Lessons From Prophet Mohamed (PBUH): Honesty
Islam has been looked upon and labelled as a religion of violence and terror. Over the years, certain sects of people have given the world a reason to hate Islam and Muslims and generate a stereotype about them.
However, Islam is a religion of peace and our prophet (PBUH) was one of the greatest leaders of all time who led by example and taught us many lessons just by his actions.
Through the stories I’ve heard about Prophet Mohamed (PBUH), I’ve come to love him, respect him and wish that we could learn the simplest of lessons from his stories and follow in his footsteps.
Below is a story that teaches us one of the most import lessons of life:
Once a man came to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and said, “O Messenger of Allah (SWT), I have many bad habits. Which one of them should I give up first?”
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said, “Give up telling lies first and always speak the truth.” The man promised to do so and went home.
At night, the man was about to go out and steal. Before setting out, he thought for a moment about the promise he made to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
“If tomorrow Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) asks me where I have been, what shall I say? Shall I say that I went out stealing? No, I cannot say that. But nor can I lie. If I tell the truth, everyone will start hating me and call me a thief and I would be punished for stealing.”
So the man decided not to steal that night, and gave up this bad habit of stealing.
The next day, he felt like drinking alcohol; when he was about to do so, he said to himself, “What shall I say to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) if he asks me what I did during the day? I cannot tell a lie, and if I speak the truth people will hate me, because a Muslim is not allowed to drink alcohol.”
And so he gave up the idea of drinking alcohol.
In this way, whenever the man thought of doing something bad, he remembered his promise to tell the truth at all times. Step by step, he gave up all his bad habits and became a good Muslim and a very good person.
Telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth is a way to become a better human being. It is not just taught in our religion, but across all religions. Striving to always tell the truth makes you an honest human being who stays away from wrongdoing for the sake of honesty.
Imagine how our lives would be if we were all just honest human beings; if we could trust vendors in the streets without having to bargain; if we were sure that the people around us were honest and loyal; if everyone did their job with honesty; if the leaders running our countries had our best interests at heart and were honest in every decision and action they made.
Imagine what a happy place this world would be, because honesty is the core ingredient of every genuinely good human being and that is what our beloved Prophet (PBUH) was trying to teach us through his actions.
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