The reason why Islam is a universal religion is the fact that it has touched and given instructions about each and every aspect of life. For a Muslim there is no other place to go for other than Quran and Sunnah to find instructions about any aspect of life or any issue faced.
One of the daily life areas of Islam, which Islam has addressed amply, is the treatment of slaves and servants. Although the system of having slaves is no more present, therefore, what implied for slaves at that time now applies to the present servants. The lines below discuss the Islamic way of treating servants.
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in one of His hadiths:
“Observe Salaah, Observe Salaah and fear Allah with regards to your slaves and servants.”
From this hadith it is clear that a Muslim ought to treat the servants and slaves fairly. In their treatment a Muslim must always remember that Allah Almighty is seeing each and everything in general and treatment of slaves and servants in particular.
Pertaining to the rights of the slave and the way they are to be treated, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in another hadith:
“Food and dress are the right of the slave and he should not be assigned to task which may be beyond his capacity.”
At present people are under the impression that giving salary to a servant is the only responsibility that a lord has towards the slave. This hadith makes it clear that a lord must take care of the dressing and food of the servant as well as it is his right. Moreover, the other notion that people have is that a servant is bound to do anything which he is ordered regardless of his capabilities. This notion is also refused by Islam and Prophet (PBUH) instructs lords to not put the burden on the servant which he cannot handle.
People of today have grown impatient, especially when it comes to dealing with people who serve them. Due to their intolerance, people do not forgive the servant’s mistakes and punish them as they deem fit. Regarding this punishment of servants, Prophet (PBUH) said in a hadith:
“Whoever eats the slave or servant unjustly, revenge will be taken from him on the Day of Judgment.”
This hadith also makes it clear that while punishing the servants or when beating them a person must remember that he will be held accountable on the judgment day and if his beating to the servant is unjust, he will surely receive the according justice. Hence, a lord has to be very cautious when dealing with the servants and should never think of them as someone who is below the standards of justice, rather be just with them and treat them according to their deeds.
In a nutshell, it is imperative for a lord to take care of the servants by providing them food and clothing, be just when it comes to treating them and above all be considerate and kind to them when it comes to assigning tasks and duties.
Hijab al Faisal works at QuranReading.com, which has experienced teachers who assist in online Quran study.
One of the daily life areas of Islam, which Islam has addressed amply, is the treatment of slaves and servants. Although the system of having slaves is no more present, therefore, what implied for slaves at that time now applies to the present servants. The lines below discuss the Islamic way of treating servants.
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in one of His hadiths:
“Observe Salaah, Observe Salaah and fear Allah with regards to your slaves and servants.”
From this hadith it is clear that a Muslim ought to treat the servants and slaves fairly. In their treatment a Muslim must always remember that Allah Almighty is seeing each and everything in general and treatment of slaves and servants in particular.
Pertaining to the rights of the slave and the way they are to be treated, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in another hadith:
“Food and dress are the right of the slave and he should not be assigned to task which may be beyond his capacity.”
At present people are under the impression that giving salary to a servant is the only responsibility that a lord has towards the slave. This hadith makes it clear that a lord must take care of the dressing and food of the servant as well as it is his right. Moreover, the other notion that people have is that a servant is bound to do anything which he is ordered regardless of his capabilities. This notion is also refused by Islam and Prophet (PBUH) instructs lords to not put the burden on the servant which he cannot handle.
People of today have grown impatient, especially when it comes to dealing with people who serve them. Due to their intolerance, people do not forgive the servant’s mistakes and punish them as they deem fit. Regarding this punishment of servants, Prophet (PBUH) said in a hadith:
“Whoever eats the slave or servant unjustly, revenge will be taken from him on the Day of Judgment.”
This hadith also makes it clear that while punishing the servants or when beating them a person must remember that he will be held accountable on the judgment day and if his beating to the servant is unjust, he will surely receive the according justice. Hence, a lord has to be very cautious when dealing with the servants and should never think of them as someone who is below the standards of justice, rather be just with them and treat them according to their deeds.
In a nutshell, it is imperative for a lord to take care of the servants by providing them food and clothing, be just when it comes to treating them and above all be considerate and kind to them when it comes to assigning tasks and duties.
Hijab al Faisal works at QuranReading.com, which has experienced teachers who assist in online Quran study.