Öz
The word waqar is an Arabic-origin word, and means “solemnity” in lexical sense. Waqar as a term can be described as, “To show good attitude and behavior in everything, to act cautiously and balanced.” Although the word waqar is of Arabic origin, it is also used in modern Turkish as the opposite of words such as simplicity and lightheartedness and means “the mindfulness of behavior giving people a sense of dignity, nobility, and maturity.” However, the word “solemnity” is mainly used to express the same meaning in Turkish. According to these explanations, waqar constitutes the point of moderation of attitudes and behaviors.
Waqar is one of the basic concepts of Islamic morality. The evidence for this concept is based on the Qur’an and hadiths. The word waqar has been used in the verses to express the meanings of “greatness, nobility, dignity, solemnity, etc.” within its lexical meaning. In some verses regarding the subject, the behavior patterns related to waqar are expressed with the words “hawn” and “sakinah”. In those verses, waqar is noted as one of the main characteristics to be possessed by believers. The contents of all these verses were presented in detail in our study.
The main reference where waqar was highly used in terms of both words and behavior patterns is the hadiths as can be seen in our study. Waqar was noted as one of the main characteristics of the Prophet. The narrations on this subject have been included on different matters in the authentic hadith sources, especially in the sources of Shama’il. The Prophet Mohammad (saw) expressed the importance of waqar both in his statements and in his practices. He emphasized that Muslims should act with waqar in every field of life. The meanings of “dignity, respectability, nobility, maturity, serenity, cautiousness” stand out in the Prophet’s expressions. In addition, many behavioral models that provide having waqar were highlighted in the hadiths. Major behavioral patterns such as not being extreme while laughing, not acting in a hurry, mindfulness while moving forward, paying attention to clothing and appearance, the nice use of the words and sound, being strong, giving the authority and responsibility their dues, leaving not being occupied with useless things, acting kindly and gently, and following the etiquette were discussed. While expressing the mentioned behavioral models, the verses on the subject were also referred.
When the issue is handled from the point of hadiths, it is possible to express that waqar is a moral virtue involving the forms and measures to be followed in religious life and human relations. In other words, according to the hadiths, waqar includes moral values indicating nobility in terms of religious and social life, and all models of behavior related to heart, language and body giving respectability, dignity, maturity, seriousness, and sedateness. On the other hand, failure to comply with waqar causes unpleasant behaviors like not being mindful, imbalance, simplicity, and hurriedness in religious and social life. This may have consequences incompatible with faith and personality of a Muslim, leading to the loss and damage of one’s respectability in the society.
Another reference noting the importance of waqar in Islamic morality is ulama’s opinions and approaches. To the best of our knowledge, there is no study conducted separately on the topic of waqar yet. However, Islamic scholars stated that waqar is an important virtue upon evaluating the verses and the hadiths. In these evaluations, it is seen that waqar is mentioned as one of the most fundamental virtues of Islamic identity and being a mature Muslim. Tafsirs, hadith explanations and books on morality can be included among the main sources on this subject.
The concept of waqar has its own unique nature and content. This concept, mostly seen in behavior patterns, is manifested in various subjects such as speaking, laughing, eating, drinking, dressing, walking, and sitting. It is also one of the virtues that one should have in order to maintain an honorable stance in all areas related to social life, such as family, relatives, neighbors, friends, and communication with other people. It is a feature that gives the Muslim a proper identity, personality and character in accordance with his own sound nature. It is possible through waqar for a Muslim to be nice, balanced and cautious about everything by staying away from extravagance and understatement in life. Moreover, it is possible for a Muslim to take a noble stance and do what is appropriate for him with waqar because it teaches him to behave properly, to act with cautiousness, to be discreet, balanced, conscious, calm and harmonious by keeping away from all kinds of excessiveness, and simplicity.