in Allah and the Last Day.

“And let him treat people with what he loves to receive from them.” That is, he must deal with others in the very way he wishes they would deal with him: he counsels them as he counsels himself, and he detests for them what he detests for himself. Such a person is upholding Allah’s right—believing in Allah and the Last Day—while also honoring people’s rights. He never behaves toward others except in the manner he hopes they will behave toward him: he does not lie to them, cheat them, deceive them, or wish them harm. Rather, he treats people exactly as he wants them to treat him.

Suppose someone asks, “Is this act ḥarām (forbidden) or ḥalāl (lawful)?” We reply, “Would you like people to do this to you?” If he answers, “No,” we tell him, “Then leave it, whether it is ḥalāl or ḥarām. As long as you dislike others doing it to you, do not do it to them.” Make this the scale by which you measure all your dealings: approach people only with what you would like to have come to you. Treat them gently, just as you love them to treat you gently—with kind words, clear speech, and ease—just as you wish they would do for you. This is the person who will be kept away from the Fire and admitted into Paradise. We ask Allah, exalted is He, to make us and you among them.

7/669—It is related from Abū Hanīdah Wāʾil ibn Ḥujr (may Allah be pleased with him) that Salamah ibn Yazīd al-Juʿfī asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: “O Prophet of Allah, what do you command us to do if rulers are placed over us who demand their rights from us yet withhold our rights from them?” The Prophet turned away from him, so he repeated the question. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then said: “Listen and obey, for upon them is what they have been burdened with, and upon you is what you have been burdened with.” It was related by