Firstly: What is meant by the generality of the whole in relation to its parts—whether in concrete objects, actions, or qualities—is evident in the Almighty’s words, “So wash your faces” (Qur’an 5:6). The term “face” covers the cheek, the temple, the forehead, and the like, yet none of these individual components, taken on its own, is the face. Thus, if someone washes only some of these parts, he cannot be said to have washed his face, for the very entity designated by the term is lacking when any of its parts is absent.

The same principle applies to qualities and actions. If a person is told, “Pray,” then performs a single rakʿah and leaves without giving the salām; or he is told, “Fast,” and he fasts only part of the day, he has not complied with the command, because the full meaning of unrestricted prayer and unrestricted fasting is missing. Likewise, if it is said, “Honor this man,” and the person both feeds him and strikes him, he has not obeyed, for absolute honoring requires doing what pleases the man and refraining from what harms him.

Hence, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Whoever believes in God and the Last Day, let him honor his guest,” if one were to give the guest only part of what suffices him and leave him hungry, he would not have honored him, because some elements of honoring are missing. Nor may it be claimed that honoring is a merely abstract notion