Words of Wisdom by Luqman

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Wisdom provides us with the capacity to solve real life problems. So, acquiring wisdom
becomes a must if we want to live meaningful lives. As we live through life and its
experiences, it is vital that we reflect on such experiences to mae our subsequent steps in life
easier. As !mmanuel "ant, a famous philosopher said that Science is organized knowledge.
Wisdom is organized life.
So, if wisdom enables a person to mae more sound decisions, tae a shortcut path to
success, recalibrate values for the better, and simply live a better life, then why not spend
time reflecting on our own experiences as well as learning from others# As Will $urant, a
renowned philosopher and %ulit&er %ri&e winner stated, A wise man can learn from another
mans experience; a fool cannot learn even from his own.
'he words of the (uran and teachings of our %rophet )uhammad guide us to a wealth of
wisdom and nowledge. !n fact, Allah calls (uran the *+oo of wisdom, in many places in
the (uran. -e says. A.L.. !hese are the a"ats of the #ook of wisdom. /0unus, 1hapter
213, 4erse 215. 'he Almighty also says. *We have sent it down as an Ara$ic %&ran' in
order that "e ma" learn wisdom. /0usuf, 1hapter 216, 4erse 265
(uran emphasi&es the importance of wisdom throughout its text. Allah sent prophets and
messengers to propagate that wisdom. -e says in one of such verses. A similar (favor have
"e alread" received) is that We have sent among "o& a *essenger of "o&r own' rehearsing
to "o& +&r Signs' and sanctif"ing "o&' and instr&cting "o& in Script&re and wisdom' and
in new knowledge., /Al7+aqara, 1hapter 26, 4erse 21815,
!n its text, (uran also teaches wisdom through the words of a person named 9uqman.
Although not a prophet, Allah had granted him enormous wisdom. -e was wise enough to
have an entire chapter named after him. -e was a pious person and according to the (uran
was granted wisdom by Allah. As Allah says in the (uran. And indeed We $estowed &pon
L&,man Al-ikmah (wisdom and religio&s &nderstanding' etc.) sa"ing. /ive thanks to
Allah' and whoever gives thanks' he gives thanks for (the good of) his ownself. And
whoever is &nthankf&l' then veril"' Allah is All ich (0ree of all wants)' Worth" of all
praise. (L&,man. 12)
!n his boo *Stories of the %rophet,, !bn "atheer writes that 9uqman:s real name was nown
as *9uqman !bn Anqa; !bn Sadun, or according to some *9uqman !bn 'haran, who was
from among the people of Aylah /<erusalem5 /Stated by As7Suhaili from !bn <arir and Al7
(utaibi5. Some accounts describe him as an =thiopian slave who wored as a carpenter.
+ecause of his wisdom people went to him to settle their affairs and therefore he was also
nown to be a >udge.
Although (uran maes no reference regarding him being as a prophet, it is narrated by some
as described by !bn "atheer in his boo *Stories of the %rophet, that he was offered to
become one. !bn "atheer mentions, Sa:id said. ! heard (atadah as saying. !t was said to
9uqman. How did you prefer wisdom to Prophethood when you were enabled to choose
between them? He said: If Allah were to assign me with Prophethood, I would accept it
and try hard to win His Pleasure, but He enabled me to choose. I feared of being too wea
for Prophethood, so I chose wisdom.
Luqmans Wisdom
'he following are the words of wisdom of 9uqman as described in the (uran. 9ater, another
section quotes his wisdom as narrated by other reliable narrators as mentioned by !bn "atheer
in his boo *Stories of the %rophets,.
Luqmans wisdom in the Quran
9uqman:s wisdom in the (uran is described in the context of him explaining it to his son. !t
is described in the (uran in the following verses.
egarding not to associate an"one in the worship and oneness of Allah ?
And !remember" when #u$man said to his son when he was ad%ising him: & my son' (oin
not in worship others with Allah. )erily' (oining others in worship with Allah is a great
*oolm !wrong" indeed. (%&ran. L&,man. 13)
#eing d&tif&l to ones parents ?
