Seeking Forgiveness and Taking Account of Oneself
There is no doubt that seeking forgiveness from Allâh has a great effect in
purifying and polishing the heart. As well as increasing the soul in
strength and firmness. The more truthful a person is in seeking forgiveness,
the more khushû’ one feels, and the more one’s heart softens.
To increase in seeking Allâh’s forgiveness – just as it was the practice of
the Messenger of Allâh ﷺ [1]– it is necessary to take account of oneself
and remembers one’s sins, as Allâh says in the Qurân:
“O you who believe, fear Allâh and keep your duty to Him,
And let every person look to what he has sent forth for tomorrow.” (59:18)
Allâh has ordered us to take account of ourselves, performing righteous
actions and prepare for the Day of Gathering. Allâh, the Most High, says in
the Qurân
“I swear by the Day of Resurrection and the self reporaching soul”. (75:12)
‘Ikrimah said in an explanation of this noble verse; It is to blame onself in
good and evil, whether you have done that or not”. Sa’id ibn Jubayr said: “It
is to blame oneself when doing good and evil”. Mujahid said “To regret for
what has passed and blame oneself for it”. (see Tafsîr ibn Kathir)
‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ûd (ra) said
“Verily the believer sees his sins as if he is
standing under a mountain, afraid that it will collapse upon him. And verily
the evildoer sees his sins as flies passing by his nose and he does this to
it. Abû Shihâb (said whilst clarifying the action that Ibn Mas’ud made when
he said “he does this to it”): “He moves it the fly away by swiping his hand
over his nose”. (Bukhârî)
It is reported that ‘Umar ibn al Khattâb (ra) said
“Bring yourselves to
account before you are brought to account, and weigh your deeds before they
are weighed”. (at-Tirmidhî in tamridh form, see Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi, hadîth
no. 2577)
It is reported that Maymun ibn Mihran said:
“A slave is not from the
muttaqîn (those who fear Allâh) until he brings himself to account more
severely and thoroughly than keeping account of his business partner, the two
partners bring themsevles to account after every action” (at-Tirmidhî, also
in tamridh form see Tuhfat al Ahwadhi hadîth no.2577)
Furthermore;
“The believer is firm in bringing himself to account for (the
sake of Allâh). Indeed lighter is the reckoning of a person who brings
himself to account in the world; and indeed difficult is the reckoning of the
Day of Judgement for a people who did not bring themselves to account (in the
world)” (attributed to Hasan)
Beware of minor sins as the Messenger of Allâh has said
“verily the example
of those who commit minor sins is like a group of people who descended upon a
valley. One of them brought a stick, and then another person brought a stick,
and then another and another, until they gathered enough for a fire to cook
their bread. This is similar to the idea of minor sins, because the
accumulation of small sins will eventually become enough to destroy you (just
like the piling of sticks was eventually enough to create a fire)” (Ahmad and
others)
Perfecting the Prayer
It was repotred by Abû Ayyud who said “A man came to the Messenger of Allâh
ﷺ and said “teach me in the briefest words”. He ﷺ replied,
“When you
stand in prayer, pray as if you are bidding farewell (to this world) and do
not utter words for which you will have to seek an excuse, and do not wish for
that which the people have”. (Ibn Majkah, Ahmad, Abû Nu’aym in al-Hilyah,
hasan)
What an excellent prayer is the prayer of one who prays as if he is leaving
the world and its beauties, and in which one remembers death, thereby
softening the heart and causing the eyes to weep.
Making yourself Weep
So know that making yourself weep earns less of a reward than actually
weeping. However it is the way towards weeping, that is because the one who
makes himself weep, is among those who strive hard and fight their souls, and
take account of themselves, and endeavour to attain the pleasure of Allâh,
the Most High. Allâh says:
“And those who strive hard in Us (our cause)
We will surely guide them to our paths ” (29:69)
So whoever strives to make his soul weep, then Allâh will guide this person
to sincere weeping and give him success in achieving it.
On the authority of Anas (ra) who related that he heard the Messenger of
Allâh ﷺ say
“O people weep, for you cannot weep then make yourself weep.
