In The Name of Allaah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy.

Fear Allaah and maintain your ties of kinship.

Shaikh Zayd Bin Haadi [rahimahullaah] said

The hadeeth is very clear in commanding two virtuous acts of worship: A right Allaah is owed and a right owed to the people. As for the right Allaah is owed, it is that one fears Him. Indeed, Allaah [The Mighty and Majestic] commanded -in many places in the Qur’aan- that He should be feared, and from them is His statement:

يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِۦ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسۡلِمُونَ

O you who believe! Fear Allah (by doing all that He has ordered and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden) as He should be feared. [Obey Him, be thankful to Him, and remember Him always], and die not except in a state of Islam (as Muslims) with complete submission to Allah. [Surah Aal Imraan. Aayah 102]

Allaah [The Mighty and Majestic] said: [يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلنَّاسُ ٱتَّقُواْ رَبَّكُمُ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفۡسٍ۬ وَٲحِدَةٍ۬ – O mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person (Adam) [Surah An-Nisaa. Aayah 1]

Allaah [Glorified be He said]:

يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَقُولُواْ قَوۡلاً۬ سَدِيدً۬ا

يُصۡلِحۡ لَكُمۡ أَعۡمَـٰلَكُمۡ وَيَغۡفِرۡ لَكُمۡ ذُنُوبَكُمۡۗ وَمَن يُطِعِ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ ۥ فَقَدۡ فَازَ فَوۡزًا عَظِيمًا

O you who believe! Keep your duty to Allah and fear Him, and speak (always) the truth. He will direct you to do righteous good deeds and will forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, he has indeed achieved a great achievement (i.e. he will be saved from the Hellfire and made to enter Paradise). [Surah Al-Ahzaab. Aayaat 7071]

Allaah connected the good in this life and the next to Taqwa [Fear of Him], just is found in His statement:

وَمَن يَتَّقِ ٱللَّهَ يَجۡعَل لَّهُ ۥ مَخۡرَجً۬ا

وَيَرۡزُقۡهُ مِنۡ حَيۡثُ لَا يَحۡتَسِبُ‌ۚ

And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine. [Surah At-Talaaq. Aayaat 2-3]; then Allaah said in Aayah 5: [ وَمَن يَتَّقِ ٱللَّهَ يُكَفِّرۡ عَنۡهُ سَيِّـَٔاتِهِۦ وَيُعۡظِمۡ لَهُ ۥۤ أَجۡرًا – And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will remit his sins from him, and will enlarge his reward].

These are from the [divine] texts in which Allaah commanded [us] to fear Him. And the reality of Taqwah [Fear of Allaah], as some of the Salaf stated: “It is to act in obedience to Allaah with a light from Allaah [i.e. guided to know and enabled to perform the act sincerely], hoping for Allaah’s reward, abandon disobedience to Allaah with a light from Allaah [i.e. guided to know what is wrong and being enabled to keep away from it sincerely] and out of fearing Allaah’s punishment”.

The statement of the Prophet [sallal laahu alayhi wasallam] in this  hadeeth: “Fear Allaah”, means, perform acts of obedience to Allaah, abandon disobedience to Allaah, fulfil Allaah’s command, keep away from Allaah’s prohibitions, hasten towards good deeds, and distance yourself from evil manners and repugnant deeds.

As for the right owed to the people, this is referred to in the Prophet’s [sallal laahu alayhi wasallam] statement: “Maintain your ties of kinship”. The intent behind this is those related to you through lineage- on the mother’s and father’s side. It is obligated on a person to maintain the ties of kinship with these people as much as one is able- by going to visit them, sending them beneficial advice and through wealth. All these are righteous deeds and a right of relatives. And the aim [or goal] is that one enquires about their circumstances as much as one is able. And if corruption or something harmful enters into a tie of kinship, then one should make an effort to rectify the situation and not cut ties; rather one should make an effort to rectify the evil or mistake, so that Allaah rewards him for  keeping the ties of kinship, and for enjoining good and forbidding evil.

And if a person has a relative who has many female relatives, whilst he is not married and fears for him [i.e.  lest he falls into what is forbidden through direct contact], then keeping the ties of kinship [with this male relative who has many female relatives suffices]. It is not a condition that one speaks [in person] to the one who is not from his Mahaarim (1) in order to keep the ties of kinship; rather if he greats her, it should be behind a Hijaab [something prevents them from seeing one another].

