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The Value of Glad Tidings (Bushārah)
Author : Dr. Fadi Rabab`ah
Date Added : 09-06-2026

The Value of Glad Tidings (Bushārah)

Among the values of Islam and the methods of the Islamic sharīʿah in calling people to Allah the Almighty is the giving of glad tidings and the bearing of good news. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Make things easy for the people, and do not make it difficult for them, and make them calm (with glad tidings) and do not repulse (them )." (Reported by al-Bukhārī.) The word bushārah (glad tidings) and its derivatives appear extensively throughout the Holy Qurʾān and the pure Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, as in the words of Allah the Almighty {which mean}: "And give glad tidings to the believers" [Al-Baqarah/ 223], and His words: "So give good tidings to My servants" [Al-Zumar/ 17].

The Islamic sharīʿah and its call to Allah are not confined in their approach to warning, threatening, and frightening people with the punishment of the Fire. Rather, they equally embrace the giving of glad tidings — tidings of Allah's pleasure, of joy, and of a happy life in both this world and the next. It is for this very reason that Allah sent His messengers as both bearers of good news and warners, as He says: "And We do not send messengers except as bearers of glad tidings and as warners." [Al-Anʿām/ 48]

Abū Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that a Bedouin once urinated in the mosque, and the people rushed toward him to rebuke him. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to them: "Leave him, and pour a bucket of water over where he urinated — for you have been sent to make things easy, not to make them difficult." (Reported by al-Bukhari & Muslim)

The value of glad tidings carries profound educational and psychological significance for the human soul. It sharpens resolve and builds confidence; it eases pain and fills the heart with tranquillity; it stirs enthusiasm and the will to act, to bear hardship, and to face difficulty head-on. It gives a person the determination to persevere, to rise after falling, and never to surrender to despair or hopelessness.

The instances of glad tidings in the Holy Qurʾān and the pure Sunnah are many and varied. Among them is the glad tiding brought by the Prophet of Allah, ʿĪsā (Jesus), peace be upon him — the announcement of the coming of the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ — as Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "And when Jesus, son of Mary, said: 'O Children of Israel, I am the Messenger of Allah to you, confirming what came before me of the Torah and bringing glad tidings of a messenger to come after me whose name is Aḥmad.' But when he came to them with clear proofs, they said: 'This is plain magic.'" [Al-Ṣaff/ 6]

Among them also is the glad tiding for those who are patient in the face of hardship. Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth, lives, and fruits — but give glad tidings to the patient." [Al-Baqarah/ 155]

The angels brought glad tidings to the Prophet of Allah, Zakariyyā (Zechariah), peace be upon him, of the birth of Yaḥyā (John), while he stood in prayer in the sanctuary: "So the angels called out to him while he was standing in prayer in the sanctuary: 'Allah gives you glad tidings of Yaḥyā, who will confirm a word from Allah, and will be a master, chaste, and a prophet from among the righteous.'" [Āl ʿImrān/ 39]

And the angels brought glad tidings to Maryam (Mary) of ʿĪsā, peace be upon them both: "When the angels said: 'O Mary, indeed Allah gives you glad tidings of a word from Him, whose name will be the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary — distinguished in this world and the next, and among those brought near to Allah.'" [Āl ʿImrān/ 45]

They likewise brought glad tidings to Ibrāhīm (Abraham), peace be upon him, and his wife, of the births of Is-ḥāq (Isaac) and Yaʿqūb (Jacob), peace be upon them: "And his wife was standing, and she laughed. Then We gave her glad tidings of Isaac and, after Isaac, of Jacob." [Hūd/ 71]

There is also the glad tiding for those who have fallen into sin — the glad tiding of repentance and its acceptance: "Say: 'O My servants who have transgressed against themselves, do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Truly, He is the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.'" [Al-Zumar/ 53]

And there is the glad tiding of the Prophet ﷺ for the people of tawḥīd (pure monotheism). Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated: "The Prophet ﷺ was riding with Muʿādh ibn Jabal behind him on the mount. He said: 'O Muʿādh!' Muʿādh replied: 'At your service, O Messenger of Allah!' He called again: 'O Muʿādh!' And again Muʿādh replied: 'At your service, O Messenger of Allah!' He said this three times, then the Prophet ﷺ said: 'There is no servant who bears witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muḥammad is His servant and messenger, except that Allah has made him forbidden to the Fire.' Muʿādh said: 'O Messenger of Allah, shall I not tell the people so that they may rejoice?' He replied: 'If you do, they will rely upon it alone.' So Muʿādh disclosed it at the time of his death, considering it a sin to withhold it." (Reported by al-Bukhārī.)

