1 July 2012

Seerah of Muhammed*
*: May the peace blessings and Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

Rivalry between Mecca and Taif
Traditionally, there was great rivalry between the people of Mecca & Ta’if, with the Ta’if people having a chip on their shoulder as they thought they were better than the Meccans but Mecca had the Kaaba and the established pilgrimage associated with it. When the Prophet* was first given revelation, people complained that it should have gone to a noble person from one of the two towns – meaning Mecca or Ta’if. Also, it was the first place that the Prophet* went to for support (Nusra) to establish an Islamic State when it was clear that Mecca would not give him the base (after the death of his wife and uncle). Hence, he* was so bitterly disappointed when they drove him out of Ta’if in such a wicked manner.
The conquest of Mecca which came forth as a consequence of a swift blow astounded both the Arabs and other tribes who realized that they were doomed and had to submit to the new situation as a fait accompli. Some of the fierce, powerful proud tribes did not submit and favoured resistance. They thought that they were too mighty to admit or surrender to such a victory. So they met Malik bin ‘Awf An-Nasri and made up their mind to proceed fighting against the Muslims.

Hawazin gather forces
The Prophet's final definite move against Quraysh had not stopped Hawazin from continuing to consolidate their forces. Nor were their apprehensions allayed by the news of his easy conquest of Mecca and his destruction of all its idols; and great was their alarm at the fate of the temple of al-'Uzza, which had been the sister-shrine to their own temple of al-Lat, By the time that the invaders had spent two weeks in Mecca, Hawazin had assembled an army of some twenty thousand men in the valley of Awtas, to the north of Ta'if, The clans of Hawazin which had come out against them were Thaqif, Nasr, jusham, and Sa'd ibn Bakr. Their commander-in-chief was a thirty-year-old man of Nasr named Malik, who had already won for himself, despite his youth, a reputation for great valour and princely munificence. Against the advice of older men he had ordered them to bring with them all their women and children and cattle, on the grounds that with these in the rear of the army the men would fight more valiantly.

Enemy's march and encampment at Uwtas:
When Malik bin ‘Awf — the general leader — decided to march and fight the Muslims, he made his country people take their wealth, women and children with them to Uwtas — which is a valley in Hawazin land and is quite near Hunain. It differs from Hunain in its being adjacent to Dhi-Al-Majaz which is around ten miles from Makkah in ‘Arafat’s direction.

Malik & Duraid argue about tactics:
As soon as they had camped in Awtas, people crowded round Malik. The old sane Duraid bin As- Simmah, who was well-known as a war-experienced man, and who was among those who gathered round Malik, asked: “What valley are we in?” “In Awtas,” they said. “What a good course it is for horses! It is neither a sharp pointed height nor a loosed soiled plain. What? Why do I hear camels’ growling, the donkeys’ braying, the children’s cries and the sheep bleating?” asked Duraid. They said: “Malik bin ‘Awf had made people bring their women, properties and children with them.” So he called Malik and asked him what made him do such a thing. Malik said that his aim was to have everybody’s family and properties around them so that they fight fiercely to protect them.” “I swear by Allah that you are nothing but a shepherd,” answered Duraid, “Do you believe that there is anything whatsoever, can stand in the way of a defeated one or stop him from fleeing? If you win the battle you avail nothing but a man with a sword and a spear; but if you lose you will bring disgrace on your people and properties,” then he resumed his talk and went on wondering about some septs and their leaders. “O Malik, thrusting the distinguished people of Hawazin into the battlefield will avail you nothing. Raise them up to where they can be safe. Then make the young people mount their horses and fight. If you win, those whom you tarried will follow you, but if you were the loser it would be a loss of a battle, but your kinsmen, people and properties would not be lost.” But Malik, the general leader, refused this suggestion. “By Allah,” he said, “I will not do such a thing. You must have grown a senile. Hawazin have to obey me, or else I will lean my body against this sword so that it penetrates through my back.” He rejected any sort of contribution of Duraid’s in that concern. “We obey you,” said his people, Duraid consequently said: “Today is a day that I have not missed but surely I will not be tempted to witness.”

