45. Enjoining Good Conduct and the Ties of Kinship
٤٥۔ كتاب البر والصلة والآداب
A vice is what bothers you and what you want to hide from others
I asked Messenger of Allah ﷺ about virtue and vice. He said: Virtue is a kind disposition and vice is what rankles in your heart and that you disapprove that people should come to know of it.
سَأَلْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَنِ الْبِرِّ وَالإِثْمِ فَقَالَ الْبِرُّ حُسْنُ الْخُلُقِ وَالإِثْمُ مَا حَاكَ فِي صَدْرِكَ وَكَرِهْتَ أَنْ يَطَّلِعَ عَلَيْهِ النَّاسُ
I stayed with Messenger of Allah ﷺ for one year. What obstructed me to migrate was (nothing) but (persistent) inquiries from him (about Islam). (It was a common observation) that when anyone of us migrated (to Medina) he ceased to ask (too many questions) from Messenger of Allah ﷺ. So I asked him about virtue and vice. Thereupon Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Virtue is a kind disposition and vice is what rankles in your mind and that you disapprove of its being known to the people.
أَقَمْتُ مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ بِالْمَدِينَةِ سَنَةً مَا يَمْنَعُنِي مِنَ الْهِجْرَةِ إِلاَّ الْمَسْأَلَةُ كَانَ أَحَدُنَا إِذَا هَاجَرَ لَمْ يَسْأَلْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَنْ شَىْءٍ قَالَ فَسَأَلْتُهُ عَنِ الْبِرِّ وَالإِثْمِ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ الْبِرُّ حُسْنُ الْخُلُقِ وَالإِثْمُ مَا حَاكَ فِي نَفْسِكَ وَكَرِهْتَ أَنْ يَطَّلِعَ عَلَيْهِ النَّاسُ