His Eminence Sheikh Ali ibn Abdur-Rahman Al-Hudhaifi, may Allah preserve him, delivered the Friday sermon entitled, “The Virtue of Maintaining the Ties of Kinship”, in which he talked about the servants’ duties towards their Lord and towards one another, one of which is the duty of maintaining the ties of kinship. He explained that the obligations a Muslim has towards his relatives include maintaining good ties with them, treating them with kindness, visiting them, consoling them in times of hardship, and sharing their joys and sorrows. Then he reminded the audience of Paradise and Hellfire, and warned them against neglecting Allah’s orders and committing prohibited acts, which would result in ultimate loss in this life and in the Hereafter.

Praise be to Allah, Who has created man from water and has appointed for him kindred by blood and kindred by marriage, and your Lord is Ever All-Powerful to do what He wills, and Who has created ties and relationships among people and enjoined them to maintain them. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, Who has no partner. Our Lord has no rival or peer, and He is All-Hearing, All-Seeing. I also bear witness that our prophet and master Muhammad is His servant and messenger, whom He has sent as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner, who called people to Allah by His leave and as a lamp spreading light. O Allah! Bestow Your bountiful prayers, peace, and blessings upon Your servant and messenger Muhammad and upon his Household and Companions.

O Muslims!
Fear Allah and give rights to those entitled to them, so that Allah may grant you a great reward and protect you from severe punishment.

You should know, servants of Allah, that your Lord, by His grace and generosity, has explained everything in detail in the Qur'an, and that the Messenger of Guidance, peace and blessings be upon him, has shown everything that brings you closer to Paradise, keeps you away from Hellfire and brings you happiness in this life. He has clearly shown the servants’ duties towards the Lord of the Worlds, for our duty towards Allah is far greater than what He has actually enjoined us to do. However, in His immense mercy, Allah has only enjoined us to do some of the duties that are within our capacity; otherwise, Allah’s right is that He should be remembered, not forgotten; obeyed, not disobeyed; and shown gratitude, not ingratitude.

Allah has also made clear the servants’ duties towards one another so that they may lead a peaceful, secure, blessed and agreeable life, where mercy and compassion prevail, where there is no place for spite, where cooperation is observed, and where people show support and love to one another. Allah has shown the children's duties towards their parents, the parents' duties towards their children, and the duties of blood relatives towards one another.

Servants of Allah!
Maintaining the ties of kinship is an obligation that Allah has enjoined people to fulfil. It is a responsibility which He has placed on people’s shoulders and with which He has occupied their attention. Kinship refers to relatives by blood and relatives by marriage.

Allah, Exalted be He, has stressed the importance of maintaining the ties of kinship in many places in His Book. He says:

"And give to the kindred his due and to the Miskeen (poor) and to the wayfarer. But spend not wastefully (your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift." (Al-Isra’: 26)

Allah also makes maintaining the ties of kinship second only to piety and fear of Allah, Exalted be He. Allah, Might and Majesty be to Him, says:

". . . and fear Allah through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (do not cut the relations of) the wombs (kinship). Surely, Allah is ever an All-Watcher over you." (An-Nisa’: 1)

Due to the great importance of the ties of kinship, being one of the fundamentals of moral character and one of the pillars of virtue and good, Allah has enjoined the followers of every religion which He has revealed to maintain them. Allah, Exalted be He, says:

"And (remember) when We took a covenant from the Children of Israel, (saying): Worship none but Allah (Alone) and be dutiful and good to parents, and to kindred, and to orphans and Al-Masakeen (the poor), and speak good to people (i.e. enjoin righteousness and forbid evil, and say the truth about Muhammad Peace be upon him ), and perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat), and give Zakat." (Al-Baqarah: 83)

Abdullah ibn Salam, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the first statement that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, made when he entered Al-Madinah was, “O People! Exchange greetings of peace (i.e., say 'As-Salamu ‘Alaikum' to one another), offer the food (to the poor), maintain the ties of kinship, and pray at night while people are asleep, you will enter Paradise in peace.” (Reported by Al-Bukhari)

Those who maintain the ties of kinship are granted their reward for it in this very life in addition to the reward that Allah has in store for them in the Hereafter. Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, say, ‘He who likes to have his provision expanded and his term of life lengthened should maintain the ties of kinship” (Reported by Al-Bukhari and At-Tirmidhi, whose version reads, “Learn enough about your lineage to facilitate keeping your ties of kinship. For indeed keeping the ties of kinship encourages affection among the relatives, increases one's wealth, and lengthens one's lifespan.”).

Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Whoever loves to have his term of life extended and his provision increased and to be protected against the evil death should fear Allah and maintain good relations with his relatives” (Reported by Al-Hakim and Al-Bazzar).

Abdullah Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him and his father, narrated that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Allah gives a longer life to some people and increases their wealth though He has not looked at them once since He created them because of His dislike for them.” The Prophet's Companions then asked, “O Allah's Messenger! How is that?” He said, “It is because they maintain the ties of kinship” (Reported by Al-Hakim and At-Tabarani, and Al-Mundhiri classified its chain of narrators as hasan (good)).

Abu-Bakrah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “There is no sin which Allah is swifter to punish in this world, in addition to the punishment He has in store for the perpetrator in the Hereafter, than oppression and severing the ties of kinship” (Reported by Ibn Majah, At-Tirmidhi, and Al-Hakim).

Abu-Bakrah, may Allah be pleased with him, also said that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Of all righteous deeds, maintaining the ties of kinship is rewarded the quickest, so much so that the members of a family may be evil doers but Allah causes their wealth to grow and their number to increase because of doing so” (Reported by At-Tabarani and Ibn Hibban).

Maintaining the ties of kinship helps in comforting people’s hearts, making matters easy for them, nurturing tolerant character, winning people’s love, showing compassion to relatives, and enjoying a pleasant, happy, and blessed life. A Muslim is enjoined to maintain ties of kinship and to fulfil his duty towards his relatives  even if they sever such ties, so that he may have his reward multiplied and may send on good deeds beforehand for himself, and so that cooperation in righteousness may be realised. Maintaining the ties of kinship even if one's relatives sever them is more likely to make them shy away from severing such ties and to remove resentment from their hearts.  

Abu Dharr Al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “My intimate friend [the Messenger of Allah], peace and blessings be upon him, advised me to observe some good qualities. He advised me not to look to those who are above me in rank [in worldly matters] and to look to those who are below me; he advised me to love the poor and keep their company; he advised me to maintain the ties of kinship even if my relatives sever them; and he advised me not to fear in the cause of Allah the blame of any blamer” (Reported by Ahmad and Ibn Hibban).

Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “A man once said, ‘O Messenger of Allah! I have relatives with whom I maintain ties while they cut me off, whom I treat well while they treat me badly, and to whom I am forbearing while they are rough to me.’ The Prophet said, “If things are as you said, it is as if you were putting hot ashes on them and you will not lack a supporter against them from Allah as long as you continue to do that” (Reported by Muslim).

Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn Al-‘As, may Allah be pleased with him and his father, narrated that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The person who maintains the ties of kinship is not the one who reciprocates the good done to him by his relatives. Rather, the person who maintains the ties of kinship is the one who persists in treating his relatives well even when they sever the ties of kinship with him” (Reported by Al-Bukhari).

Severing the ties of kinship is an evil portent in this world and a source of misery, evil, difficulty, and discomfort in one's heart. It nurtures enmity and hatred among the relatives and among people in general, and causes misery in this worldly life. It also leads to Allah’s wrath and to the removal of His mercy. The Trust and the ties kinship will be on the sides of the Sirat (that is, the Bridge set over Hellfire) and will snatch those who did not maintain them and throw them into Hellfire, as stated in a hadith reported by Muslim.

It is clear, therefore, that the punishment for severing the ties of kinship is extremely painful in the Hereafter. Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Allah created the creation and when He had finished that, ar-rahim (ties of kinship) came forward and said, 'This is the place for him who seeks refuge from severing (ties of kinship).' Allah said, 'Yes. Are you not satisfied that I will maintain relationship with those who maintain ties of kinship and sever it with those who sever them? Ar-rahim said, 'Yes, I am satisfied.' Thereupon Allah said, 'Then you have it.' Allah's Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, then said: ‘Recite if you like: "Would you then, if you were given the authority, do mischief in the land, and sever your ties of kinship? Such are they whom Allah has cursed, so that He has made them deaf and blinded their sight" [Muhammad: 22-23].’” (Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim).

