 Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim. As-salamu alaikum dear respected viewers. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon you. Hello and welcome to the 35th episode of the Treaties of Rights series with me and your host Ali Jasim. Today we will discuss the right of the associates regarding this Imam Sajad Zain al-Abdina alayhi as-salam has said and the right of the associate is that you should not mislead or cheat him, lie to him or fool him and you should not trick him and you should not treat him as an enemy who does not spare his friend. If he trusts you, you should be very careful of yourself for his sake and realize that cheating the intimate ones is like usury and there's no power but in God's Pana Huzala. Let's start off by defining who an associate is. An associate is anyone with whom we somehow associate such as a classmate, a partner or a friend. He or Imam Sajad, peace and blessings be upon him, has said that whoever is somehow associating with us has a right. This right is that we should not cheat him and avoid any kind of trickery with him and we should not deal with him as we would with our enemies. We should not harm him once he trusts us. Basically the Imam al-aslam is saying that they have a right to be respected and treated carefully. That is greatly backed up by the holy Quran and the traditions of the Imam's peace be upon them. Imam Sadaq al-aslam said on the authority of God's prophet, peace be upon him, is pure progeny. The most prosperous people are the ones who associate with the noblest people. One of the main factors influencing our prosperity has been pointed out to be having noble friends in this tradition. God's prophet also said ask from the learned, associate with the wise and sit with the poor. In this tradition we are advised to maintain our association with the wise people. The noble prophet says, he to whom God intends good, he will provide him a righteous friend who will remind him to remember God should he forget and who will help him when he remembers. Now who are these noble and wise people that we should associate ourselves with and what are their characteristics? Friends we choose must be intelligent and experienced. It was pointed out earlier that we should avoid ignorant or dumb friends. Our friends should also be religious and inclined to do good deeds. They should also be polite and good mannered. A wicked friend will draw one to ill conduct. Also a friend should be personally inclined to be our friend and be a real friend. We have been admonished against our cheating or tricking our friends by Mama Sajjad. A deceitful person is not an intelligent one. Being deceitful implies acting opposite to what you are thinking. Mama Sadaqa alaihi s-salam Kourna on the authority of God's prophet, peace be upon him, is pure progeny. One who is deceitful to a Muslim is not from us. The commander of the faithful, peace be upon him, said the following regarding those who lie. A Muslim should avoid becoming friends with a liar, for he will lie until when he finally tells the truth he will not be believed. Friendship and companionship are important in Islam. A good friend is one who accepts your shortcomings, but at the same time guides you and supports you. A good friend is one who will love and forgive you for the sake of Allah SWT. It is important to choose your friends carefully. Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is pure progeny, warned the believers about this too. He said that a person would be influenced by his friends and he warned that everyone should look carefully at those they consider to be their friends. What we can understand from this is that it is easy to be influenced by the people around us. It is easy to take on their mannerisms and qualities without even being aware of it. If these are good qualities then it is a good thing, but what if the people you consider friends have pushed you away from the remembrance of Allah SWT? This could be a disaster and God warns about in the Holy Quran. And remember the day when the wrongdoer, oppressor, polytheist, etc., will bite on his hand. He will say, oh, with that I had taken a path with the messenger. Ah, woe to me. With that I had never taken so and so as a friend. He indeed led me astray from the reminder the Quran after it had come to me, the Holy Quran Chapter 25 verse 27. In short, a good friend is one of the best blessings of Allah SWT. He has certain rights incumbent upon us. We should not oppress him by telling him lies or cheating him. Each friend must honor the rights of his friends. Let's go for a short break. Stay tuned. Welcome back. The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is pure progeny. Often spoke to his companions about the value of good companionship. He emphasized the need to surround ourselves with good people. People who hope the same values and beliefs that we do make the best friends and companions. Differences of opinion, different lifestyles and interests may make our friendships interesting and sometimes challenging. But if the core value system is not the same, the friendship itself probably has no solid foundation. Believers should never be envious of one another. They should always be happy when the blessings of Allah SWT fall upon their friends and companions. The Prophet may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, as pure progeny said, none of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself. The Muslim's prayer for his absent brother will be answered. There's an angel at his head who whenever he prays for his brother says amin or amen and you should have likewise. Do not have malice against the Muslim. Do not be envious of other Muslims. Do not go against the Muslim and forsake him. O the slaves of Allah, be like brothers with each other. And it is not viable for a Muslim to desert his brother for over three days. A believer loves all other believers for the sake of Allah. He desires for them what he desires for himself. A believer is tolerant of others' mistakes or shortcomings and is forgiving. There is no anger, envy, hatred or malice between believers. Believers are kind, loyal and generous to one another and they should pray for each other. It may sound too good to be true doesn't it? This however is Islam. It is a way of life that expects every person to respect every other person. Islam says you are a part of a community and it is your right and your responsibility to be the very best person that you can be. Seeking good companions and maintaining good relationships is a responsibility that each believer has to himself. Seeking good companions and maintaining good relationships is a responsibility that each believer has to himself, his community and to Allah swt. Seek companions who are seeking paradise in the hereafter. Content yourself with those who pray to their Lord morning and evening. Seek his approval and do not let your eyes turn away from them out of desire for the attractions of this worldly life. And do not yield to those whose hearts we have made heedless of our remembrance. Those who follow their own low desires. Those whose ways are unbridled. The Holy Quran Chapter 18 verse 28. We should choose the friend that believes in and abide by our religion Islam and gives great respect to what Allah swt and the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him had ordered us. And we should stay away from one who is not well mannered and gives no attention to what Islam is about or what pleases or displeases Allah swt for he will surely affect us negatively. There is no good if the companion drowns us in sins and displeasing Allah swt. The basis for the actions of those who follow the evil ways are corrupt. Their actions are built upon misguidance and deviation. Good friends are those who share with their companions both happiness and sadness. If we share our feelings with wrongdoers whose actions are worthless and based on corruption then we are following the same ways and standards as they are doing. And we will end up being as corrupt as they are and then we are in a big trouble. How can we face Allah swt this satisfaction and this pleasure? Instead of making friends with the misguided ones we should be friend the righteous yet treat the rest in a gracious and just manner. Staying at sufficient distance is necessary yet treating everybody in a noble and kind manner is required. The danger of having corrupt friends isn't confined to the worldly life. Such friendships produce repentance on the day of resurrection too. Allah swt the Exalted says in the Noble Qur'an and remember the day when the unjust one shall bite his hand saying oh with that I had taken away with the messenger. Oh woe is me. Would that I had not taken such a one for a friend? Certainly he had let me astray from the reminder after it had come to me. Surah Al-Furqan chapter 25 verses 27 to 29. The two main regrets on the day of judgment are one not following Prophet Muhammad's peace be upon him on the path of guidance and two befriending a person who diverted one from the truth. Imam Ali ibn Abi Talab alayhi salam has said the fallacity of this and the next world lies in two things. Firstly keeping secrets and secondly friendship with the good. And the miseries of this and the next world are summed up into two things. Firstly divulging secrets and secondly friendship with wicked persons. So take heed before the inevitable day of judgment comes and we are reckoned for our acts. Allah swt the Exalted said in the Holy Qur'an, friends on that day will be enemies one to another except al-Muttaqoon i.e those who have taqwa or piety. Surah al-Zukhruf chapter 43 verse 567. With this we conclude this episode stay tuned for another episode on the treaties of rights. Thank you all for watching and may Allah hasten the reappearance of our beloved Ma'al Mahdi. Aja Allah ta'ala Farrar wa Sharif. As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.