Among the greatest glad tidings in Islam is the glad tiding of Paradise for those who believed in Allah and His prophets, peace be upon them all, and did righteous deeds. Allah, blessed and exalted, says {what means}: "And give glad tidings to those who believe and do righteous deeds that they will have gardens beneath which rivers flow. Whenever they are provided with fruit from it as provision, they will say: 'This is what we were provided with before.' And it will be brought to them in resemblance. And they will have purified spouses therein, and they will abide therein forever." [Al-Baqarah/ 25]

It is therefore incumbent upon callers to Islam, reformers, and those responsible for educational curricula to cultivate and reinforce the value of glad tidings in their approach to calling people to Allah and in their educational methods — following in the footsteps of the Holy Qurʾān and the noble guidance of the Prophet ﷺ, and being, in truth, bearers of good news.

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Summarized Fatawaa

Does swallowing a fly, road dust, or flour dust break the fast?

A fasting person does not break their fast if something enters their body cavity against their will, such as a fly, road dust, or flour dust.

A man wishes to offer more than one uḍḥiyah (sacrificial offering), and intends by these sacrifices "on behalf of everyone whom Allah and His Messenger love." Is this intention valid?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
The uḍḥiyah (sacrificial offering) is not valid with this intention, because if the sacrificial animal is from sheep or goats, it suffices for one person only; and if it is from cattle or camels, it suffices for seven persons.
However, one may sacrifice it on his own behalf, and then gift the equivalent of its reward to whomever he wishes.
Imam ar-Ramlī (raḥimahullāh) says: "Ash-Shāfi‘ī (raḍiyallāhu ‘anh) said: It is within the vastness of Allah's bounty, the Exalted, that He rewards the one giving charity as well. From this, the scholars of the madhhab said: it is recommended for a person to intend the charity on behalf of his parents, for example — for Allah, the Exalted, will reward them, without this diminishing his own reward in any way." He then relates, as the relied-upon position, the permissibility of saying: "O Allah, convey the reward of what I have recited specifically to so-and-so, and to the Muslims generally." Az-Zarkashī said: "For reward varies in degree — its highest form is what one designates specifically, and its lowest form is what one dedicates generally [alongside others]." [End of quote from Nihāyat al-Muḥtāj]. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

Is fasting obligatory for a child?

Fasting is not obligatory for a child until they reach puberty. Puberty is determined by well-known signs, the most common of which are: nocturnal emission (for both males and females), menstruation (for females), or reaching the age of fifteen lunar years.
A guardian must instruct their children to fast once they reach the age of discernment, which is around seven years old, if they are capable of fasting.

A woman made a wig for herself from her own [previously shed] hair, which she wears on her head after having lost her hair [due to hair loss]. Is this permissible?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Since the hair belongs to the woman herself, the wig can be removed during the obligatory ghusl (ritual bathing), and part of the head can still be wiped during wuḍū' (ablution), there is no sharī‘ah objection to making this wig — provided she does not appear wearing it in front of non-maḥram men (Any males outside a woman's immediate family whom she is permitted to marry under Islamic law), since it is not permissible for them to look at a woman's detached hair.
It is stated in Rawḍat aṭ-Ṭālibīn wa ‘Umdat al-Muftīn: "Whatever it is not permissible to look at while still attached [to the body] — such as the male genitalia, a free woman's forearm, the hair of her head, and a man's pubic hair, and similar matters — it remains unlawful to look at even after it has been detached [from the body], according to the more correct position (al-aṣaḥḥ)." And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

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