And +e ha%e en,oined on man !to be dutiful and good" to his parents. His mother bore him in
weaness and hardship upon weaness and hardship, and his weaning is in two years gi%e
thans to -e and to your parents, unto -e is the final destination. (%&ran. L&,man. 14)
#eing d&tif&l to ones parents except where the" tell "o& to deviate from the ight
path 5
.ut if they !both" stri%e with you to mae you ,oin in worship with -e others that of which
you ha%e no nowledge, then obey them not, but beha%e with them in the world indly, and
follow the path of him who turns to -e in repentance and in obedience. /hen to -e will be
your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do. (%&ran. L&,man. 16)
7ver" person is acco&nta$le for ever"thing that he does 5
& my son' If it be !anything" e$ual to the weight of a grain of mustard seed, and though it
be in a roc, or in the hea%ens or in the earth, Allah will bring it forth. )erily, Allah is 0ubtle
!in bringing out that grain", +ellAware !of its place". (%&ran. L&,man. 18)


7n9oining :ra"ers
& my son' perform As0alat !prayers", en,oin !people" for Al1-aroof !Islamic -onotheism
and all that is good", and forbid !people" from Al-unar !i.e. disbelief in the &neness of
Allah, polytheism of all inds and all that is e%il and bad", and bear with patience whate%er
befalls you. )erily' /hese are some of the important commandments ordered by Allah with no
e2emption. (%&ran. L&,man. 1;)
<o not $e arrogant and pro&d
*And turn not your face away from men with pride, nor wal in insolence through the earth.
4erily, Allah lies not each arrogant boaster. (%&ran. L&,man. 1=)
#e h&m$le and lower "o&r voice
And be moderate !or show no insolence" in your waling, and lower your %oice. )erily, the
harshest of all %oices is the %oice !braying" of the doney. (%&ran. L&,man. 1>)

Other words of wisdom from Luqman (not narrated in the Quran) [ibn
Katheer]
L&,man on $eing granted respect and honor
3arrated Ibn +ahb: I was told by 4Abdullah Ibn 4Ayyash Al15ityani after6 7mar, the freed
sla%e of 4Afrah as saying: A man came to #u$man, the wise and ased: Are you #u$man?
Are you the sla%e of so and so? He said: 8es' /he man said: 8ou are the blac shepherd'
#u$man said: As for my blac color, it is ob%iously apparent, so what maes you so
astonished? /he man said: 8ou became fre$uently %isited by the people who pleasingly
accept your ,udgments' #u$man said: 9 cousin' If you do what I am telling you, you will be
lie this. /he man said: +hat is it? #u$man said: #owering my ga:e, watching my tongue,
eating what is lawful, eeping my chastity, undertaing my promises, fulfilling my
commitments, being hospitable to guests, respecting my neighbors, and discarding what does
not concern me. All these made me the one you are looing at.
#owering of the ga:e usually refers to not looing at men ; women !other than your spouse"
with a bad desire and to loo at them only for %alid reasons as prescribed in the religion.
<efer to Islam1$a.com for detailed e2planation on this topic.
L&,man on the val&e of Wisdom
3arrated =amurah after As10ariy Ibn 8ahia as saying: #u$man said to his son: & my son'
)erily, wisdom has brought the indigent to the courts of ings.
L&,man on propagating wisdom to others and to take it serio&sl" when given $"
others
I was told by my father after 4Amr Ibn 47thman after =amurah Ibn Hafs Ibn 47mar as
saying: #u$man placed a bag of mustards beside him and started to ad%ise his son, gi%ing
him with e%ery piece of ad%ice a mustard till it all ran out. He said: & my son' I ga%e you
ad%ice that if a mountain was gi%en, it would split>>>
L&,man on the need to have a pleasing tong&e and so&nd heart
8a:id Ibn Hamn and +ai6 told us after Abul A0hhab after ?halid Ar1<ab6i as saying:
#u$man was an @thiopian sla%e who wored as a carpenter. &ne day, his master ordered
him to slaughter a goat and bring him the most pleasant and delicious two parts thereof.
#u$man did so and brought him the tongue and heart. /he master ased: =id not you find
anything more pleasant than these? #u$man said: 3o' After a while, the master ordered him
to slaughter a goat and to throw the most malignant two parts thereof. #u$man slaughtered
the goat and threw the tongue and heart. /he master e2claimed and said: I ordered you to
bring me the most delicious parts thereof and you brought me the tongue and heart, and I
ordered you to throwaway the most malignant parts thereof and you threw the tongue and
heart, how can this be? #u$man said: 3othing can be more pleasing than these if they were
good, and nothing can be more malicious than these if they were malignant.
