What are the neighbor’s rights in Islam?

Islam sets different rights for the  neighbor, they are so important that he might be one of the family members, the prophet (Blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Gabriel keeps recommending me to care for neighbor until I thought he was going to give him a share of inheritance.”

Islam divided neighbors into three types:

1- A Muslim relative neighbor, he has three rights, as a Muslim, as a relative and as a neighbor.

2- A Muslim but not a relative neighbor, he has the rights of a neighbor and the rights of a Muslim.

3- Non-Muslim and non relative neighbor, he has the rights of a neighbor.

The rights of a neighbor due to the three types above is to help him if he needs help, to ask about him if he is absent, to visit him if he is ill, to congratulate and share him on happy occasions, to console and share him his grieves and to take care of his children if he travels. You shouldn’t make anything in your house that hurts him, if you cook food that he could smell and you know that he loves it, you should ladle some to him, if you give your children food or fruit or sweets and they went out to play with your neighbor’s children, you should give them as you give your children. You shouldn’t spy upon him. You should keep his privates (defects or secrets).you should keep his cordiality and not to stop your support or your help to him.

It was narrated after Abdullah Ibn-Amr Ibn-Al-Aas that the apostle of Allah said: “Do you know what the right of a neighbor is, if he asks your support, you should support him. If he asks you for money, you should lend him. If he is poor, you should help him. If he is ill, you should visit him. If he has a happy occasion, you should congratulate him. If an affliction happened to him, you should console him. If he dies, you should follow his funeral. You should never get your house taller than his and prevent air stream without his permission. You should never let the smell of your food to reach him unless you ladle him some. If you buy fruit, gift him from it, if you don’t do, get it to your house secretly and don’t let your children to go out with it to enrage his children. Do you know what the right of a neighbor is, by That who owns my life (God), very few people among those who have God’s mercy can do the right of a neighbor, he still recommends them about the rights of a neighbor until they thought he was going to give him a share as a heir. Then the apostle of Allah said: Neighbors are three, some have three rights, others have two rights, and others have one right, those who have three rights are Muslim relative neighbors, they have the right of neighborhood, the right of Islam, and the right of kinship, those who have two rights are Muslim neighbors, they have the right of neighborhood and the right of Islam, and those who have one right are Non-Muslim neighbors, they have the right of neighborhood.”

Book_Questions_of_Non-Muslims

Islam is religion of peace  

Woman’s rights in Islam

Question: Islam makes a woman’s testimony equals half of a man’s testimony, her inheritance equals half of his, banned her from leading public jobs and doesn’t allow her to travel without her husband’s permission, how does this go with woman’s rights?

Islam gives woman all the rights she deserves, if there are some rights in which she not equals man, this is because they have different characteristics and potentials about this. For example, Islam makes a woman’s testimony half of a man’s testimony in issues that need clear and attentive mind, because a woman naturally becomes forgetful after being pregnant and giving birth, God says about a woman’s testimony:

“And get two witnesses, out of your own men, and if there are not two men, then a man and two women, such as you choose, for witnesses, so that if one of them errs, the other can remind her.” Surat Al-Bakara, Verse 282.

To err means to forget, as she naturally does after being pregnant and giving birth.

As for leading public jobs, we discussed it in details in the eleventh question entitled (Woman and public jobs).

As for not allowing her to travel without her husband’s permission, this illustrates that Islam concerns her safety very much, and doesn’t want her to be exposed to dangers as she is weak and can’t face this on her own. We see Imam Al-Shafey allows a woman to travel alone to perform the duty of Hajj on condition that she accompanies other good women.

 The Formal Site of Sheikh Fawzy Mohammed Abuzeid

Islam is religion of peace