Sometime back we referred in this series to the need not to praise people in their presence, so that we may not encourage them to think too highly of themselves. That is when the praise is true and we are certain that the person we are praising is every bit like what we say about him. It is in such a situation that we should not say our praise to his face, in order not to encourage him to think too highly of himself. If the praise is unearned or untrue, then that is a mark of hypocrisy on the part of the one saying it, and it is forbidden.
But what should the person who is praised say in reply to such praise? The people who learnt that and practiced it well were the Prophet’s companions, because they were often praised. People loved them because of their quick response to the Prophet’s call and their defense of Islam. They also earned a position of honor by their companionship with the Prophet. Since they were keen to teach others how to implement Islam in their practical life, they were often in a position where praise was showered on them. So, what did they say in reply?
A Hadith reported by Al-Bukhari in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad quotes Adiy ibn Arta’ah, who belonged to the second Islamic generation as saying: "When any of the Prophet’s companions was praised, he would say, ‘My Lord, do not hold me responsible for what they say, and forgive me what they do not know.’" Another version of this Hadith related by Al-Baihaqi adds a third prayer, "and make me better than what they think."
This is an exemplary behavior by the Prophet’s companions. No one can control other people’s behavior. Least of all, we cannot control another person should he be wont on praising us in front of others. Hence, when a companion of the Prophet found himself in such a position, he would turn to God with a short prayer that was certain to prevent any feeling of self-satisfaction from creeping into him. He first prayed not to hold him responsible for what is being said about him. This is a prayer to ensure that nothing that he had done or said encouraged others to praise him. If our behavior invites praise, we should not be seeking it.
The second prayer is, ‘forgive me what they do not know.’ It is an acknowledgment that one is rarely as good as one appears to be. We all commit some sort of sin, and many of our sins may be private, unknown to others. Hence, this prayer puts that side against the praise given by others, so as to produce a feeling of humility to counter any satisfaction generated by the praise.
The third prayer seeks God’s help to achieve an even better position that what the praising people describe. This acknowledges that there remains a long distance between anyone and the degree of perfection people can attain. Therefore, God’s help is sought for the achievement of this goal.
Another warning about what we may say without paying much attention to its serious effects is stated by Abdullah ibn Abbas, the Prophet’s learned cousin and companion: "Let none of you say in reference to something that he does not know, ‘God knows this’, when God knows different. He would thus be attributing to God’s knowledge what He does not know. This, in God’s sight, is very serious indeed." (Related by Al-Bukhari in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad).
This is a reference to what many people do when they want to assert something of which they are unsure. They would hesitate to swear to its truth, because they are worried lest their oath be false or they may have too much respect for God to drag His blessed name into that of which they are uncertain. Hence, they say in a form of assertion, ‘God knows this’. This is described by scholars as highly unbecoming of a believer. This is because the person who resorts to this means states that God knows something when he himself is unsure.
Moreover, if the person making such assertion knows the matter to be different to what he says and still claims that God knows it, this is extremely serious. His statement claims that God knows the matter in question as different to what it actually is. Should he be aware of this difference, his statement is tantamount to disbelief in God.
When a person is unsure of something, he should make that clear before speaking of God’s knowledge. Thus, he may say: "This is how I think the matter is like, but God knows best." In this way, he does not assert the matter to be in a particular form. Rather, he states his view of the matter without calling God as a witness to his own view; he simply attributes perfect knowledge, leaving his listener aware that he himself may be wrong.
Another subtle difference may be noticed in the perfectly legitimate statement: "I have done this for God’s sake, and God knows that." Here the person concerned is stating his own intention, which he or she knows to be true. When they confirm it with God’s knowledge, they are certain of that. Hence, there is nothing wrong with such a statement. Reference to God’s knowledge is wrong when we are uncertain of the matter we are referring to and what it is really like.
Umar ibn Al-Khattab asked someone about something, and the man said, ‘God knows better’. Umar said, "We are in a sorry state indeed if we say this when we do not know what we are being asked about.
If any of you is asked about something he does not know, his reply should indicate his lack of knowledge."
Yet it may be pointed out that the Prophet’s companions replied to his questions on several occasions by saying, ‘God knows best’. This is true, but in their case, the statement was intended as an admission that they had no knowledge of the matter. In this way, their reply indicated their belief in God’s perfect knowledge in addition to their lack of information on that particular subject. Therefore, when it is clear that the person’s intention is to indicate the same and the listener would realize that it is so, such a reply is in order. But when it is merely stated to add weight to one’s uncertain statement, it is unacceptable.
