Allah continue to guide us to the truth.
Among the most important attributes that a believer should have in order to become pious and gain the blessings of Allah, is to seek the truth and speak the truth. To find out what is the reality, and and to tell others what is the reality.
In Surah Al-Ahzab, in the verse which Allah describes the qualities of the believing men and women, Allah mentions:
إِنَّ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ وَٱلْمُسْلِمَـٰتِ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنَـٰتِ وَٱلْقَـٰنِتِينَ وَٱلْقَـٰنِتَـٰتِ وَٱلصَّـٰدِقِينَ
وَٱلصَّـٰدِقَـٰتِ
“Muslim men and women, believing men and women, devout men and women, truthful men and women… all of them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward” [33:35]
It is a characteristic that is not only encouraged in Islam, but even in societies that don’t have Islam appreciate the values of truthfulness and honesty.
And one of the best examples to that is none other than our beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Even before he started receiving the revelation and become a Prophet, even when he was living during the time of Jahiliyyah, he had a special title that was given to him by his people, the tribe of Quraysh, and no one else had this title. People used to call him “Al-Sadiq Al-Ameen”, which means “The Truthful, The Trustworthy”. People trust him so much that they can be at total peace even when they let him safekeep their valuable possessions.
And because they knew that he was Al-Sadiq Al-Ameen, when the Prophet ﷺ started to preach the message of Islam, they couldn’t accuse him of being a liar. At the beginning of his Da’wah in Makkah, the Prophet ﷺ climbed onto Mount Safa, and he asked the Quraysh: “If I were to tell you that an army was behind this mountain and ready to attack us, would you believe what I say?” And the people all replied: “Yes, for we have never found you telling a lie.”
Even when they are trying to oppose against him, they had to call him different names, like a poet, magician, a soothsayer, a madman. Even when they called him a liar, they couldn’t give any proof or example to back up this claim.
And it’s also because of his trustworthiness, many among the Sahabah accepted Islam, especially the earliest and closest ones to the Prophet (ﷺ), including Khadijah, Abu Bakr, Ali, Zaid ibn Harithah. It was because of the credibility and reputation he had built up in the past, they didn’t even hesitate to believe in his message.
And this goes to show us how important it is to be honest and truthful when it comes to sharing the message of Islam to others. If people are able to see how truthful you are as a person, it becomes a lot easier to accept whatever message you are bringing because of the level of trust they have for you.
However at the same time, people can still reject your message, not because you are not truthful, but because knowing the truth can be bitter, and people refrain from accepting the truth, because of arrogance and heedlessness. And this is not something that only non-Muslims are struggling when it comes to accepting Islam, but even for Muslims when learning about our own religion.
For example, in many cultures, when we are facing the dilemma of either telling the truth or avoiding conflicts, many people would choose to avoid conflicts rather than speaking the truth. Because they understand the consequences of speaking the truth. People may not be interested, people may feel uncomfortable, people may dislike them. And they don’t want to lose the friendship and benefit they get from these people.
But in Islam, seeking the truth and speaking the truth sometimes is more important than just maintaining peace, and there are certain times when it’s more important to tell the truth, and there are times when it’s worse to tell a lie.
For example, when it comes to the matter of religion, the worst type of lie is to lie against Allah and His Messenger.
وَلَا تَقُولُوا۟ لِمَا تَصِفُ أَلْسِنَتُكُمُ ٱلْكَذِبَ هَـٰذَا حَلَـٰلٌۭ وَهَـٰذَا حَرَامٌۭ لِّتَفْتَرُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْكَذِبَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَفْتَرُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْكَذِبَ لَا يُفْلِحُونَ
Do not falsely declare with your tongues, “This is Halal, and that is Haram,” fabricating lies against Allah. Indeed, those who fabricate lies against Allah will never succeed. [16:116]
To say things that are Halal to be Haram, and to say things that are Haram to be Halal. Most people understand the consequences of watering down our religion and oversimplifying it, but it’s also not correct to simply making everything Haram just because they want to be strict. Rather we should seek for the correct knowledge, and correct knowledge is always what is aligned with the reality.
When it comes to taking oaths and swearing, it is also mandatory for us to fulfill them, or we should just keep silent.
And regarding business and transactions between people, the Prophet ﷺ mentioned that: If they are honest and open during their transaction, then there will be Barakah in the transaction, but if they tell lies and hide anything, the Barakah will be lost. [Sunan an-Nasa'i 4457]
It may sound easy to speak the truth and be truthful, but if we lose the big picture and only focus on the short term benefits, it is very easy to say things that are against the reality. And we need to remember that hiding the truth and making up lies are only going to be exposed sooner or later at some point when the truth is in front of us, as Allah says in the Qur’an:
وَقُلْ جَآءَ ٱلْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ ٱلْبَـٰطِلُ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلْبَـٰطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقًۭا
And declare, “The truth has come and falsehood has vanished. Indeed, falsehood is bound to vanish.” [17:81]
May Allah make us among those who are truthful in our words and our actions, may Allah purify our hearts from falsehood and hypocrisy, and may Allah continue to guide us to the truth.