Fiqh (part 7):
 

Basic Terms in Hadith

·    Sanad: A chain of reporters leading back to the Prophet*. [from person F to A]

·    Tabaqah: A class of reporters in the same generation, i.e. Sahabah, Tabi’een. [Persons B-G-L same as Sahabah; and/or C-H-M same as Tabi’een, D-I-N same as Tabi- Tabi’een, E-J-O next generation, etc]

·    Marfu’: A Hadith whose Sanad leads to the Prophet*. [from person F to A]

·    Mawquf: A Hadith whose Sanad ends with a Sahabi. [from person F to B]

·    Mursal: A Hadith leading to the Prophet* but missing the name of the Sahabi who reported it. [Missing B-G-L]

·    Qudsi: A Hadith whose Sanad leads to Prophet* and the Prophet* is reporting it from Allah.

Types of Hadith:

Different types of Ahadith (Ahadith = plural of Hadith) exist due to the method of transmission, number of reporters in each class, and the authenticity of the Hadith.

Methods of Transmitting a Hadith

Mutawatir / Tawatur = Transmitters are 5 and/or greater than 5 in each class

Khabar Ahad = Transmitters are less than 5

Mutawatir / Tawatur:

A Daleel transmitted by an very large number of people (5 or over). Due to the large number of people reporting the Daleel and their diversity of residence, reliability, and conviction, it is inconceivable that this Daleel could be fabricated. (We talked about people standing on weighing scales to check their weight, and then lots of different scales to see if they also matched up.)

The minimum number of transmitters that are required to classify a Daleel as Mutawatir is generally five. However, some scholars may have more stringent criteria. The character of the reporters narrating Mutawatir Ahadith has to be noble.

Ahad:

Riwayah Ahad is a number less than the Mutawatir.

Ahad can be further sub-divided depending upon the number of reporters in each class for Khabar Ahad:

·    Mashoor: A Hadith reported by at least three individuals in every class (Sahabah, Tabi’een, etc.).

·    Aziz: A Hadith reported by at least two individuals in every class.

·    Gharib: A Hadith reported by only one individual in one or more classes.

Authenticity of the Reporters for Khabar Ahad This applies only to Khabar Ahad as Mutawatir are deemed to be beyond doubt, and so are as authentic as you can get. However, with fewer narrators there is greater chance of some doubt and so the authenticity can vary. There are 3 main classes of authenticity (Sahih to Hasan to Dha’eef), and each one can be further subdivided – although the main divisions are in the lowest (Dha’eef) category:

Sahih (‘Correct’):

A Hadith narrated by an Adl (not known for misconduct) and Daabit (maintains accuracy of the report) person from another person of similar qualities until the end of the report. The report should also exclude any Shudhudh (disagreement with other credible reporters).

Hasan (‘Good’): It has two definitions:

a) A Hadith, which meets the requirements of Sahih to a lesser degree.

b) A Hadith, which is acceptable by the majority of the Fuqaha (scholars).

Dha’eef (‘Weak’):

A weak Hadith which does not meet the requirement of either the Sahih or the Hasan Hadith, it can be further classified into one of the following:

·    Mu’alaq: A Hadith which is missing one or more reporters either at the beginning of the Isnad, in the middle or in the end [from Person B to F].

·    Mu’addal: Hadith which is missing two or more consecutive reporters [missing C – D, or D – E].

·    Munqati: A Hadith which has interruption in the class [no C or D].

·    Ash-Shaath: A Hadith in which one credible reporter reports something that disagrees with other credible reporters.

·    Mu’allal: A Hadith whose Sanad seems to be fine, but due to some reasons discovered by scholars, it is discredited.

·    Munkar: A Hadith in which non-credible reporters convey a message, which is in disagreement with what, was reported by credible reporters.

·    Mawd’u: A fabricated Hadith.

Main Topic: Shariah (part 1): Who should we follow?
- Why do we need Messengers or Prophets?
- Why can't we rely on our mind for how we pray, and live?

