Naṣīḥa
Definition
Nasihah — sincere counsel — is described by the Prophet ﷺ as the very essence of the religion: 'The religion is nasihah.' In the context of friendship, it means the willingness to tell a friend what they need to hear, not what they want to hear — pointing out their faults when those faults are endangering their spiritual wellbeing, correcting their errors when correction is possible, and doing so privately and with genuine concern rather than publicly and with a desire to feel superior. Al-Ghazali says the friend who withholds nasihah out of a desire to remain liked is not a friend but a pleasant companion on the road to ruin.
As understood in the classical tradition of Imam al-Ghazali and the scholars of his school.
Appears in
1 book in the library
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