relatives remain solid. This will also increase affection and love amongst them.^[1]

 (In contemporary times, very little communication takes place with letters.  One can stay in contact via phone or the internet etc., because the purpose is to maintain a good and strong relationship with each other, regardless of how that is done.)

Strengthen relationships with relatives

Dear Islamic brothers, besides being courteous to your relatives, try your wholehearted best to maintain these good ties with them. Come to their aid when they need you, attend when they call you somewhere, support them in their joys and sorrows, and invite them to permissible functions and occasions.  All of these good things, and every other way you may exhibit good conduct with them, are considered maintaining good relationship with relatives.

We now come to an extremely important point. Good conduct towards one’s relatives does not mean you should only behave well with those who behave well with you. This is actually reciprocation of treatment, such as sending a gift to a relative who has sent you a one, or going to the house of one who comes to yours. In actual fact, good treatment means establishing ties with the one who cuts off ties with you. By extension, this also means to care about the relative who ignores and stays away from you.^[2]

Reality of maintaining ties

The Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم said: “The one joining ties with relatives is not he who does so in exchange for good conduct shown to him; rather