[An Excerpt from ‘At-taleeqaat al-Maleehah Alaa Silsilah Al-Ahaadeeth As-Saheehah. Vol 1. Pages 36-37. Slightly paraphrased]

Ref 1: Mahaarim: Mind map illustration showing the mahrams (male chaperones) of a woman for travel and sittings:

https://www.abukhadeejah.com/mind-map-illustration-showing-the-mahrams-male-chaperones-of-a-woman-for-travel-and-sittings/

In The Name of Allaah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy.

Allaah [The Most High] said:

تِلْكَ الدَّارُ الْآخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوًّا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فَسَادًا ۚ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

That home of the Hereafter We assign to those who do not desire exaltedness in the earth or corruption. And the good end is for the Muttaqoon (pious ones) [28:83]

[تِلْكَ الدَّارُ الْآخِرَةُ- That home of the hereafter]: Meaning Paradise. [ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوًّا فِي الْأَرْضِ –We shall assign to those who do not desire exaltedness upon the earth]. Saeed Ibn Jubair said, “It is [those who do not desire] transgression.’’ Ad-Dahhaak said, “It is [those who do not desire] oppression”. Yahyah Ibn Sallaam said, “It is [those who do not desire] shirk” and Muqaatil said, “It is [those who do not desire to be] haughty by rejecting Eemaan”. [وَلَا فَسَادًا – or corruption]: Ikrimah said, “It is [those who do not desire] disobedience [to Allaah and His Messenger]”. Ibn Saa’ib said, “It is [those who do not] call to the worship of other than Allaah”. [وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِين-And the good end is for the Muttaqoon (pious ones)]- Meaning: They will have a praiseworthy end.

[Source: An Excerpt from Zaadul Maseer ‘ by Ibnul Jawzi (rahimahullaah)’ abridged and slightly paraphrased. Page 1074. Publisher: Daar Ibn Hazm’ 1^st Edition 1423AH (2002)]

In The Name of Allaah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy.

Abdullah Bin Mas’ood [radiyallaahu anhu] said that the Prophet [sallal laahu alayhi wasallam] used to supplicate, saying: [اللَّهُمَّ إِنِي أَسْأَلُكَ الهُدَى، وَالتُّقَى، وَالعفَافَ، والغنَى – O Allaah! I ask You for guidance, piety, modesty and self-sufficiency].

This is a comprehensive supplication that gathers four great affairs that are to be sought after and they are: Guidance, Piety, Modesty and Self-sufficiency [or contentment]. At-Teebiy [rahimahullaah] said, “Guidance and Piety brings about everything that will [rightly] guide a person to the worldly affairs, affairs of the afterlife and noble manners, and keeps a person away from everything that is obligated on him to refrain from, such as Shirk, disobedience and evil manners…”

Imaam An-Nawawi [rahimahullaah] said, “As for modesty, it is to be free from what is not permissible and to refrain from it. And self-sufficiency in this statement means contentment of the soul – to suffice oneself and not covet what the people possess.”

Shaikh Abdur Rahmaan Bin Sadi [rahimahullaah] said, “This supplication is one of the most comprehensive and beneficial, and it necessitates asking for the good of this world and the afterlife; for indeed guidance necessitates beneficial knowledge, piety necessitates righteous deeds and to abandon that which Allaah and His Messenger have forbidden, and by way of this one’s religion will become upright; for indeed the religion is based on beneficial sciences and sound knowledge based issues, and that necessitates guidance; and piety necessitates obedience to Allaah and His Messenger. Modesty and self-sufficiency necessitate not being in need of the people [i.e. being covetous] and attaching one’s heart to them, sufficing oneself with Allaah and His provision, being contented and seeking after that which brings tranquillity to the heart through self-sufficiency; and by way of this, complete happiness in the worldly life and a relaxed heart is attained. This is what a good life is. Therefore, whoever is bestowed with guidance, piety, modesty and self-sufficiency, then he will obtain the two types of happiness, achieved everything that is sought after and has been saved from every fear”.

[An Excerpt from Fiqhul Ad’iyah Wal-Adkaar. Vol 1. Pages 479-480. Slightly paraphrased]