Commentary on Imam Sajjad’s (AS) Treaties of Right By Mohammad Sobhanie.

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

وَأمّــــــــا حَقُّ الخَصْمِ المُدَّعِي عَلَيْكَ، فَإنْ كَانَ مَا يَدَّعِي عَلَيكَ حَقّــــــــاً لَمْ تنفَسِخ فِي حُجَّتِهِ وَلَمْ تَعمَلْ فِي إبطَـــــالِ دَعْوَتِهِ. وَكُنْتَ خَصْــــــــــمَ نفْسِكَ لَهُ والحَـــاكِمَ عَلَيْهَا والشَّـــاهِدَ لَهُ بحَقِّهِ دُونَ شَهَادَةِ الشُّهُودِ، فَـــــــــإنَّ ذلِكَ حَقُّ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ.

وَإنْ كَانَ مَـــا يَدَّعِيهِ بَـــــــــاطِلاً رَفَقْتَ بهِ وَرَوَّعْتَهُ ونـــــاشَدتهُ بدِينِه وَكَسَرْتَ حِدَّتهُ عَنكَ بذِكْرِ اللهِ. وَأَلْقَيْتَ حَشْوَ الْكَلامِ وَلَغَطَـــــــهُ الَّذِي لا يَرُدُّ عَنْكَ عَـــــــــــاديَةَ عَدُوِّكَ، بَلْ تبُوءُ بإثمِهِ وَبهِ يَشْحَذُ عَلَيْكَ سَيفَ عَدَاوَتِهِ. لأَنَّ لَفْظَةَ السُّوءِ تَبعَثُ الشَّرَّ وَالخَيْرُ مُقْمِعَةٌ لِلشَّرِّ. وَلا قُوَّةَ إلا باللهِ.

The Right of the Plaintiff (38th)

Translation: The right of the plaintiff who has a valid claim against you is that you should not dismiss his argument and invalidate his claim. Instead, you should rule in his favor and support his claim without requiring witnesses. This is the right of God that is made incumbent upon you.

If his claim against you is untrue, be patient with him. Warn him about Allah’s (SWT) punishment, urge him to adhere to his faith, and calm his anger towards you by reminding him of God.

Avoid using indecent words or foul language. Vulgar language will not diminish the plaintiff’s aggression; in fact, it may escalate it, and consequently, you would share the blame for the aggression they commit against you. Remember, offensive words can bring about evil, while kind words will eradicate evil. And there is no power but in God.

Commentary: Imam Sajjad (AS) emphasizes that, according to divine guidance on justice, we should not treat a plaintiff with hostility or resentment. Instead, it is essential to approach the situation with wisdom and assess the validity of the plaintiff’s claim. If the claim is valid, we must assist the plaintiff to secure their rights. Imam Sajjad (AS) stated the right of the plaintiff is:

If the plaintiff has a valid claim against you, you should not dismiss his argument and invalidate his claim. Instead, you should rule in his favor and support his claim without the need for witnesses. This is a right that God has made obligatory upon you.

If the plaintiff’s claim against you is untrue, remain patient. Warn him about Allah’s (SWT) punishment, urge him to adhere to his faith, and calm his anger by reminding him of God.

The Imam (AS) advised the defendant to refrain from using abusive or foul language. Such language can incite the plaintiff to escalate hostility and aggressively pursue his unfounded claim, which is considered sinful. The Imam (AS) warns that in this situation, the defendant is complicit in the plaintiff’s sin. The plaintiff may have abandoned his claim if the defendant had not provoked him with vulgar remarks.

The Imam (AS) is inspired by the Verses/Ayahs of the Qur’an [1] and states: “Remember that indecent words will cause evil, but good words will eradicate evil.”

Importance of Justice in Islam: The Qur’an commands us to adhere to the virtue of justice. For instance, Verse/Ayah 16:90 (An-Nahl) states: “Indeed, Allah (SWT) orders justice and good conduct.” [2]

Factors such as conflict of interest and animosity can lead to injustice and oppression. In these situations, Verse 5:2 (Al-Ma’idah) warns us not to allow our ill feelings to lead us to transgression. The Verse states:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا … وَلَا يَجْرِمَنَّكُمْ شَنَآنُ قَوْمٍ … أَن تَعْتَدُوا ۘ … ‎﴿٢﴾‏

5:2 O’ you who have believed …. do not let the hatred of a people … lead you to transgress.

The importance of maintaining justice, even in the face of hostility and personal conflict, is emphasized again in Verse 5:8 (Al-Ma’ida), which reads:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا … وَلَا يَجْرِمَنَّكُمْ شَنَآنُ قَوْمٍ عَلَىٰ أَلَّا تَعْدِلُوا ۚ اعْدِلُوا هُوَ أَقْرَبُ لِلتَّقْوَىٰ ۖ … ‎﴿٨﴾

5:8 O’ you who have believed, … do not let the hatred of a people prevent you from being just. Be just; that is nearer to righteousness. Verse 6:152 (Al-A’nam) commands believers to testify the truth, even if it is against their close relatives:

… وَإِذَا قُلْتُمْ فَاعْدِلُوا وَلَوْ كَانَ ذَا قُرْبَىٰ ۖ … ‎﴿١٥٢﴾‏

5:152 … And when you testify, be just, even if (it concerns) a near relative.

The modern judicial system allows individuals to opt out of testifying in court to avoid self-incrimination. However, this practice conflicts with the Islamic principle of justice. According to Verse 4:135 of An-Nisa, believers are required to testify truthfully, even if it means speaking against themselves, their parents, or their relatives. The Verse states:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُونُوا قَوَّامِينَ بِالْقِسْطِ شُهَدَاءَ لِلَّهِ وَلَوْ عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِكُمْ أَوِ الْوَالِدَيْنِ وَالْأَقْرَبِينَ ۚ …. ‎﴿١٣٥﴾

4:135 O’ you who have believed, be persistently standing firm in justice, witnesses for Allah (SWT), even if it be against yourselves or parents and relatives.

Translation of Phrases:

Note:

[1] Al-Mu’minun, 23:96, Fussilat, 41:34 (ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ)

[2] An-Nahl, 16:90 (إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ)

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