He who has in his heart as much faith as a grain of mustard seed will not enter hell, and he who has in his heart as much pride as a grain of mustard seed will not enter paradise.
Markscheme Answers:
The teaching of this Hadith confirms what is indicated by the text of the Qur’an that all those who affirm the oneness of God will enter Paradise, initially or later on, unlike the obedient believer who is free of any major sin and will enter Paradise without being exposed to hell fire. Pride on the contrary is linked with arrogance, a trait which led Iblis to be expelled from Paradise and one that Muslims should shun. In this Hadith, the clear teaching is that everything a person has is God given, and that a Muslim should be grateful to God for the blessings given and avoid pride lest he/she be led astray.
Embracing Islam means submitting to the will of God. When a Muslim submits to God there is no room for pride in him as he accepts God as his creator and sustainer. The teaching of this hadith clearly highlights that pride and faith cannot co-exist. Faith makes a person mindful of his accountability before his Lord whereas pride leads to arrogance and leads man away from God.
The basic teaching of this Hadith is that there is no place for pride in Islam and that faith and pride cannot co-exist. Answers could say that the merest amount of faith can secure heaven and avoid condemnation to hell, whereas the merest amount of pride will ensure condemnation to hell. Accepting Islam as one’s faith means submitting to the will of God and accepting that all one has/achieves is from Him which does not leave any room for pride. This belief makes a Muslim mindful of God and stops them from wrongdoings and helps lead a Muslim to paradise whereas pride, even a little of it can make a person arrogant and unmindful of God and hence take him/her away from God.
The key to paradise is having faith and belief in God’s supremacy and when a person embraces Islam they submit to the will of God and shun all pride. Faith and pride cannot co-exist. The person therefore becomes humble and God fearing which enables them to achieve the goal of paradise. However, a person with the tiniest amount of arrogance will think of themselves as the controller of their own destiny and will not be God conscious and therefore close the doors of paradise for themself.
The main teaching of this Hadith is that all those who affirm the Oneness of God will enter paradise. The obedient believer, who is free from sin will be amongst the first group to enter paradise and those with sins will enter paradise after gaining God’s forgiveness. Pride on the other hand, the Hadith teaches Muslims, is a great sin. It is linked with shaytan who disobeyed God on account of his arrogance and was expelled from heaven. The teaching given in this Hadith is to remain humble and grateful for all that one has as everything we possess is simply a blessing from God.
Holy Prophet(s) had stressed upon the belief in One Allah. The one who has faith in Tauheed equal to mustard seed‟s size may not enter the Hell. Therefore, a Muslim believer is regarded great when he feels that Allah is all over the Universe. He believes in the Almighty‟s attributes being sole Creator. “who ever rejects faith in Allah, his labours will go waste and he will be among the losers in Hereafter”. We must try to develop faith in Allah. In the second part, the concept of Pride is described. It is said that the one who has pride in his heart equal to the size of a mustard seed is not rewarded Paradise as Allah does not like pride. “Allah loves not him who is arrogant and boastful”. The one who has pride in his heart is cursed by Allah. The Pride or Boastfulness presents a feeling of being supernatural among the other human-beings and they exploit others in such cases.
<aside> 📝 The main teaching of this Hadith is that all those who affirm the Oneness of God will enter paradise. And, accepting Islam as one’s faith means submitting to the will of God and accepting that all one has/achieves is from Him which does not leave any room for pride, which was the cause of Iblis' expulsion. Every Muslim must therefore be humble and God fearing, which enables them to achieve the goal of paradise. A person with the tiniest amount of arrogance will think of themselves as the controller of their own destiny and will not be God conscious, and therefore close the doors of paradise for themself. Faith makes a person mindful of his accountability before his Lord whereas pride leads to arrogance and leads man away from God.
</aside>
Markscheme Answers:
Remaining firm in his/her faith and avoiding pride are ways in which the teachings of this Hadith can be practised. The Prophet (pbuh) remained humble even after the conquest of Makka. Candidates could say how Iblis, on account of his pride, disobeyed his Creator and was subsequently expelled from Paradise. Hence Muslims should always make sure that there is no place for pride in their hearts. Quotes from the Qur’an and other Hadiths could be given here.
Muslims must always be wary of harbouring pride in their hearts and must actively try to follow the Prophet’s (pbuh) example and adopt humility in their dress, manner and behaviour. All relevant answers should be credited.
Muslims should always check themselves from harbouring pride in their hearts and mind. Following the Prophet’s (pbuh) example they can practice humility in all aspects of life. Examples and supporting Hadiths could be cited in this part of the answer and all valid responses must be credited.
Muslims should shun pride and be God conscious at all times. They should adopt humility in their manner, dress and life style. By following the guidance of Islam they can achieve paradise. Also, they should rely on God at all times just as the Prophet did. The doors of paradise closed upon Iblis because of his pride and Muslims should close their hearts to pride to avoid the same fate
A Muslim must have complete faith in “I bear witness that Allah is the only one and Muhammad(s) is His last Prophet”. This belief leads to success and achievement of Heaven. If a believer has such a belief he would not touch the fire of Hell as he will fear Allah and be on the right path. Secondly, it is made clear that we should not have pride in our hearts that we feel superior to others as Allah displeases such a person e.g. Abu Jahl had great pride for his power and ancestral religion. He was very strong but he could not get success and he was killed in a blow.
<aside> 📝 Muslims should always check themselves from harbouring pride in their hearts and mind. They should adopt humility in their manner, dress and life style. We can follow the example of the Prophet (SAW) when he liberated Makkah. He lowered his head in humility bent his back on his she-camel. We should not be like Iblis, who on account of his pride, disobeyed his Creator and was subsequently expelled from Paradise.
</aside>