An Islamic Treasury of Virtues
13. Justice
~ 274 ~
IMPARTIAL DECISION-MAKING
Juadah ibn Hurayrah once came to Ali, the
Commander of the Faithful, and asked him what he
would do if two men were ever to come before him,
one of whom was so fond of him that he would put
him before his own self, while the other hated him
so much that, given the chance, he would cut his
throat. Would Ali decide in favour of the first and
against the second? “If the decision were truly in
my hands, I should please myself. But it is not. It is
in the hands of God.”
(KANZ AL-UMMAL)
MAKING THE QUR’AN ONE’S GREATEST
PREOCCUPATION
Whenever officials were to be despatched on
missions, Umar would make them promise not to
ride on Turkish horses, eat fine flour or wear silken
clothes, and not to close their doors to the needy.
He warned them that if they fell into any of these
errors, they would be punished. Then, having
extracted this promise from them, he would send
them off. If Umar had to relieve some official of his