Indeed the inhabitants of the hellfire will weep until their tears pour down
their cheeks as if they were streams until the tears are used up and then
blood will pour down, and the eyes will be covered with ulcers”
So reflect over the way the Messenger of Allâh order us to weep or make
ourselves weep. He ﷺ also explained the weeping of the inhabitants of
hellfire, ie the tears will pour down their cheeks and faces as if streams
until they tears are used up after which blood will pour forth and cause the
eyes to be wounded with ulcers.
What else can you want after this, O slave of Allâh, in order for you to
weep! For I swear by Allâh that it is a deep and serious admonition, this
admonition is enough to cause you to make tawbah return to Allâh and weep.
For are you really safe from the scene (described above)?!
Are you guaranteed salvation and Paradise? So weep and shed tears now for
which you will be rewarded in your (life of this) world before you weep blood
for which you will not be rewarded in the Hereafter.
If you do not weep or even try to weep, then know that your imân is weak and
the world has overtaken you, and you are in great danger. So flee to Allâh,
grab hold of life before death, rush to sincere repentance, true inâbah
(returning to Allâh) and righteous actions.
On the authority of Ibn Abi Mulaykah who said “We were sitting with ‘Abdullah
ibn ‘Amr (ra) on a rock. He said “Weep if you cannot weep then make yourself
weep. If only you knew, you would pray until your back broke and weep until
you lost your voice”. (at-Targheeb wa at-Tarheeb: “al Hâkim reported it in
marfû form and said “it is sahîh upon their conditions”. Adh Dhahabî
agress upon its authenticity and it is as he has said. It is reported by ibn
al Mubarak in mawquf form in az-Zuhd)
In the story of the prisoners of Badr, Ibn Abbas (ra) said “When the
prisoners of Badr were chained, the Messenger of Allâh ﷺ asked Abû Bakr
and Umar (ra) “What should be done with the prisoners?” Abû Bakr said “O
prophet of Allâh! they are our relatives, I think that you should take ransom
from them and it will be a power for us against the disbelievers. Maybe Allâh
will guide them to Islâm .” The Messenger of Allâh then asked, “What do you
think O Ibn al Khattâb?”. I (‘Umar) said “No I swear by Allâh I do not agree
with Abû Bakr’s view. I think that you should let us strike their necks. So
let ‘Ali kill ‘Aqîl and let me kill such and such a person (a relative of
Umar). Verily they are the leaders and notables of disbelief”. The
Messenger of Allâh ﷺ approved of what Abû Bakr had said as opposed to
what I had said. So the following day, when I came, I found the Messenger of
Allâh ﷺ and Abû Bakr (ra) sitting together and weeping. I said: “O
Messenger of Allâh ﷺ! Inform me of the thing which is making you and your
companion weep? If I find that it is something that makes me weep then I will
weep, and if it does not make me weep then I will make myself weep, due to
the weeping of both of you.” So the Prophet ﷺ said “I weep over what
your companions suggested with regard to taking the ransom for their
punishment has been shown to me, from closer than this tree!” Allâh has
revealed in the Qurân
“It is not for the Prophet that he should have prisoners of war (and free
them with ransom) until he had made a great slaughter (among his enemies) in
the land (ie destruction of the enemy. In an-Nihâyah “to massacre is to do
this excessively and what is meant here is to be excessive in killing the
disbelievers). You desire the goods of this world (ie the money of ransom
for freeing the captives but Allâh desires for you the Hereafter. And Allâh
is All Mighty, All Wise. Were is not for a previous ordainment from Allâh, a
severe torment would have touched you for what you took. So enjoy the booty
you have got from war, lawful and good, and be afraid of Allâh. Certaily
Allâh is Oft Forgiving, Most Merciful” (8:67)
So Allâh made the booty lawful for them” (Muslim)
Taking Heed of Admonition
There are many texts with regards to this, amongst them is the hadîth of
al-‘Irbâd ibn Sariyah (ra) which has already preceded who said “The Messenger
of Allâh ﷺ gave us a sermon which made our hearts tremble and our eyes
flow with tears”.
It is mentioned in Latâ’if al-Ma’arif that admonition is like a whip which
strikes and affects the heart just as whipping would affect the body. After
the striking has stopped, the effect will cease to be the same as it was
whilst one was being struck. However the effect of the pain depends on the
force with which one was struck. So whenever one is struck with great force,
the pain evidently remains for a longer period of time.