We briefly talked about the number of issues related to whom we should follow for our day-to-day guidance.  Rather than have a full discussion a series of questions were raised.  The starting point focuses on whom you should listen to in deciding how we live our lives.  Because we have been given the mind -- surely we should use that as intelligent human beings to decide how best we can live.  After all, surely we know best the challenges that we face. 
This is a common argument that is often mentioned and as foursomes as Muslims we should know how to consider responding to this.  After all, we have just spent a few weeks talking about how important it is to use our minds in coming to the conclusion that there is only one Allah.  Hence, surely we should be able to use our minds to decide how we live.
The group was asked to think about these issues in preparation for a fuller discussion the following week (inshaAllah). How do we decide on how can convince others what is the best way to live?  






Children's feedback: 
- Olympic preparation and forgiveness
- Emperor Ling and his plant seeds
- Shahnam Charity Events volunteering

Home work:
- How many people protected the Prophet* in the Battle of Hunain?
- Why do we need Messengers to follow? What is the need for Revelation and how would we discuss this with people?

4 March 2012

Khaibar (part 4) and Safiyyah and Hadith 38: Drawing Nearer to Allah

Seerah of Muhammed*
*: May the Peace, Blessings and Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

Umm ul-Muhminin Safiyyah: The Jewish Wife of Muhammad

Among the captives taken as a result of Kinanah's hiding the treasure was his widow Safiyyah, the daughter of that Huyayy who had persuaded the Bani Qurayzah to break their treaty with the Prophet, and who had been put to death with them after the Battle of the Trench. She was seventeen years old and had only married Kinanah a month or two before the Prophet*set out from Medina. Safiyyah was of a deeply pious nature. From her earliest years she had heard her people talk of the Prophet*who was soon to come, and this had filled her imagination. Then they had spoken of an Arab in Mecca, a man of Quraysh, who claimed to be that Prophet; and then came the news that he had arrived at Quba'. Safiyyah was the daughter of Huyay ibn Akhtab, the undisputed leader of the Banu al-Nadir as well as a Jewish rabbi. Saffiyah says, "I was my father's and my uncle's favourite child. When the Messenger of Allah came to Medina and stayed at Quba, my parents went to him at night and when they looked disconcerted and worn out. I received them cheerfully but to my surprise no one of them turned to me. They were so grieved that they did not feel my presence. I heard my uncle, Abu Yasir, saying to my father, 'Is it really him?' He said, 'Yes, by Allah'. My uncle said: 'Can you recognize him and confirm this?' He said, 'Yes'. My uncle said, 'How do you feel towards him?' He said, 'By Allah I shall be his enemy as long as I live.'" That was when she was a child of ten. It was clear from what they said that they believed the newcomer to be the promised Prophet, but that they intended to oppose him; and her young mind was puzzled.

Soon after her marriage, and not long before the Prophet*arrived in front of Khaibar, she had had a dream. She saw a brilliant moon hanging in the sky, and she knew that beneath it lay the city of Medina. Then the moon began to move towards Khaibar, where it fell into her lap. When she woke she told Kinanah what she had seen in her sleep, whereupon he struck her a blow in the face and said: "This can only mean that thou desirest the King of the Hijaz, Muhammad." The mark of the blow was still visible when she was brought as captive to the Prophet. He asked her what had caused it, and she told him of her dream. Now Dihyah 1 of the Bani Kalb, who had entered Islam shortly after Badr, had asked that Safiyyah should be given him as his share of the booty of Khaibar, or as part of his share, and the Prophet*had agreed; but on hearing her dream he sent to Dihyah and told him he must take her cousin instead. He then told Safiyyah that he was prepared to set her free, and he offered her the choice between remaining a Jewess and returning to her people or entering Islam and becoming his wife. "I choose God and His Messenger," she said; and they were married at the first halt on the homeward march.

This significant act of marrying Safiyyah was indeed a great honour for her, for this not only preserved her dignity, it also prevented her from becoming a slave. The marriage to Safiyyah has a political significance as well, as it helps to reduce hostilities and cement alliances. Safiyyah, relates those moments when she hated the Prophet*for killing her father and her ex-husband. The Prophet*apologized to her saying, "Your father charged the Arabs against me and committed heinous act," he apologized to the extent that made Safiyyah get rid of her bitterness against the Prophet.

