Hazrat Shaikh Moulana Muhammad Zakariyya (rahmatullahi ‘alaih) once recited the following couplet:
It is easy to repay ill-treatment with ill-treatment. However, a true man is he who shows good character to those who show him ill-treatment.
Hazrat Shaikh (rahmatullahi ‘alaih) thereafter mentioned:
Allah Ta’ala has mentioned in the Qur’aan Majeed, “Whoever adopts patience and forgives, then that is definitely from the acts of great determination and courage.” The Hadith mentions, “Join ties with those who sever ties, forgive those who oppress you, and show kind treatment to those who treat you badly.” Another Hadith mentions, “The person who truly joins family ties is not the one who deals with his family in the same manner that they deal with him. Rather, the one who truly joins family ties is the one who joins ties when they cut off ties with him.”
This couplet, which our seniors have extracted its meaning from the Qur’aan and Hadith, is such that if a person practises on it, he will surely enjoy peace and tranquillity in both this world and the next. (Suhbat Baa Awliyaa pg. 93-94)