Amr bil Maroof wa Nahi anil Munkar  (Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil)

 Allah (‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ said in surat Al-Imran, (Verse 110), what can be translated

as, "You are the best of peoples ever raised up for mankind, you enjoin Al-
Ma'ruf and forbid Al-Munkar, and you believe in Allah…"
Allah (‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ tells us in this verse that this Ummah (The Ummah of the
prophet (‫ ))ﷺ‬is the best Ummah that Allah (‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ has ever sent to
humanity. He revealed the reason behind what makes this Ummah the best. It is
the best not because of ethnic background, color, or language, but because of
enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil and the belief in Allah ( ‫ت‬ ‫و‬ ‫سبحانه‬
‫)عالى‬. So, if these characteristics are attained, this Ummah will be good. And if they
are not attained, this Ummah will not be good. Qatadah said: We were told that
while Omar Ibn Al-khattab (R.A.) was performing Hajj, he found people relaxed
then read this verse and said: "He who is pleased to be from this Ummah, then let
him perform Allah's due in this verse." If anyone who does not perform this duty
(enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil) is like the People of the Book
that Allah (‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ scolded them when he said in surat Al-Ma'dah, (Verse 79),
what can be translated as, "They used not to forbid one another from
theMunkar which they committed. Vile indeed was what they used to do."

What does Al-Ma'roof mean? And what does Al-Munkar mean?