L&,man on Speech is silver and slince is golden

#u$man said to his son: & my son' I ha%e ne%er regretted because of eeping silent. If
words are sil%er, silence is golden.
L&,man on the need to have kindness' merc" and love for others
Abu -u6awiyah told us after Hisham Ibn 47rwah after his father as saying: +isdom
dictates: & my son: #et your speech be good and your face be smiling, you will be more
lo%ed by the people than those who gi%e them pro%isions. And, he said: It is stated in the
wisdom 1or the /orah A : ?indness is the head of wisdom. And, he said: It is stated in the
/orah: As you show mercy !to others", mercy will be shown to you.
L&,man on giving
And, he said: It is stated in the wisdom: 8ou will gain what you gi%e !or, har%est what you
grow".
L&,man on friendships
And, he said: It is stated in the wisdom: #o%e your friend and the friend of your father.
L&,man on patience' knowledge' and goodness
BAbdur <a::a$ told us after -u6amir after Ayyub after Abu Culabah as saying: #u$man was
once ased: +ho is the best one in terms of patience? He said: It is the one who practices no
harm after obser%ing patience. /hose who ased him said: +ho is the best one in terms of
nowledge? He said: It is he who adds to his own nowledge through the nowledge of
others. /hey ased: +ho is the best from among the whole people? He said: It is the wealthy.
/hey said: Is it the one who has properties and riches? He said: 3o' .ut, it is the one if
whose good was sought, he would not hold it bac or pre%ent it. And, it is the one who does
not need anything from others.
L&,man on the need to keep good compan" and to cons&lt scholars
4Abdullah Ibn Ahmed said: I was told by Al1Haam Ibn Abu *uhair Ibn -usa after Al15ara,
Ibn 5udalah after Abu 0a6id as saying: #u$man said to his son: & my son' #et only the
pious men eat your food, and consult the scholars o%er your affairs.
5inally, wisdom in matters is one of the blessings that Allah grants to His creation. /he
Almighty says in the Curan: -e grants -ikmah to whom -e pleases' and he' to whom
-ikmah is granted' is indeed granted a$&ndant good. #&t none remem$er (will receive
admonition) except men of &nderstanding. (%&ran. Al?#a,ara. 28>)
9uqman @the wiseA /alaihissalam5 is a well7nown sage, whose advice to his son has been
mentioned in the -oly (urBan. 9uqmanBs sayings and the words of advice he gave to his son,
contain rare wisdom, and quite a number of 'raditions refer to C9uqmanBs advice to his sonC.
Dne of these are. CD my dear son, sit in the company of the Elema /religious scholars5
frequently and listen carefully to what the wise men say, for Allah gives life to the dead hearts
by the BFur /light5B of wisdom, >ust as -e revives the dead earth by heavy life7giving rains.C
'hey relate that once a stranger passed by 9uqman /alaihissalam5 while he was sitting among
his followers. 'he man said, addressing 9uqman, CArenBt you the bondsman of such and such
tribe.C -e replied,C 0es, ! was.C 'he stranger ased again, CArenBt you the one who used to
gra&e the goats near such and such hill#C 9uqman replied, C0es, ! am the same person.C 'he
man then said, C'hen what has brought you to this noble position#C 9uqman /alaihissalam5
replied, C! was very particular about a few things and ! observed them on all occasions, vi&.
Gear of Allah, truthfulness in speech, fulfilling a trust and avoiding useless tal.C
9uqman advised his son, C)y son entertain good expectations from Allah without losing fear
of -is punishment. A fear of -is punishment should mae you despair of -is )ercy.C -is
son replied, C'he heart is one. -ow can it contain hope and fear at one and the same time#C
9uqman /alaihissalam5 responded, CA believer is such as if he possessed two hearts. one
teeming with hope and the other equally full of fear.C
-e exhorts his son to recite CHebi AghfirleeC /D my 9ord, forgive my sins5 frequently. Gor,
there are certain hours during which AllahBs special favors descend upon -is men and
everybody is granted whatever he ass from Allah.