Many of the Salaf having heard an admonition in a gathering would leave and a
sense of peace, tranquillity and dignity would descend upon them, some of them
unable to eat food after that, while others would act according to what they
had heard for a period of time.
When al Hasan used to go out to the people he was like a man who could see
the Hereafter with his own eyes, and then inform others about it. And the
people would leave his company considering the world to be worthless.
Sufyan ath-Thawrî used to find solace from the world in is gathering.
Ahmad was such that the world was not to be mentioned in his gatherings nor
in his presence.
Some of them (the Salaf said)
“Admonition is only beneficial when it comes
from the heart, so indeed it reaches the heart. As for admonition which
comes from the tongue, then verily it enters through one ear and comes out
from the other”.
Purifying the Heart from the Dirt and Filth of Hatred, Envy and Deceit
Indeed this matter has a great influence on brining about weeping and its
opposite hinders and prevents it.
Increase in the Nawâfil (voluntary acts of worship)
On the authority of Abû Hurayrah (ra) who said that he heard the Messenger of
Allâh ﷺ say
“Allâh has said: I will declare war against him who shows
hostility to a pious worshipper of Mine. The most beloved things with which
My slave draws closer to me, is what I have obligated upon him; and My slave
keeps drawing closer to Me through performing superogatory acts till I love
him, then I become his sense of hearing with which he hears, and his sense of
sight with which he sees, and his hand with which he grasps, and his leg with
which he walks; and if he asks Me, I will give him, if he asks My protection
I will protect him, and I do not hesitate to do anything as I hesitate to
take the soul of a believer, for he hates death and I hate to disappoint
him”. (al Bukhârî)
So increase your voluntary acts of worship as much as you can in this way.
Increase your prayer , fasting, giving of zakah, hajj and every good and
righteous action as much as you are able to, so that Allâh, the Most High,
may love you and grant you what you ask Him for.
Considering the World to be Worthless and Insignificant and Renouncing it
Indeed the love of this world is a reason behind the hardening of the heart
and it diverts one away from the way of Allâh. Verily abstention and
renunciation of this world causes the heart to soften, increases its khushû’
and causes the eyes to weep tearfully.
So beware of becoming too much at ease with the world. You must renounce
this world and consider it insignificant as much as you can in this way, and
read books which urge to you do this (with regards to this subject refer to
chapters 54, 55 of Riyâd us Salihîn)
Contemplate the guidance of the Prophet ﷺ when renouncing the world,
ponder over his difficult and tough lifestyle with regards to his food, drink,
clothing and furniture, etc.
It is reported by ‘Aisha (ra) that
“The family of Muhammad ﷺ since their
arrival in Madînah had not eaten wheat bread to their satisfaction for three
consecutive nights until the Prophet saw passed away” (Bukhârî, Muslim)
On the authority of Abû Hurayrah (ra) who said
“The Prophet saw left the world
and he had not eaten barley bread to his fill.” (Bukhârî)
On the authority of ‘Aisha (ra) who said that
“The family of Muhammad saw
had not eaten barely bread to their fill for two consecutive days until, the
Prophet ﷺ passed away”.
On the authority of ‘Urwah that ‘Aisha (ra) said to him: “O my nephew. We
used to see three moons in the space of two months and fire was not kindled
in the house of Allâh’s Messenger ﷺ.”So I (‘Urwah) asked, “What was your
means of sustenance?”She replied “The two black things: dates and water.
