The Essence of Islam – Volume III — Page 14
14. Essence of Islam-III. The first moral quality for discarding evil is known as Iḥṣān. This term connotes the particular kind of chastity which relates to the procreative power of man and woman. Muḥṣin and Muḥṣinah respectively connote the man or woman who abstains from illicit sex or its preliminaries, the consequence of which for both is disgrace and curse in this world and torment in the hereafter; and for their relatives it is quite damaging, as well as a source of disgrace. . . . . Remember, the moral quality of Iḥṣān or chastity or sexual purity, can be called moral only when a person, who is capable of ogling or fornicating restrains himself from it. If a person lacks manhood, on account of immaturity, impotence, being a eunuch or because of old age, we cannot credit him with this particular moral quality known as chastity. . . . . God Almighty has not only commanded chastity, but has also prescribed five remedies to safeguard it, namely, abstaining from looking at those whom we are not allowed to, or hearing their voices, or listening to stories about them and avoiding participating in all those occasions which are likely to lead to evil, and fasting, if one is unmarried. . We can confidently claim that this excellent teaching with all its details, as set out in the Holy Qur'ān, is peculiar to Islām alone. . . . . Of the various forms of discarding evil, the second is the virtue known as Amanat and Diyānat [honesty and integrity], which is the indisposition to harm anyone by taking possession of his property mischievously and dishonestly. It should be clear that honesty and integrity constitute a natural human condition. That is why a child,