-e says. C)y dear son no one can perform good deeds unless he possesses a firm belief in
Allah. !f a personBs heart is unsound, he is very wea in performing good actions.C
C)y dear son, if Satan /the $evil5 were to create doubts in your mind, let your firm belief
overpower him and silence his whispersI and if he tempts you to be negligent in virtues,
defeat him with remembrance of the grave and the $ay of HesurrectionI if he /the $evil5
tempts you towards the >oys of this world or maes you afraid of the hardships of this life,
say to him, BDne must inevitably leave this world /neither the luxuries nor the hardships of
this life are enduring5.BC
-e says. C)y dear son, he who tells a lie loses the freshness of face, he who cultivates bad
habits will ever remain sadI it is far easier to move huge mountains from one place to another
than to reform the ignorant stupid.C
-e says. C)y dear son, abstain from telling liesI for lies soon arouse enmity and hatred for
the liar.C
C)y dear son, be very particular about attending funeral prayers and avoid attending
festivities. Gor, funerals remind one of the -ereafter and festivities divert DneBs attention
towards this world.C
C)y dear son, do not eat anything, when your stomach is fullI it is better to put food before a
dog than to overeat.C
C)y dear son, donBt be so sweet that people swallow you up, nor so bitter that they spit you
out.C
C)y dear son, do not be less capable /in devotions5 than a roster which starts crowing at early
dawn and you be laying asleep in bed.C
C)y dear son, donBt delay 'aubah /Hepentance5, for death may tae you unaware.C
C)y dear son, do not mae friends with stupid people, lest you should develop a liing for
their foolish tal. And do not incur the enmity of a wise man, lest he should turn away from
you in disgust /and you should he deprived of getting the benefit of his wisdom5.C
C)y dear son, let no one but the pious partae of your food and always consult Elama
/religious scholars5 in your affairs.C
Someone ased 9uqman /alaihissalam5, CWho is the worst of men#C -e replied, C'he one
who does not mind being watched while doing an evil deed.C
-e says. C)y dear son, associate frequently with the pious for, in this way alone, you can
attain to the virtues that they possess. +esides, when AllahBs special favors descend upon
these beings you will also be able to receive your share of blessingsI for when it rainsI
showers fall on all sides of the house.C
C)y dear son, avoid the company of the wiced people, for no good can be expected to come
out of associating with them. )oreover, if at any time, AllahBs punishment befalls them, you
will also he affected by it.C
-e says. CA fatherBs punishment is as beneficial for a child as is the water for the fields.C
-e says. C)y dear son, since the day you were born, everyday, you are getting closer to the
-ereafter with your bac towards this world. So, your abode in the -ereafter is far nearer to
you /because you are advancing towards it everyday, at all times5 than your house in this
world /because you are moving farther and farther away from it day by day5.C
-e says, C)y dear son, avoid incurring debtsI for a debt is a humiliation by day and a grief by
night. /Dne is disgraced when the creditors mae demands by day, and one spends the night
in grief, worrying about his debts.5C
C)y dear son, entertain hopes of mercy from Allah, but let not your hopes mae you bold in
committing sinsI be fearful of Allah but let not your fear mae you despair of -is mercy.C
C)y dear son, if someone comes to you with the complaint that so and so has taen both his
eyes and you actually see both his eyes missing, do not form any >udgement about the person
until you have heard the other side. Gor, this man might have hit the other person first and
taen out four eyes earlier.C
When the last hour came for 9uqman, he said to his son, C)y dear son, ! have given you a lot
of advice during my lifetimeI now that ! am leaving the world, ! would lie to advise you
about six points.
/15 +usy yourself in the affairs of this world to the extent of the remaining period of your life
/which is nothing when measured against the eternity of the Ahirah /the -ereafter5.
/65 Worship Allah according to the measure of your dependency on -im /and, obviously, one
needs -is help in everything5.
/J5 )ae preparations for the -ereafter according to the extent of your stay in that world
/and, obviously, one shall have to stay there eternally, for there is no other place to go to after
death5.
/K5 1ontinue to struggle for redemption from -ell7fire till you are sure you have attained it.
/!t is common nowledge that, if someone is under trial for a grievous offence, he continues
to mae efforts for his acquittal till he is sure that the case is going be decided in his favor.5
/85 !f you have the audacity to indulge in sins, do so to the extent that you can endure -ell7
fire /for, punishment of sins is dictated by law and you are never sure whether the Sovereign,
however infinite -is mercy may he, will grant you mercy petition.5
/L5 When you want to commit a sin, loo for a hiding place that is not being watched by
Allah and -is angels /for, everybody nows the consequences of engaging in a revolt before
the eyes of the Sovereign -imself or in the presence of his secret agents.5