Anger According to Quran and Sunnah

Anger is a natural characteristic of man. It arises from stress, a feeling that one has been oppressed, abused, belittled etc. Anger is a weapon for man. It can bring about goodness; it can also bring about disaster. It can be a disease that can destroy the peace and harmony in life. When anger has taken its root in the heart, if it is not curb or control, sooner or later it will become self-destructive. Our loved ones and those we respect will get its effect. It can also destroy and harm our surrounding.

Islam has given us the best medicine for anger. That is to curb ourselves when we are angry and to be patient when our anger intensifies. Rasulullah s.a.w has said: "Anger is part of fire that has been ignited in the heart. Do you not see the thrusting of the veins in your neck and the redness of your eyes? When one of you is in such a condition, if you are standing, you should sit down. And if you are sitting down, you should go to sleep!"[Narrated by Tirmidhi]

A person who can curb his anger will be rewarded accordingly to as his effort. Rasulullah s.a.w. has said: "Do not get angry and your reward will be heaven."[Narrated by Bukhari]

Therefore in controlling our anger, we as Muslims should be tolerant and understanding with one another. We should avoid the cause or source that can cause others to be angry with us. Should someone be angry with us we should not aggravate the situation. We should also play our part to extinguish the flame of the anger. We should confront an angry person with calmness and help the person to identify the cause of his anger.

Anger is from syaitan, because syaitan is created from fire. And remember, fire can be extinguished with water. Therefore when someone is angry, he should take his ablution (wudhu), because water that flows down our bodily parts will protect us from the whispering and being instigated by syaithan. It can also cool us down from the heat of our anger. In relation to this Rasulullah s.a.w. has said: "When one of you is angry, you should take your ablution (wudhu). For anger is from fire."[Narrated by Abu Daud]

Rasulullah s.a.w. advise to those who are in a state of anger to take wudhu. At the same time to increase their remembrance (zikr) of Allah s.w.t. so as to extinguish and wipe out the fire of anger that is building up.

Islam teaches its followers the importance of maintaining an amiable relationship between the child and the parents and between brothers and sisters. This relationship is an important core of a family.

Having a happy family is the dream of every individual. However, as long as we live under one roof, there would be a time when a husband is angry with his wife and his children. This could be due to the discipline in the house, his children education, financial matters, food and many other domestic affairs.

Anger is a weapon. It can benefit as well as destroy. A strong and clever person is someone who can control his anger so that it will be beneficial to him and not destroy him.

�ِذ�يَن� �نِف�ُق�وَن� ٱَّل ٓاِء� ِف�ى ي َّر� ٓاِء� ٱَّلَّس� َّلَّض�َّر� �ِظ�ِم�يَن� ٱَو� �ٰـ َڪ ۡل�َو� َظ� ٱ ۡل�َغ� ۡل� ٱَع�اِف�يَن� ۡل�َو� �ا َع�َن� ٱ �َّلن ِس�ۗ‌ ٱ

�ُه� َّلَّل �ِح�ُّب$ ٱَو� �يَن� ي ن َّس� ۡلِم� ۡل� (١٣٤) ٱ

Those who spend [in Allâh's Cause - deeds of charity, alms, etc.] in prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men; verily, Allâh loves Al-Muhsinûn (the gooddoers). [Al-'Imran, 3:134]

Mentioned in hadith no. 16 in Book of Forty Hadith compiled by Imam Nawawi:Abu Hurairah, radiyallahu 'anhu, reported that a man said to the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam: "Advise me! "The Prophet said, "Do not become angry and furious." The man asked (the same) again and again, and the Prophet said in each case, "Do not become angry and furious." [Al-Bukhari; Vol. 8 No. 137]

This hadith is also related by other scholars of hadith. In another narration, it is related as:A man came to the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, and said, "Messenger of Allah, teach me some words which I can live by. Do not make them too much for me, lest I forget." The Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, said, "Do not be angry."[Abu Daud]

In another hadith, Abu Hurairah related that the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, said:"A strong person is not the person who throws his adversaries to the ground. A strong person is the person who contains himself when he is angry."[Al-Bukhari; Book 47, No. 47.3.12]

In various hadiths, the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, teaches us how to control our anger. For example:

The Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, said, "I know a word, the saying of which will cause him to relax, if he does say it. If he says:

�َع�وُذ� َّلَّل.ُه َا يَط�َن� ِم�َن� ٱ�ب � ٱَّلَّش� ِج�يِم ٱَّلَّر5'I seek Refuge with Allah from Satan' then all his anger will go away."[Al-Bukhari; Vol. 4, No. 502]

In other hadiths, the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, teaches us how to deal with anger:“Anger comes from the devil, the devil was created of fire, and fire is extinguished only with water; so when one of you becomes angry, he should perform ablution.” [Abu Daud; Book 41, No. 4766]

It is said that he (sallallahu aleihi wa sallam) mentioned anger, saying, "Some are swift to anger and swift to cool down, the one characteristic making up for the other; some are slow to anger and slow to cool down, the one characteristic making up for the other; but the best of you are those who are slow to anger and swift to cool down, and the worst of you are those who are swift to anger and slow to cool down." He continued, "Beware of anger, for it is a live coal on the heart of the descendant of Adam. Do you not notice the swelling of the veins of his neck and the redness of his eyes? So when anyone experiences anything of that nature he should lie down and cleave to the earth."[Hadith - Al-Tirmidhi #5145, Narrated Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, transmitted by Tirmidhi ]

Sources:http://www.muis.gov.sg/websites/khutbah/ser-270421.asphttp://muttaqun.com/anger.htmlhttp://fortyhadith.iiu.edu.my/hadith16.htm

This note is being edited in accordance to personal opinions without changing any Quranic and Hadith contents. Wallahu ‘alam..