Hold your brothers hand......

It is SUNNAH to hold your brothers hand. There are many mentions of Rasool Allah or the sahabah walking together holding hands. It is friendship and human nature to be loving and caring towards brothers and comfortable with one another, not guarded as if our brothers are a disease. This is a disease of the heart which kills brotherhood. This is from the note Advice of a brother one to another. Kumail ibn Ziyad[1] said: ‘Ali lbn Abi Talib took hold of my hand and took me off towards the desert so when we reached it he sat down, then took a deep breath and then said:

“Oh Kumail ibn Ziyad – the hearts are receptacles, so the best of them is the one which preserves best…”

Let us speak for a moment about Umar bin Al Khattab, Commander of the Faithful, Prince of the Believers, the great warrior our brother whom even the shaytan would run away from:

On the authority of Abu Zubair who heard Jabir being questioned as to how many people were there on the Day of Hudaibiya He replied: We were fourteen hundred. We swore fealty to him (Prophet Muhammed peace be upon him), and Umar was holding his hand while he was sitting Under the tree… Abu Dawud Book 020, Hadith 4578)

This hadith was reported soley to mention the holding of hands:
‘Abdullah bin Hisham Narrated: We were with the Prophet while he was holding ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab by the hand. Bukhari Volume 5, Book 57, Number 43.

These were the salaf! The fiercest warriors, the softest of hearts. The fierce male lion is still an affectionate creature towards the other males in the pride. So are animals above mankind in rank and status?

“Have they not seen how We created for them, by Our own handiwork, livestock which are under their control? We have made them tame for them and some they ride and some they eat. And they have other uses for them, and milk to drink. So will they not be thankful? (Surah Ya Sin, 71-73)

The animals are subservient to us so we should be above them in kindness and affection!


It should come naturally, we shouldn’t retract our hands from our brothers, or feel ashamed to hold their hand. How far has the society around you destroyed brotherhood between the Muslims? Now we cannot even offer the simplest act to those Muslims who we take as close companions in this dunya. We cannot even care that our brother crosses the road safely with our “every man for himself” mentality. Do not let the opinions of the kuffar sway your practise of brotherhood with your brothers. Do they care about their practises, or care what you think? No, they do not even care about what Allah the Mighty and Majestic thinks. We should only care what Allah thinks, and do everything for His sake.

So the question comes, in what way do we hold hands. Holding the hands in any way is acceptable because the wording in the adaheeth is general. Also the instances in these ahadeeth are different. One when sitting under a tree (not walking), another while walking normally, and the other was taken calmly to advise, so we can hold hands in any ways. Ofcourse we hold the hands of our wives differently in our hearts, because they are different types of love. We do not love our wives like we love our companions and friends, or our collective brothers and sisters of the ummah, or our parents.

Sahih Bukhari Volume 1, Book 8, Number 468: Narrated Abu Musa [R.A.]: The Prophet [S.A.W.] said, “A faithful believer to a faithful believer is like the bricks of a wall, enforcing each other.” While (saying that) the Prophet clasped his hands, by interlacing his fingers.

Al-Bayhaqi narrated that Abu Dharr said: I said, “O Messenger of Allaah, what will save a person from Hellfire?” He (peace be upon him) said, “Belief in Allaah.” I said, “O Messenger of Allaah, are there are any deeds that should accompany that belief?” He said, ‘He should give from that provision which Allaah has granted him.” I said, “O Messenger of Allaah, what if he is poor and does not have anything to give?” He said, “He should enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil.” I said, “O Messenger of Allaah, what if he cannot enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil?” He said, “He should help the one who is helpless (i.e., has no skills and cannot earn a learning).” I said, “What if he himself is helpless and cannot do anything?” He said, “He should help one who has been wronged.” I said, “What if he is weak and cannot help one who has been wronged?” He said, “You do not want to think of your companion as having any good in him. Let him refrain from harming people.” I said, “O Messenger of Allaah, if he does that, will he enter Paradise?” He said, “There is no believer who does not strive to acquire one of these characteristics, but I will take him by the hand and lead him into Paradise.” (Classed as Saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Targheeb, 876)

There are some Sunnah’s that a brother cannot do alone. Some require others to fulfill that sunnah. Holding the hand which is a simple Sunnah that gains reward, could be the very reward that shades you on the day of no shade, and spares you from the hellfire. It was the practise and way (Sunnah) of Rasool Allah and his companions. We should do as the salaf did.