Assalamu’alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh

Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim

1. Preface

Extraordinary, God-loving friends, in psychology there is a phenomenon called Self-Serving Bias, where a person tends to judge himself more favorably and apply a lighter standard to his own mistakes, yet judges others very strictly. Scientifically, people who live by “double standards” or “two scales” will experience emotional instability because they live in intellectual dishonesty. A tranquil soul is a soul that has one fair scale—integrity. When we treat others by the same standard we use for ourselves, our brain reaches harmony, and our conscience feels peace because we have truly humanized others.This is like Allah SWT’s stern warning in the Qur’an for those who cheat:

وَيْلٌ لِّلْمُطَفِّفِيْنَۙ الَّذِيْنَ اِذَا اكْتَالُوْا عَلَى النَّاسِ يَسْتَوْفُوْنَۖ وَاِذَا كَالُوْهُمْ اَوْ وَّزَنُوْهُمْ يُخْسِرُوْنَۗ

“Woe to those who give less [than due], who, when they take a measure from people, take in full. But when they give by measure or weight to them, they cause loss.” (QS. Al-Mutaffifin: 1-3)

The Messenger ﷺ also gave a very clear standard of faith:

لَا يُؤْمِنُ أَحَدُكُمْ حَتَّى يُحِبَّ لِأَخِيهِ مَا يُحِبُّ لِنَفْسِهِ

“None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” (HR. Bukhari & Muslim)

2. Explanation

True justice begins with how you view rights and obligations. If you believe you have privileges others do not, or assume others carry burdens that do not apply to you, then you are allowing the seed of racism to grow in your soul. To be a God-conscious human being means throwing far away the “two scales” from your chest; measure the pain of others by your own pain, and measure the rights of others by your own rights. Imagine a man who spends the night mocking his mother-in-law in front of his wife, yet instantly flies into rage when his wife merely hints at criticizing his own mother. This man does not realize that his wife’s tears are as painful as the anger he feels. This unequal standard is a form of emotional racism that destroys marriages. He loves his mother, but he forgets that his wife is also a child who loves her mother.Having double standards in life is like someone who owns two different cloth rulers. He uses the shorter one when buying so he gets more, and the longer one when selling so the customer gets less. This person may feel profitable in the world, but he is actually building his life on quicksand. Without one honest measure, the entire structure of character will collapse because there is no justice in its foundation. We can be funny sometimes; we want others to be patient when we are wrong, but we can’t be patient when someone else is one minute late. We want our boss to be understanding when we’re sick, but we get angry when the housekeeper asks for leave because her child has a fever. We are like people carrying a broken scale everywhere; toward us the scale is light, but toward others it’s incredibly heavy. Remember, the angels recording deeds do not use our broken scales. Heaven’s standard is only one: Just!

3. Lessons and Message

The great lesson for us is that integrity means having one moral standard that applies everywhere and to everyone. The moral message: never demand understanding you’ve never given, and never ask for justice you’ve never practiced. Fixing the “scale” in your chest is the first step to fixing your relationship with people and with the Creator.

4. Conclusion

Beloved brothers and sisters, fear Allah by using one equal scale for everyone. Don’t let ego make you racist in your attitude. Be a whole human being—one who gives others their rights just as you demand your own.

والله أعلم بالصواب

الحمد لله رب العالمين

Wassalamu’alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.

Oleh : Abu Sultan Al-Qadrie