Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) would not just convey his message but also convince his audience through logical and rational explanations. By this means, he was able to purify the heart of a sinner who thought that he was acting correctly. Jabir (r.a.) narrated:
“One day Umar b. al-Khattab (r.a.) anxiously came and told the Prophet (pbuh):
“O Apostle of Allah! I have done a bad deed; I kissed (my wife) while I was fasting.” He said:
“What do you think if you rinse your mouth with water while you are fasting? (Would this break you fast?)” Umar said:
“There is nothing wrong with it.” Upon this the Messenger of Allah told him:
“Then why (are you worried about kissing?)” (Abu Dawud, Sawm, 33)
Thus, the Prophet (pbuh) taught Umar (r.a), who had been thinking that he was doing something wrong, by making comparison between something he did not know and that which he already knew. In his context another incident was narrated by Abu Umama al-Bahili (r.a.):
“A young man came to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and said:
“O Messenger of Allah! Give me permission to commit adultery.” Those people who were present attempted to attack the young man and reproached him; but the Prophet (pbuh) asked him to come closer. The young man came and sat next to the Prophet. The Mercy to the universe told the young man:
“Would you like to see your mother to commit adultery?” The young man replied:
“May Allah have me sacrificed to your path; by Allah I would not like to see that.” Upon this Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) said:
“Neither would other people like to see their mothers doing this.” Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) repeated the same question about the young man’s daughter, sister, and aunts. And each time the young man gave the same response. After that, the Prophet (pbuh) placed his hands on the young man’s chest and prayed for him saying:
“O Allah! Forgive this man’s sins, purify his heart, and protect him (his private parts) from adultery.” From that time on, the young man never approached such sins again.” (Ibn Hanbal, V, 256)
Even though his Companions became upset, Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) approached the matter calmly, and gave the young man a seat next to himself, listened to him, and then logically explained the matter; thus he cleansed the young man’s heart from such unlawful thoughts. And in return the young man was never tempted to make such a request again. It is very important for preachers and instructors of Islam to control their anger and give logical and rational explanations to their listeners. Logical and rational explanations gain special significance in the contemporary world which is dominated by rationalism and in which there is little place for submission and in which everything is evaluated from a logical perspective.