Al-A‘mash said, “Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with, was once sitting in a circle with a group of people after the dawn prayer when he said, ‘By Allah! I ask him who has severed ties with his kinship to leave us, for we want to call upon our Lord and the gates of heavens are blocked and sealed against those who sever the ties of kinship.” (Reported by At-Tabarani)

Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “There are three types of people who will not enter Paradise: a drunkard, a person who severs the ties of kinship, and a person who believes in sorcery” (Reported by Ahmad, At-Tabarani, and Al-Hakim).

O Muslims!
Maintaining the ties of kinship means being generous to one’s relatives and desisting from harming them. It means visiting their sick, supporting their poor, guiding the misguided among them, teaching their ignorant, giving presents to their rich, visiting them frequently, sharing their joys and sorrows, and giving comfort to them in prosperity and in adversity. It also means enquiring about one's relatives, honouring them in their absence, respecting their elderly, showing compassion to their young ones, bearing their mistreatment patiently, dealing with them in the best manner possible, and offering them sincere advice.

According to a mursal hadith (a hadith with an interrupted chain of transmitters) narrated by Al-Hasan Al-Basri, “If people pay lip service of their love while they hate each other in their hearts and sever the ties of their kinship, then Allah will curse them so that he will make them deaf and blind their sight.”

Severing the ties of kinship in this day and age has become rife, people's hearts have hardened and relationships among them have weakened. This is mainly because people seek transient benefits and fortunes in this worthless worldly life. Therefore, blessed are those who consider the consequences, pay attention to the outcomes, give others their rights, fulfil their duties, anticipate Allah’s reward regarding what others owe them, and do as they would be done by.

Severing the ties of kinship may become deep-rooted, and Satan may add fuel to the fire, causing the children to inherit this evil act from their parents, thereby causing a vicious circle of oppression and hostility. This breach among relatives may persist until death separates them while they are still in such a deplorable state. Then there will be nothing but remorse, sadness, and sorrow, but then it will be too late to show regret, and they will depart from this worthless life, never to meet again until after the Resurrection, when they all kneel before Allah, the Fair Judge, Who will decide between them by His judgement. He is the All-Mighty, the All-Knowing.

Patience, tolerance, kindness, and forgiveness are the best of all qualities and the best remedy for the diseases in people’s hearts. 'Uqbah ibn 'Amir, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “I met the Messenger of Allah, may peace and blessings be upon him, held his hand, and said, 'O Messenger of Allah! Tell me of the most virtuous deeds.' He said, “O 'Uqbah! Maintain ties of kinship with those who have cut you off, give alms to those who refrained from giving you, and turn away from those who have wronged you.' [or, according to another version, 'and pardon those who have wronged you'].” (Reported by Ahmad and Al-Hakim)

O Muslims!
Some women could be a reason behind the severance of the ties of kinship by engaging in gossip, highlighting shortcomings, concealing virtues, and sowing dissension among men. A woman who does so might think, out of sheer folly, that doing so would be of benefit to her, and might even drive her children to offend their relative, in which case she will bear the burden, and Allah is Ever Watchful over her.  

A woman can also be a good reason for maintaining the ties of kinship and fostering kindness among relatives by showing patience, offering advice to her husband, urging others to do good, and bringing up her children to respect their relatives. Allah will certainly reward such a woman, improve her condition, and make all her affairs end in goodness.

Therefore, O Muslim women, fear Allah, Exalted be He, and reconcile your relatives to one another. Do not be the cause of severing the ties of kinship, for nothing is hidden from Allah. Allah, Exalted be He, says:

"So give to the kindred his due, and to Al­Miskin (the poor) and to the wayfarer. That is best for those who seek Allah's Countenance, and it is they who will be successful." (Ar-Rum: 38)

May Allah bless you and me with the Great Qur'an and make us benefit from its verses and wise words and benefit from the guidance and right sayings of the Master of all Messengers. I have said what you have heard and I ask forgiveness of Allah for myself, for you, and for all Muslims for any sin we have committed. Ask Allah for forgiveness. He is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.