Absolute Justice, Kindness and Kinship — Page 218
Justice (‘ Adl ), Benevolence ( Ihsan ) & Kinship ( Ita’i Dhil-Qurba ) in Worship 213 According to the following tradition, once a shepherd heard the Holy Prophet sa emphasize the superiority of congregational prayer over the individual prayer. The shepherd humbly informed him that he spent his time in the desert away from urban settlements at most prayer times then how could he attend the congregational prayers? The Holy Prophet sa replied, 'Give the call for prayer in the desert at the prayer time. If anyone happens to be in the vicinity, he will hear the call and join you. Your prayer will thus become congregational. If no one joins you, stand up for prayer and angels will descend from heaven to join you in prayer. ' 26 Various inferences can be drawn from this tradition: 1. A person is granted leave from attending the mosque for prayers if his obligations prevent him from doing so. 2. If he arranges for congregational prayers to be held at his convenience, his prayer will still be counted by Allah as though he had done it at a regular mosque. 3. If in spite of his desire, no one is available to him for prayer, God will accept it as though it had been said in congregation. The above tradition seems to contain all three stages of Justice (‘ Adl ), Benevolence ( I h s an ) & Kinship ( I t a’ i Dhil-Qurb a ) simultaneously. Justice is done because it does not burden any person beyond his capacity.