In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful   
May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon you all.

1st right
 

One of the most well-known pieces of work known to the Muslim society by the fourth Imam, Imam Zain Al’Abidin is “The Treatise of Rights.” Imam Zayn al-'Abidin's `Treatise on Rights' is the only work attributed to him other than supplications or relatively short sayings and letters.

A glance at the `Treatise on Rights' will quickly show that the word `rights' might better have been translated as duties, obligations, or responsibilities, since the treatise is not directly concerned with the rights of the individual, but rather with the rights of others which the individual must observe.

Islam views the individual in his total context, which means that it considers first his relationship with God, then his relationship with God's creatures. What is important for the individual in his relationship with God is that he attain to salvation, or in other words, that he follow God's guidance, which is based upon mercy and directed toward his own best interest.

In short, Islam devalues the individual's perspective, since human beings on their own can see no further than their immediate interests during life. But this devaluation of individualism is not a devaluation of the individual; on the contrary, it raises him to the ultimate pinnacle of importance, since everything is directed toward his happiness in the next world.

Islam merely recognizes the ignorance of human beings and their inability to perceive their own ultimate good without divine guidance. Then it sets about to undermine and destroy individual ignorance, a process which involves deflating the ego and eliminating all self-centred desires. As a result, the human self or soul (nafs) has few `rights', but many duties and responsibilities. Or rather, the soul has only one true right - the right to salvation.

The individual's right to salvation follows naturally upon God's right, which is to be worshiped without any partner (i.e., tawhid). The way to salvation is to obey God, and hence it is the soul's right to be employed in obedience toward Him. By His very nature since `His mercy precedes His wrath' - God displays compassion and guidance, and through obedience the servant opens himself up to the full range of this compassion.

In other words, partaking of God's mercy and compassion depends upon following His guidance, and following His guidance means following the Shari'a as revealed through the Qur'an and the sunna. Hence the Imam speaks of `being employed in obedience' as the self's key right, since only that can bring about its deliverance.

The Imam (AS) starts by saying:

In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate

Know - God have mercy upon you - that God has rights against you and that these encompass you in every movement through which you move, every rest through which you rest, every way-station in which you reside, every limb which you employ, and every instrument which you put to work. Some of these rights are greater and some less.

Here the Imam (AS) describes that everything surrounding us has a right towards us. Every move we take and every step me move forward will be accounted for. Everything that we use in this world has many rights towards us, this means that we must use them and treat them in a correct manner. Now the magnitude of these rights varies some being higher up the scale and some being lower.

Imam Zayn Al’Abidin (AS) then proceeds to the right of Allah against us as humans. Regarding this (AS) says:

The greatest of God's rights against you is the right which He has made incumbent upon you for Himself and which is the root of all rights, then those which He has made incumbent upon you in yourself, from your crown to your foot, in keeping with the diversity of your organs.

This part is quite magnificent and important because it is through knowing this right that we can continue and procced to knowing the remainder of the rights. The root of all rights is Allah’s right. It is obligatory of us to worship only Allah and no one else. It is our duties as human beings to worship him and to do as he says in the Holy Quran.

Allah's Rights upon His creation are the rights that must be kept the most. Allah is the sole Creator and Sustainer of the universe. He is the Almighty who created everything with absolute wisdom. Allah is the One who initiated every being from nothing. He is the One who protects humans in their mothers' wombs, as infants, as children and as adults. He, alone, sustains all humans and provides them with food and every aspect of life. In the Holy Quran it says, "And Allah has brought you out from the wombs of your mothers while you know nothing. And He gave you hearing, sight and hearts that you might give thanks (to Allah)." [16:78]

Allah only wants mankind to worship Him alone and ascribe no partners with Him in worship, and truly be His slaves. He wants them to surrender to His will, as they surrender to His control for the means of their lives. It is only fair to worship only the One who holds the existence of everything and everyone is in His Hands. One should thank Allah who, alone, provides for him by worshipping Him alone. Allah (SWT) has said in the Holy Quran, "And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allah. Then, when harm touches you, unto Him you cry aloud for help." [16:53]

What Allah wants from us is to worship Him with sincerity, and to perform religious deeds. Five prayers a day bring forgiveness from Him and purity in the heart. Muslims must try to perform prayer in the best form: "So fear Allah as much as you are able." [64:16]

Allah also wants His slaves to pay a small amount of their money to the poor, the needy, strangers who have no money, the indebted and to others who are eligible to take money from Zakat. Zakat is so minimal that it does not harm the rich, yet it provides tremendous benefits for the poor. Allah also requires fasting in the lunar month of Ramadhan. In the Holy Quran it says: "So whoever of you sights the (crescent on the first night of the) month (of Ramadhan), he must fast that month, and whoever is ill or on a journey, the same number (of days he misses) from other days." [2:185]

Also, Hajj (pilgrimage) to Makkah once in lifetime is obligatory upon all Muslims, if they are able to do so. In general, we have the obligation to abide by all of Allah's orders, and stay away from all He had made forbidden upon us.

Above mentioned are the duties of Allah's slaves towards Him. They are not difficult to perform. The reward outweighs the requirements by far. The reward is "And whoever is removed away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise, he indeed is successful. The life of this world is only the enjoyment of deception." [3:185]