However Allâh’s Messenger ﷺ had some Ansar as neighbours who had animal,
which gave milk, and they used to send some of the milk to Allâh’s Messenger
ﷺ which he served us with”. (Muslim, Bukhârî)
On the authority of Anas (ra) who said
“I never knew the Prophet ﷺ to
have eaten ragheef (a flat loaf of bread) until he passed away” (Bukhârî and
Muslim)
On the authority of Samâk who aid that I heard al-Nu’man ibn Bashir say
“Do
you not eat and drink as much as you wish? Whereas I have seen that your
Prophet ﷺ could not even find a sufficient amount of an inferior quality
of date to fill his stomach” (Muslim)
On the authority of ‘Aisha (ra) who said
“The bed of the Messenger of Allâh
ﷺ was made of animal skin filled with fibres” (Muslim, Bukhârî)
On the authority of Abû Burdah who said
“‘Aisha (ra) brought out to us a
coarse upper garments nd lower garment (izar), and she said that the
Messenger of Allâh ﷺ had passed away in these two”. (Muslim, Bukhârî)
And there are many ahadîth regarding this (refer to Sahîh al Bukhârî, “the
book of food”; “the book of softening the heart” under the section how the
Prophet saw and his companions used to live. Also refer to Sahîh Muslim, “the
book of renunciation and heart softening”, and also to Riyadh us-Salihîn
chpater 56)
Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (ra) reported that:
“The Messenger of Allâh saw took hold
of my shoulder and said “Be in this world as if you were a strange or a passer
by”. And Ibn ‘Umar used to say “If you live until the evening then do not
expect to live until the following morning. And if you live until the
morning, then do not expect to see the evening. Take from your health for
your sickness and from your life for your death”. (Bukhârî)
So hasten, O brother and sister, towards living like the stranger or the
wayfarer in your conduct, manners, behaviour, food, drink , housing and in
anything else you are able to do so. We should observe and await the arrival
of our original abode (paradise). Therefore we should not expect to live
until morning if we are alive in the evening and likewise we should not
expect to live until the evening if we are alive in the morning. Thus we
should not put off repentance, returning back to Allâh and carrying out the
rights which are upon us, or even performing a good deed.
We should be conducting ourselves (in our daily lives) as if we can see the
scenes of the Day of Resurrection with our own eyes. We should take from our
health for our illness and assign our health towards accomplishing acts of
obedience as well as to make the most of our lives so that we can be saved
from the terrors that follow death. Does the stranger who is away from his
country, family, children, kinsfolk and relatives strive in order to build a
castle in a foreign land?! Or does the wayfarer live in an isolated
cul-de-sac?!
And you – May Allâh have mercy upon you – are a stranger in this world, far
away from the home of Paradise, far away from your spouse and children there.
And this is only if you are from the People of Paradise. Then how is it if
you have no home in Paradise, nor a family nor children, but you have the
punishment; an unseen evil waiting for you?!
So beware of leading a life of ease and comfort as Allâh’s Messenger ﷺ
said
“Beware of leading a life of ease and comfort for verily the real slaves
of Allâh are not those who live in ease and comfort” (Ahmad, Abû Nu’aym in
al-Hilyah)
So necessary for you is al-Badhâdhah, as the Prophet ﷺ has said
”
Al-Badhâdhah is from iman”. (Ibn Mâjah, sahîh) And al Badhâdhah means
leading a simple life.
Having Mercy on the Orphan, Helping Him, Stroking His head and Feeding Him
On the authority of Abû Darda (ra) who said “A man came to the Messenger of
Allâh complaining of the hardness of his heart. He ﷺ said
“Would you
like to soften your heart? And to achieve your desire? Then have mercy upon
the orphans, stroke their heads, and feed them from your food. Thereby you
will soften your heart and achieve your desire” (atTabrâni, in al Kabîr)
Reducing Laughter
On the authority of Abû Hurayrah (ra) who related that Allâh’s Messenger
ﷺ said
“Do not laugh too much, for verily excessive laughter kills the
heart”. (Ibn Mâjah and others, sahîh)
Fearing that Ones Actions will not be Accepted
‘Aisha (ra) said
“I asked the Messenger of Allâh about the following ayah:
“And those who give their charity that which they give with their hearts full
of fear” (23:60)
(I asked) “Are these people who commit illegal sexual intercourse, steal and
drink alcohol?” The Messenger of Allâh replied
“No, O daughter of Abû Bakr
they are those who fast, give charity and pray while fearing that their deeds
may not be accepted”. (at Tirmidhî, Ibn Mâjah, hasan)
Some Attitudes and Saying Transmitted About Weeping out of Fear Of Allâh and
About the Grief and Reminders of the Hereafter
[Taken from al-Hilyat ul Awliyâ’ ]
On the authority of Ja’far ibn Burqân who said “I came to know that Salman
al-Fârisî (ra) used to say:
“Three things make me laugh and three things
make me cry. I laugh at the one who is hopeful of the world yet death seeks
him; the one who is neglectful (of his Lord) while he is not neglected (by
Him); the one who laughs at the top of his voice, while he does not know
whether he is pleasing his Lord or displeasing Him. Three things make me cry:
parting from our beloved Muhammad ﷺ and his Companions; the terror of the
onset of the pangs of death and the standing in front of the Lord of the
Worlds while not knowing whether I will be turned towards the Fire or
Paradise”.