The Prophet's Attitude Towards Safiyyah: The Prophet*used to treat Safiyyah with courteousness, gentleness and affection. Safiyyah said, "The Messenger of Allah went to Hajj with his wives. On the way my camel knelt down for it was the weakest among all the other camels and so I wept. The Prophet*came to me and wiped away my tears with his dress and hands. The more he asked me not to weep the more I went on weeping.

Factors helping the Prophet*win in Khaibar

The gates of the forts of Khaibar were opened and the Jewish tribes surrendered before the army of Islam under certain special conditions. However, it should be seen as to what were the factors responsible for this victory and they are of course the distinguished points of this episode. This remarkable victory of Muslims was the consequence of military planning (encamping, use of weaponry, structured attack on the forts one by one) and getting usable intelligence (sending scouts to Khaibar beforehand, interrogating the arrested people and finding out about the water stores and hidden weapons).

Arrival of Jafar from Abyssinia

Before proceeding to Khaibar the Prophet*sent 'Amr bin Umayyah to the court of the Negus. The purpose of sending his envoy to the Ethiopian court was that he should convey a message of the Prophet*to the King of Ethiopia and ask him to provide facilities for the departure of all the Muslims residing in Ethiopia. The Negus arranged two boats for them. The boats of the Muhajirs cast the anchor on the coast near Medina. The Muslims came to know that the Prophet*had proceeded to Khaibar and they also arrived in Khaibar without any delay. The travellers of Ethiopia arrived at the time when all the forts had been conquered. The Prophet*took sixteen steps forward to receive Ja'far bin Abu Talib, kissed his forehead and said: "I don't know for which thing I should be more happy-whether for that I have met you after so many years or for that Allah has opened the forts of the Jews for us through your brother Ali" .

Abu Hurairah becomes a Muslim

His is the foremost name in the roll of hadith transmitters. Next to him comes the names of such companions as Abdullah the son of Umar, Anas the son of Malik, Umm al-Mumininin Aishah, Jabir ibn Abdullah and Abu Said al-Khudri all of whom transmitted over a thousand sayings of the Prophet*. It is after Khaibar that he became a Muslim. Afterwards,  much of Abu Hurayrah's time would be spent in spiritual exercises and devotion to God. Qiyam al-Layl staying up for the night in prayer and devotion - was a regular practice of his family including his wife and his daughter. He would stay up for a third of the night, his wife for another third and his daughter for a third. In this way, in the house of Abu Hurayrah no hour of the night would pass without ibadah, dhikr and Salat.

Forgiving the vanquished

When great and pious persons are victorious they show love and kindness to their vanquished and helpless enemies. As soon as the enemy surrenders they show indulgence to him and refrain from taking revenge and from nursing a grudge against him. After the conquest of Khaibar the great leader of the Muslims showed kind sentiments to the people of that place (notwithstanding the fact that they had spent large sums of money to instigate the idolatrous Arabs to rise against him and had subjected Medina to attack and possible fall) and conceded their demand that they might stay on in Khaibar and continue to possess the lands and trees of that area subject to the condition that they would pay half of the produce to the Muslims.

The Prophet*could put all of them to sword or expel them from Khaibar or compel them to embrace Islam. The Prophet*did not do any such thing, but granted them complete asylum, and allowed them to follow the principles, rules, regulations and ceremonies of their religion. If the Prophet*waged war against the Jews of Khaibar it was on account of the fact that Khaibar and its residents were the centre of danger for Islam and always collaborated with the idolaters to topple down the newly established Government / State of the Muslims. The Prophet* took jizyah from them it was for the reason that they enjoyed security under the Islamic State and it was obligatory upon the Muslims to protect their lives and property. And according to minute calculations the taxes which every Muslim was obliged to pay the Islamic Government, exceeded the jizyah which the Jews and the Christians were required to pay. The Muslims had to pay zakat and khums and at times they had also to make payments out of their net property to meet the needs of the Islamic Government. As compared with this the Jews and the Christians, who lived under the banner of Islam and enjoyed collective and individual rights, had to make payments, like the Muslims, by way of jizyah, for the security of this banner. The imposition of Islamic jizyah is something different from taking tribute.

