Commanding Good and Forbidding Evil

A hadith belongs here: the Prophet (peace be upon him) said that the Banū Isrāʾīl had many prophets among them — this with regard to amr bi-l-maʿrūf wa-nahy ʿani al-munkar. It is a hadith of al-Tirmidhī, which relates that when the Banū Isrāʾīl became involved in sin, their ʿulamāʾ at first forbade them and tried to deter them; but when they did not desist, the ʿulamāʾ simply sat with them and joined them, and made it appear that it was of no great consequence. This is a matter of real difficulty for scholars: they are required to forbid people, yet also to show good akhlāq, and people are sometimes put off when they are turned away. To follow this properly is a very great predicament. But the ʿulamāʾ of the Banū Isrāʾīl simply sat with them; and what then happened was that their own hearts changed as well. For this reason, as in the verse quoted — Dāwūd, ʿĪsā ibn Maryam — they were accursed: luʿina alladhīna kafarū min Banī Isrāʾīla ʿalā lisāni Dāwūda wa-ʿĪsā ibni Maryam.

Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) — who until that point had been reclining against something as he related this history — sat up straight, and said: by the One in whose hand is my life, your īmān cannot be complete — you cannot have perfect faith — and you cannot be freed from the punishment of Allah until you also perform amr bi-l-maʿrūf wa-nahy ʿani al-munkar. We are thus told this by way of the previous nations' failure to do it, and what befell them.

This is not something everyone has in view; people never imagine that they will ever have to reprove anyone, except perhaps their own children. But it is something we truly need to consider. It is a perturbing question: how is it to be done? In the best way, the effective way, the kindest way — and the kindest is the effective way. People should reflect on this and be creative in it, so that we may fulfil this command, keep the balance, and keep the punishment away. For the punishment comes when this is not done, and every one of us is to contribute. It is not the scholars alone: they have a responsibility, but so has every individual. Scholars cannot reach everyone.