Al-Ma'roof is a noun that includes everything that is looked upon as good by Islam
like obeying Allah, getting closer to Him, and being good with people.
Al-Munkar is a noun that includes everything that is looked upon as bad by Islam
like disobeying Allah and turning one's back to Him and being bad with people.
Here, we must point to two important issues:
1- The definition of Al-Ma'roof and Al-Munkar is not based on the customs and
traditions of people, rather it is based on Islam revealed by Allah and that defined
the Halal and Haram and the rest of rules. So, if Islam considers something good,
then it isMa'roof and commendable, and if Islam considers something bad, then it
is Munkar and must be rejected.
2- The Muslim society should only adopt Al-Ma'roof as defined by Islam and
reject Al-Munkar that is rejected by Islam. For this reason, Al-Ma'roof was
called Ma'roof because the believers, with all the knowledge and belief that they
have, feel reassured with it because they know that is what Allah and his
messenger want. And Al-Munkar  was called Munkar because the believers reject
it and are disgusted with it.
The meaning of enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil include the
whole Deen because the Deen is either an order to do something or not to do
something. Imam Ibn Taimiyah said: "Sending messengers and sending down the
Books, all intended: Enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil."
Enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil change societies, shape them
and make them distinctive.
The corrupted society is infested with the Munkar, and ruled by the evil doers
even if the society is not devoid of good and good doers who enjoin what is good
and forbid what is evil. The straight society is the society of Ma'roof, ruled by the
good doers even if the society is not devoid of evil and the evil doers.
Allah (‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ described the first society of Islam, so He said in surat At-
Tawbah, (Verse 71), what can be translated as, "The believers, man and woman,
are Auliya' of one another, they enjoin (on the people) Al-Ma'ruf and
forbid (people) fromAl-Munkar…"
In another verse, He ( ‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ says about the same society that there are
hypocrites in surat At-Tawbah, (Verse 67), what can be translated as, "The
hypocrites, man and woman, are from one another, they enjoin (on the
people) Al-Munkar and forbid(people) from Al-Ma'ruf …"
Allah (‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ ordered this Ummah  in surat Al-Imran, (Verse 104), what can
be translated as, "Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that
is good (Islam), enjoining Al-Ma'ruf and forbidding Al-Munkar. And it is those
who are the successful."
Imam Ibn Katheer said: "What is meant by this verse is that there must be a group
of people dedicated to this issue, even if it takes every individual in the Ummah to
do it. This is supported by a Hadith reported by Imam Muslim that the prophet
Muhammad (‫)ﷺ‬ said: " Whoever amongst you sees Munkar (an evil), he must
change it with his hand; if he is not able to do so, than with his tongue; and if he is
not able to do so, then with his heart; and that is the weakest form of faith."
All scholars have consensus that Munkar must be rejected. This is based on many
verses and Ahadiths.
Rejecting Al-Munkar with the heart is obligatory upon every single individual. This
rejection inside the heart of the individual relieves the individual from the
responsibility if he is incapable of removing the Munkar with his hand and his
tongue. Ibn Masood (R.A.) said: "There will be a time when one finds a Munkar,
but he is not up to it, but Allah knows that his heart rejects the Munkar." The
incapable individual has a legitimate excuse only if he knows that he can not
reject the Munkar with his hand or with his tongue, or if he knows that he will be
harmed knowing that he is not up to it.
Removing the Munkar with the hand and the tongue has two rules: It is either
obligatory upon each and every individual or obligatory upon enough a group that
can remove it. It is the latter type when more than one Muslim finds a Munkar. In
this case, it is obligatory upon them to reject it. If removing this Munkar is done
even by one person, then this obligatory will fall off the rest of the Muslims. If no
one removes this Munkar, then everyone will be sinning.
Removing the Munkar with the hand and the tongue will be obligatory of the first
type when only one Muslim finds this Munkar and he is capable of removing it.
The characteristic of everyone who enjoins what is good and forbids what is evil:
1- Sincerity: It is a must that the intention must be solely for Allah ( ‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬.
His pleasure must be the only intended reward. Nothing from this worldly life can
be intended. Whims and desires like showing off, fighting blindly for one's
opinion, cannot be intended.
2- Knowledge: It is a must that the knowledge of Ma'roof and Munkar must be
present and must be according to Allah's legislation. If this type of knowledge is
not present, then enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil will be based
on whims and desires. Many people reject what they do not like and are not used
to even though it is allowed in Islam. Having the correct knowledge implies having
the correct ways and etiquette of enjoining what is good and forbidding what is
evil. It also implies the knowledge of the situation of the person being spoken
with.
3- Kindness and wisdom: When enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil,
one must be kind and gentle. Without it, people will not accept it. Allah ( ‫تعا‬ ‫و‬ ‫سبحانه‬
‫)لى‬ ordered the messenger Muhammad (‫)ﷺ‬ in surat An-Nahl, (Verse 125), what
can be translated as, "Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and fair
preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better…" And also Allah ( ‫و‬ ‫سبحانه‬
‫)تعالى‬ ordered Mousa and Haroon when he sent them to Faroah in surat Taha,
(Verse 44), what can be translated as, "And speak to him mildly,…"
4- Patience: When enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, one must
persevere through hardships and must stand for all the harm that he may find in
his way. For this reason, Luqman advised his son: Allah ( ‫تعالى‬ ‫و‬ ‫)سبحانه‬ said
in surat Luqman, (Verse 17), what can be translated as, "…And enjoin (on the
people) for Al-Ma'ruf and forbid (people) from Al-Munkar and pear with
patience whatever befalls you…"
5- He must be doing what he is ordering people to do, and refraining from what
he is ordering people to refrain from. This way he is effective in his order to
people and his act will not be against him on the Day of Judgment. Allah ( ‫ت‬ ‫و‬ ‫سبحانه‬
‫)عالى‬ says Allah in surat As-Saf, (Verses 2&3), what can be translated as, "O you
who believe! Why do you say that which you do not? Most hateful it is with
Allah that you say that which you do not do." Also Imams Bukhari and Muslim
reported that the prophet Muhammad (‫)ﷺ‬
said: "A man will be brought on the day of resurrection and will be cast into Hell,
and his intestines will pour forth and he will go round them as an ass goes round
its millstone. The inmates of Hell will gather round him and say: 'what has
happened to you, O so-and-so? Were you not enjoining us to do good and
forbidding us to do evil? He will reply: 'I was enjoining you to good, but was not
doing it myself; and I was forbidding you to do evil, but was doing it myself."
If one does not have these characteristics, he will be breaking more than fixing.
His silence may sometimes be better than speaking so that he may not start a
bigger Munkar.
Conditions that must be there in every Munkar that needs to be removed:
1- The Munkar  has to be done openly. The prophet (‫)ﷺ‬ said: " Whoever amongst
you sees Munkar…" It is not allowed to look for the hidden Munkar to remove
because this is considered from spying that we were forbidden from.
2- All scholars must have consensus that this specific thing is a Munkar.
The Munkar is not the subject of debates and differences of the scholars. The
differences in Ijtihad amongst scholars are not Munkar because the prophet (
‫)ﷺ‬ acknowledged these differences and did not attack them like the incident of
the Asr prayer at the village of Bani Quraithah, which was reported by Imams
Bukhari and Muslim.