Sufyan ath-Thawrî reported that Abû Dharr al-Ghafari was with al-Ka’b when
he said: “O People, I am Jundub al-Ghafari, hurry to the compassionate
brother who gives sincere advice.” The people gathered around him, and he
said “Do you not know that if one of you intends to go on a journey then he
does he not take provisions which will make the journey easier and
comfortable for him, and enable him to reach his destination?” They replied
“Of course”. He then said “The journey to the day of Resurrection us longer
than (any journey) you intend (to embark upon) so take that which will make
your journey easier and comfortable for you”. They asked “What is it that
will make it easier and comfortable for us?” He replied “Perform hajj for
the terrible things to come; fast on an extremely hot day, for the duration
of the resurrection; pray two rakahs in the darkness of the night for the
loneliness and coldness of the grave; say a good word or restrain from bad
talk for the standing on the Great Day; and give charity with your wealth in
hope that you will be saved from other such (calamities and trials).”
“Make in the world two gatherings, a gathering in search for the Hereafter,
and a gathering in search for the halâl. The third type of gathering will
harm you and not benefit you, so do not desire it”.
“Make your wealth into two dirhams, a dirham you spend on your families in
every way you can, and a dirham that you put forward for the Hereafter. The
third type of dirham will harm you and not benefit you, so do not desire it.”
It is reported on the authority of Salân ibn Abi Muti’ who said, “A
container of water was brought to al-Hasan to break his fast with, but when
he brought it close to his mouth he began to weep and said, “I remembered the
wish of the inhabitants of the Fire in their saying
“Pour on us some water…” (7:50)
And then I remembered the reply to them
“Surely Allâh has forbidden both (water and provision to the disbelievers)”
(7:50)
Al-Hasan said
“Verily you have insufficient time, your actions are sealed,
death is looking over you and the Fire is in front of you. And by Allâh
whatever you see (i.e. the world) is going. So expect the decision of Allâh
every day and night, and let one look to what he has put forward for himself.”
He also said
“O son of Adam! You are nothing but days, whenever a day goes
past, a part of you (also) goes”.
He also said
“It is befitting for the one who knows that death is his place
of arrival, the hour is his appointed time, and the standing in front of
Allâh, the Most High, is his place of meeting, that his sadness lengthens”
Thâbit al-Banâni said
“We were following a funeral procession and we saw
nothing but people covering their faces while weeping or covering their faces
while reflecting”.
Sufyan ibn Uyaynah said that Ibrahîm at-Taymee said
“I imagined myself in the
Hellfire with its iron chains and blazing fire eating from Zaqqoom (a tree in
hell with exceedingly bitter fruit), and drinking from its Zamhareer (a
bitterly cold drink), so I said “O my soul what do you long for?” It replied
“To return to the world and perform a righteous action by which I will be
saved form this punishment”. I also imagined myself in Paradise with its
Hoori dressed in silken garments (of Paradise) with gold embroidery. I said
“O my soul! What do u long for?” It said “To return to the world and perform
a righteous action by which this reward will increase.” So I said to myself
“You are in the world and (surrounded by) aspirations”.
On the authority of Bukayr or Abû Bukayr that Ibrahîm at-Taymee said “The one
who is not afflicted with sadness and grief should fear being from the people
of the Fire because the people of Paradise will say
“All praises and thanks be to Allâh, who has removed from us grief” (35:34)
It is necessary for the one who does not fear (the punishment of Allâh) to be
fearful of not being from among the people of Paradise, because they will say
“Aforetime we were afraid with our families (from the punishment of Allâh)”
(52:26)
Zakariyyah al-‘Abdee reported about Ibrahîm an-Nakha’i that he wept during
his illness and the people said to him “O Abû Imran! What makes you weep?” He
replied,
“How can I not weep while I am waiting for a messenger from my lord,
to inform me whether it is this or that (ie Paradise or Hellfire)”.
Hisham ibn Hassan said “when it was said to Muhammad ibn Wâsi’ “In what
state do you wake up, O Abû Abdullah?”. He replied “What is one to think of
a man who moves a stage closer to the Hereafter every day”.