The Jews are expelled from Khaibar

The excesses of the Jews were not confined to these incidents and they harassed the Muslims every now and then with their different schemes. Eventually, during the Khilafah of Umer, his son Abdullah, who had gone to Khaibar along with some other persons to conclude an agreement was tortured by the Jews. The Caliph came to know about the incident and thought of solving the problem. Then, relying on a tradition of the Prophet*which had been quoted by some persons, he said to the companions of the Prophet: "Whoever has to realize a debt from the people of Khaibar should realize it, for I am going to give orders that they should leave this place". Soon afterwards the Jews of Khaibar were banished from there on account of repeated excesses committed by them and they left the Peninsula. Their Jewish descendants tried to forge documents later showing that they were exempt from Jizyah – but these were proven to be forged.

Hajjaj gets his money from Mecca

A merchant named Hajjaj bin 'Ilat was present in Khaibar. He had trade dealings with the people of Mecca. The grandeur of Islam and the affection and kindness shown by the Prophet*to this obstinate nation (i.e. the Jews) enlightened his heart and he came to the Prophet*and embraced Islam. Then he drew up a plan to realize his dues from the people of Mecca. He entered the city of Mecca through a gate and saw that the chiefs of Quraysh were awaiting news and were very much anxious about the developments at Khaibar. All of them encircled his camel and enquired impatiently about the condition of Muhammad. He replied: "Muhammad has suffered an unparalleled defeat and his companions have been killed or captured. He himself has been captured and the chiefs of the Jews have decided to bring him to Mecca and to execute him before the very eyes of Quraysh". This false report pleased them immensely. Then he turned to the people and said: "In view of this good news I request you to pay me my dues as early as possible so that I may go to Khaibar earlier than other merchants and may purchase the slaves". The duped people paid him his dues in a very short time.

The circulation of this news extremely upset Abbas, the uncle of the Prophet, and he desired to meet Hajjaj. He, however, winked at Abbas which meant that he would let him know the real facts later. A short time before his departure he met the Prophet's uncle secretly and said: "I have embraced Islam and I chalked out this plan only to realize my dues. The correct news is that on the day on which I left Khaibar all the forts had been conquered by the Muslims and the daughter of their leader named Huyyay bin Akhtab (Safiyyah) had been captured and had become a wife of the Prophet. Please make these facts known to the people after three days of my departure".

After three days Abbas put on his best dress, scented himself with the costliest perfume and entered the mosque with a staff in his hand and began to go round the Ka'bah. Quraysh were surprised to see the dress of Abbas which displayed his joy and happiness, because they thought that, in view of the calamity which had befallen his nephew, he should have worn a dress of mourning. He, however, relieved them of their surprise by saying: "The report which Hajjaj furnished you was a clever device to realize his dues. He has embraced Islam and he had left Khaibar when Muhammad had gained the greatest victory, and the Jews had been disarmed and some of them had been killed and others had been made captives". The chiefs of Quraysh became very sad on hearing this news and soon afterwards they heard the same thing (from other sources as well).

Nawawi's Forty Hadith
Hadith 38: Drawing Nearer to Allah Through Obligatory Duties

Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah*, said: "Allah the Almighty has said: 'Whosoever acts with enmity towards a closer servant of Mine (wali), I will indeed declare war against him. Nothing endears My servant to Me than doing of what I have made obligatory upon him to do. And My servant continues to draw nearer to Me with supererogatory (nawafil) prayers so that I shall love him. When I love him, I shall be his hearing with which he shall hear, his sight with which he shall see, his hands with which he shall hold, and his feet with which he shall walk. And if he asks (something) of Me, I shall surely give it to him, and if he takes refuge in Me, I shall certainly grant him it.'" [Al-Bukhari]

“Whoever has mutual animosity with a friend (wali) of Mine, I declare war upon him.“

This hadith begins with a very stern warning: Allah declares war upon the one who opposes His devoted servants or auliyaa. In order to understand this statement properly, we need to understand the correct meaning of a wali or friend, of Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, as it is established from the Qur’an and Sunnah.

