الإيثار بالقرب

Selflessness As It Relates To Acts of Obedience Sheikh ’Uthaymīn raḥimahullāh said: (1) Selflessness, outside of acts of obedience, is a PRAISEWORTHY trait, and Allāh praised the Anṣār for it, saying: {ويؤثرون على أنفسهم ولو كان بهم خصاصة} “And they give preference over themselves, even though they are in privation.” (2) Selflessness as it relates to non-obligatory acts of obedience is an ISSUE OF DIFFERING. Some say it is RECOMMENDED, while others consider it DISLIKED. The predominant view in the Ḥanbali madh-hab is that it is disliked. For example, if you are in the first row of prayer and you move back to allow someone else to take your place, it is disliked. The reasoning is that selflessness in this context implies a lack of desire for acts of obedience, whereas Allāh tells us to race towards good deeds. How can you favour someone else when you are commanded to hasten toward acts of worship? They say that selflessness in acts of obedience is disliked because it suggests a lack of interest in seeking nearness to Allāh. The correct stance, however, requires some elaboration. If a person deems it in the best interest to give up their privileged position to someone else, it is understood that abandoning a recommended act does not necessarily lead to something disliked. This is a principle amongst the people of knowledge: abandoning a recommended act does not equate to doing something disliked. If a person chooses not to perform a recommended act, do we say they have committed a disliked action? No, they simply missed out on a good act but did not engage in something blameworthy. Therefore, if there is a benefit in giving preference to someone else in this matter, there is no harm in doing so. For instance, if your father arrives and you know that he expects his child to honour him even in such a situation, then it is better to show preference to him. Some parents expect such honour, while others may not care as much. If you know that your father would feel hurt if you did not give him your privileged position, then the better course of action would be to show him preference. In this case, it is an act of dutifulness, and all that has occurred is that you have forsaken a recommended act for something even better. Similarly, if a person in authority comes, and you know that failing to show preference to him would cause you to miss out on much good, whereas showing preference would bring you great benefit, then the right course of action would be to show him preference. People's reactions vary: some may see such gestures as a grand favour and grant you what you seek, while others may take offense if you do not act accordingly, leading you to lose out on many benefits. In such cases, selflessness is the better choice. (3) The third category is selflessness in obligatory matters, which is FORBIDDEN. An example of this would be if two individuals have a limited amount of water for purification. If one uses it, the other will not have enough for ablution. In such a case, it is forbidden to show preference and let the other use the water while you perform tayammum (dry ablution). You must use the water for yourself and let the other person perform tayammum. Therefore, selflessness can be divided into three categories.