It’s related by Anas ibn Malik that a man came to meet Prophet Muhammad. He went to the mosque where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and the companions were sitting.
He said: “Which of you is Muhammad?”
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: I’m here to answer your questions.
At that point, he said: “I want to ask you something and I’m going to be harsh in the way I question you, so don’t become angry!”
The Prophet Muhammad said: Ask whatever you want.
The man said: “I ask you by your Lord, and the Lord of those who were before you, has Allah sent you as an Apostle to all the mankind?”
The Prophet replied: By Allah, yes.
The man further said: “I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to offer five prayers in a day and night (24 hours)?
He replied: By Allah, Yes.
The man further said: “I ask you by Allah! Has Allah ordered you to observe fasts during this month of the year (i.e. Ramadan)?”
He replied: By Allah, Yes.
The man further said: “I ask you by Allah. Has Allah ordered you to take Zakat (obligatory charity) from our rich people and distribute it amongst our poor people?”
The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied: By Allah, Yes.
Thereupon that man said: I have believed in all that with which you have been sent, and I have been sent by my people as a messenger, and I am Dimam bin Tha’laba from the brothers of Bani Sa’d bin Bakr. (Al Bukhari)
A Lesson to Learn
We get people coming to us and asking maybe hard questions about Islam, and when we don’t know how to answer them with wisdom, we start getting negative and throwing something negative into the fire.
This man was sent by his tribe as a representative to find out about Islam. Can you imagine if this man asked the Prophet Muhammad harshly and the Prophet responded in a harsh manner?
The man went back to his tribe with the good news, having accepted and the tribe became Muslim.
Imagine if he’d gone with something negative, maybe not only would they have not become Muslim, but maybe they would have come and start some problems or a war.
Allah helps us to do righteous deeds. And we can turn to the example of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and even turn negative things into something positive.
