Luqman the Wise (Peace be upon him)

Once, a gathering of people sat surrounding Luqman the Wise (peace be upon him). At that moment, a man passed by the gathering.

Looking at Luqman (peace be upon him), the man asked, “Were you not the slave of such-and-such tribe?” To this, Luqman replied, “Yes! I was indeed their slave.”

The man asked again, “Are you not the very same person who was grazing sheep at the foot of such-and-such mountain?” Luqman replied, “Yes! I am that same person.”

The man then inquired, “Having been in such a state, how did you attain this elevated status?” Luqman (peace be upon him) answered, “By diligently upholding these matters: God-consciousness (Taqwa), truthfulness in speech, fully safeguarding and returning trusts (Amanah), and abstaining from idle talk.”

The counsel given by Luqman (peace be upon him)—whom Allah endowed with wisdom—to his son is renowned, and Allah has mentioned it in the Quran:

From the Wise Counsels of Luqman:

• “O my son! Sit frequently in the gatherings of scholars. Listen attentively to the words of the wise. Just as dry earth comes to life through rain, dead hearts are revived by the speech of the wise.”
• When he advised, “O my son! Do not remain fearless of Allah’s punishment! At the same time, do not fall into despair and lose hope! Keep good hope in His mercy!” his son asked, “Since the heart is only one, how can the two feelings of fear and hope reside together within it?”
  To this, Luqman (peace be upon him) replied, “A believer possesses two states: in one, there is complete hope, and in the other, complete fear.”
• Further among his advices: “O my son! Recite excessively: ‘Rabbighfirli’ (O Lord, forgive me!). There are certain grace-filled moments of Allah during which whatever a person asks is granted.”
• “O my son! Good deeds are not possible without firm faith in Allah. Whoever possesses weak faith will also be full of laziness in performing good deeds.”
• “O my son! If Satan attempts to plunge you into doubt, strike and defeat him with unwavering faith! If he makes you sluggish in good deeds, overcome him by remembering the grave and the Hereafter. If he approaches you through the path of worldly desire or the fear of worldly hardships, tell him: ‘This world will inevitably slip away anyway!’ (Neither the pleasures here are permanent, nor are the hardships here everlasting).”
• “O my son! Whoever speaks lies loses the radiance of his face. And whoever’s actions become wicked will be overtaken by grief and distress.”
• “O my son! Guard yourself intensely against lying. Even though lying may seem as savory as bird meat, it very quickly becomes a source of enmity against the one who lies.”
• “O my son! Attend funeral processions (Janazah) with utmost diligence, but refrain from attending festivals and celebrations. For the funeral renews the remembrance of the Hereafter, whereas festivities incline one toward worldly desires.”
• “O my son! Do not eat when your stomach is already full. Eating on a full stomach brings illness to the body and diminishes spiritual strength.”
• “O my son! Do not be so sweet that people swallow you whole, nor be so bitter that people spit you out!”
• “O my son! Do not become worse than a rooster! It wakes up and begins crowing at the time of Sahar (dawn), while you remain lying in bed!”
• “O my son! Do not delay repentance (Tawbah), for the hour of death is not fixed; it arrives suddenly.”
• “O my son! Do not befriend a foolish person, for his senseless words might begin to appear good to you.”
• “Do not purchase the enmity of the wise (Hakeem), lest a situation arises where they despise you (and consequently, you are deprived of their words of wisdom).”
• “O my son! Offer your food to no one except the God-conscious (Muttaqin), and seek the counsel of scholars (Ulama) in your affairs!”
• A person once asked him, “Who is the worst of people?” He replied, “The person who does not care if anyone sees him committing an evil deed.”
• “O my son! Increase your habit of sitting with the righteous, for sitting with them brings you goodness. At times, when Allah’s special mercy descends upon them, a portion of it will certainly reach you as well. Keep yourself far away from the company of wicked people, for no good can be expected from being with them; moreover, if a punishment descends upon them at times, its reflection will inevitably surround you too.”
• “O my son! After faith (Iman), the very first thing you must acquire is a righteous friend. The parable of such a friend is like that of a date palm: if you sit beneath it, it gives you shade; if you gather its firewood, it benefits you; and if you eat its fruit, you find it sweet.”
• Luqman (peace be upon him) further said: “Just as water is beneficial for agriculture, a father’s discipline is beneficial for his children.”
• “O my son! From the day you entered this world, you have been drawing closer to the Hereafter with each passing day. Therefore, the home toward which you advance daily is much closer than the one from which you are moving away.”
• “O my son! Protect yourself from debt! For it brings humiliation by day and distress by night (that is, humiliation during the day due to harassment from the creditor, and spending the entire night anxious about how to repay the debt).”
• “O my son! Have hope in Allah’s mercy only to the extent that it does not embolden you to commit sins. And fear Him in such a way that you do not fall into despair regarding His mercy.”
• “O my son! If someone comes to you complaining that such-and-such person has gouged out both his eyes, do not jump to any verdict without thoroughly questioning the other party—even if both of his eyes are visibly dislodged. For he himself may have initiated the injustice.”
• “O my son! An envious person has three signs:
  1. He backbites his friend when he is absent.
  2. He praises him lavishly (merely with his tongue) when in his presence.
  3. He rejoices when any affliction befalls him.”

If we engrave all the above words of wisdom into our hearts, reflect deeply upon them, and bring them into our lives, we can attain tranquility in both worlds.