The Importance of good companionship

Choosing and having good companions is extremely important for many
reasons and from many aspects.
1. Mankind cannot live alone; every individual must live and interact
with others, and when interacting with others one either influences or
is himself influenced.
2. Those people whom you sit with and make your friends are inevitably
going to fall into one oftwo categories. They will either be good
individuals - who guide and encourage you towards whatis good and help
you to accomplish that which Allaah hasordered, or they are going to
be bad - encouraging you to do what is pleasing to Satan, that which
misleads you, and leads you to the Hell-Fire.
3. When the Prophet was sentwith the mission to establish Islam, he
did not do it on his own. Rather, Allaah chose for himcompanions who
accompanied him and who carried the Messageuntil it was complete.
These three aspects show the importance of having good companions,
companions who are righteous. Such a companion will help you to do
what is good and remind you of Allaah, he will enjoin what is good and
forbid what is evil. These aspects also show the importance of
avoiding befriending bad companions, because such a companion will
have a bad effect upon you, they help you to do those deeds whichare
displeasing to Allaah and which lead to the Hell-Fire.
The Prophet gave a good similitude regarding this. He said: "The case
of the good companion and the bad companion is like that of the seller
of musk and the blower of the bellows (iron-smith). As for the seller
of musk, he will either give you some of the musk, or you will
purchase some from him, or at least you will come away having
experienced its good smell. Whereas the blower of the bellows will
either burn your clothing, or at least you will come away having
experienced its repugnant smell." [Al-Bukhaariand Muslim]
The Prophet explained the matter of good companionship, so that no
room is left for doubt or confusion, when he said: "A person is upon
the religion of his close friend, so beware whomyou befriend." [Abu
Daawood andAt-Tirmithi]
This means that a person will be upon the same methodology as his
friend, the same path as his friend, the same nature, manner and
behavior as his friend. So we must be careful whom we befriend. There
is an Arabic saying: 'Your companion is what pulls you to something.'
So if your companion is good, he will pull you towards that which is
good. He will order us with what is good and forbid us from what is
evil. If he observes us committing sins he would warn us, if he
becomes aware of our shortcomings he would advise us, and if he finds
a fault in us he would cover it and not disclose it to others. About
this, the Prophet said: "…Whoever conceals (the fault of) a Muslim,
Allaah willconceal his fault on the day of Judgment." [Abu Daawood]
So should you see a fault in your brother, you should wish to remove
that fault from him and not expose it to the people. This is what is
required by brotherhood and again stresses the importance of choosing
friends who are upon the correct way, who are loyal, and who hideyour
faults whilst ordering you with good and forbidding you from evil, who
stand beside you and support you, and co-operate with you upon all
that is good.
This principle is important from the standpoint of how the religion is
to be established, and from the standpoint of what brotherhood is and
what it does. Indeed, the reason that one takesa companion is to help
him establish Islam, and to help him worship Allaah. We find a good
example in the Prophet Moosaa the one whom Allaah chose and spoke to.
When Allaah sent him to Pharaoh, he (Moosaa) said as Allaah informs us
saying (what means): "And appoint for me a helper from my family,
Haaroon - my brother; increase my strength with him, and let him share
my task (of conveying Allaah's Message and Prophethood), that we may
glorify You much and remember You much." [Quran; 20: 29-34]
Moosaa wanted his brother to support him and help him, protect him and
accompany him. This is exactly what the believers do for one another.
For the thing that binds the believers together and makes them
brothers is the bond of faith. The Prophet said: "There are three
characteristics; whoever has them will taste the sweetness of faith:
That Allaah and His Messenger are more beloved to him than all else,
that he loves a person and does not love him except for the sake of
Allaah, and that he would hate to revert to unbelief just as he would
hate to be thrown into the Fire." [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
Thus the connection between thebelievers is based upon faith and
sincere brotherhood. Beware against taking any companion if such
companionship is based upon other than this, for if you were to do
that you would then bite your hands in grief. Just as the unjust ones
will bite their hands in grief. Allaah Says (what means): "And
(remember) the Daywhen the wrong-doer (oppressor, polytheist etc.)
will bite at his hand, he will say: 'Oh! Would that I had taken a
path with the Messenger. Ah! Woe to me! Would that I had never
takenso-and-so as a friend! He indeed led me astray from the Reminder
(the Quran) after it had come to me….'" [Quran; 25:27]
And Allaah Says (what means): "And whosoever turns away fromthe
remembrance of the Most Beneficent (Allaah), We appoint for him Satan
to be a Qareen (intimate companion) to him." [Quran; 43:36]
So all of the physical togetherness that you see around you, which is
based upon other than faith will be wiped away on that Day, and it
will be a source of misery and torture for them. Allaah Says (what
means): "Friends on that Day will be foes one to another except the
pious." [Quran; 43:67]