عربي
Home


Articles

Articles

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.

Article Number [ Previous | Next ]

Read for Author




Comments


Captcha


Warning: this window is not dedicated to receive religious questions, but to comment on topics published for the benefit of the site administrators—and not for publication. We are pleased to receive religious questions in the section "Send Your Question". So we apologize to readers for not answering any questions through this window of "Comments" for the sake of work organization. Thank you.




Summarized Fatawaa

A group of about thirty young men will go to a farm on Friday. Is it permissible for one of us to deliver the sermon (*khuṭbah*) and lead us in the Friday prayer, or is it necessary to go to the nearest mosque?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The Friday prayer (Jumuʿah) is not obligatory upon a traveler, whether his journey is long or short, if he leaves his place of residence before the time of Fajr begins, according to the Shāfiʿī school. If, however, he sets out on his journey after the Fajr adhān, then he is obliged to perform the Friday prayer, whether in his own town or in any town where the Friday prayer is held.
It is stated in Bushrā al-Karīm (Vol.1/p.383), one of the books of the Shāfiʿī school: “[The Friday prayer] is not obligatory upon a traveler on a permissible journey, whether long or short, if he departs from his place of residence before dawn.” End quote.
Accordingly, if you set out on your journey after Fajr, you are obliged to perform the Friday prayer in the mosque. The same applies if you set out after that, since you would not have fulfilled the conditions for the validity of the Friday prayer, among them: that it be attended by forty men who are free, adult (bāligh), sane, and settled residents of the place where Friday is held. It must be held within a cluster of connected buildings, whether a city, a village, or a district (liwāʾ), for what counts is the gathering of the buildings. And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on forgiving a tenant next month's rent, with the intention of counting it toward zakāh al-māl?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It does not fulfill the obligation to count the rent owed on a house, or a portion of it, in lieu of zakāh. Rather, it is necessary to first transfer ownership of the zakāh amount to the poor person directly; only afterward may he be asked to pay the rent [from that money].
It is stated in ‘Umdat as-Sālik (p. 112): "If someone gives [money] to a poor person, stipulating that the recipient return it to him in payment of a debt owed to him, or says, 'I am making what you owe me into zakāh, so take it [as such]' — this is not valid. But if he gives it to him with the [unstated] intention that the recipient will use it to repay him, or says, 'Repay what you owe me, so that I may [then separately] give it to you as zakāh,' or the debtor himself says, 'Give it to me, so that I may [then] repay you with it' — this is valid, and there is no binding obligation for the recipient to actually fulfill this [informal understanding]."
We would also remind [the reader] of the ḥadīth of the Prophet ﷺ: "The Muslim is the brother of the Muslim: he does not wrong him, nor does he abandon him [to harm]. Whoever attends to the needs of his brother, Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will attend to his needs. Whoever relieves a Muslim of a hardship, Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will relieve him of one of the hardships of the Day of Resurrection. And whoever conceals [the faults of] a Muslim, Allah will conceal him on the Day of Resurrection." (Agreed upon). And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

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.

What is the ruling on performing the standing (qiyām) and bowing (rukū‘) portions of the prayer normally, while performing the prostration (sujūd) seated due to knee pain?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
If performing sujūd (prostration) in prayer causes the worshipper pain in the knees, then it is permissible for him to perform it through gesture (īmā') while seated, since Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has lifted hardship from His servants. On the authority of ‘Imrān ibn Ḥuṣayn (raḍiyallāhu ‘anh), he said: "I suffered from hemorrhoids, so I asked the Prophet ﷺ about [how to perform] the prayer, and he said: 'Pray standing; if you are unable, then sitting; and if you are unable, then on your side.'" [Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī]
If the valid excuse later subsides, the worshipper is then obligated to perform the prayer with all its pillars and conditions fully observed — including standing, rukū‘ (bowing), and sujūd (prostration). And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

See More