Correct Understanding of  Who is a Wali of Allah

Wali (plural auliyaa), according to the Islamic understanding, means support, love, honour, respect and being beloved in both a spiritual and material sense. In Allah’s description, He points out two essential characteristics for anyone to be among the auliyaa of Allah. The first condition is imaan (faith) and the second condition is to have taqwa (God-consciousness). Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, says in the Qur’an: “Lo, verily the friends of Allah are those on whom fear comes not, nor do they grieve. Those who believe and keep their duty to Allah.” (Surah Yunus:62-63)

We can see from this that the auliyaa of Allah are those who believe and continually obey Him, and have the highest levels of imaan and taqwa. This shows us that the auliyaa of Allah are not all of the same rank. In fact some scholars have said they fall into three categories, due to the ayah: “Then those who We chose of Our servants inherited the Book. But of them are some who wrong themselves and of them are some who are intermediate, and of them are some who outstrip others through their good deeds, by Allah’s leave.” (Surah Faatir:32)

Ibn Katheer explains in his book of Qur’anic commentary that those ‘who wrong themselves’ are believers who are negligent of obligatory some duties and perform some forbidden acts. Those who are ‘intermediate’ are those who perform obligatory duties and abstain from forbidden acts but may not perform all of the recommended acts and may perform some makrooh or disliked acts. Those who ‘outstrip others through good deeds’ are those who perform the obligatory and recommended acts and abstain from both forbidden and reprehensible deeds. This shows us that, by the mercy of Allah, perfection is not is prerequisite to be an auliyaa of Allah. Even those of us who commit some sins may still gain entry to this category. Since imaan and taqwa are not something that can be seen by others, it is not possible to know who is definitely in fact a wali or friend of Allah, unless we have been informed of this in the Qur’an and sunnah. From these we know that the greatest auliyaa of Allah are the angels and messengers and then the prophets. After that come the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them all, and the true and sincere scholars of Islam, all of whom act on their knowledge and as such are the ‘heirs of the Prophet’, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him.

Incorrect Understanding of Who is a Wali of Allah

Unfortunately, some Muslims have taken this concept of Wali of Allah and used it to give their Sheikh’s a kind of demi-god status, considering them higher than the Prophets, and assuming that no faults can be attributed to them. They believe them to be so near to Allah that they should ask the Wali for help instead of Allah. May Allah protect us from this type of shirk, or associating partners with Allah, all praises and glory be to Him.

Mutual Animosity

The words ‘whoever opposes…‘ are in the reciprocal form, meaning that the enmity if from both sides. We may ask why a wali would have animosity towards others when they should be forgiving and patient? We should remember that an auliyaa of Allah loves and hates for the sake of Allah not from their own desires. This animosity may be between the auliyaa who are the people of the sunnah, and the innovators, or between the auliyaa and those are sinning. There there will be a mutual dislike for the actions of the other in each of these cases. What is referred to in this hadith is a warning to those who dislike the auliyaa of Allah or oppose them simply because they implement and follow the law of Allah, all praises and glory be to Him. The enmity referred to does not apply to worldly disputes or disagreements. This hadith tells us that if someone opposes a wali of Allah simply for obeying Allah, then Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, has declared war on them, and we seek refuge with Allah from that.

“My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more beloved to Me than the religious duties that I have imposed upon him.”

After describing how no one should oppose His devoted servants, Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, goes on to describe the characteristics of a devoted servant. They are those who strive to get closer to Allah through performing deeds that are pleasing to Him, with pure sincerity. In this part of the hadith, Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, describes how His servant draws near to Him through their performance of the obligatory duties, namely the five pillars of Islam. A person in this category would also avoid what is forbidden as this is also a type of obligation from Allah. These people are known as the ‘companions of the right hand’ that Allah speaks about in the Qur’an (see Surah al Waaqiah:38). It is part of Allah’s immense mercy that the deeds that are obligatory upon us are also those that draw us closer to Him, the Praised, the Glorious.

Many people do not seem to realise that the obligatory duties are for a believers own benefit. Allah tells us: “Verily the prayers restrain one from evil and lewdity” (Surah al-Ankaboot:45) “But prostrate yourself and draw near (unto Allah)” (Surah al-Alaq:19) “O you who believe, fasting has been prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you in order that you may attain God-consciousness (taqwa)” (Surah al-Baqarah:183) “Take alms from their wealth in order to purify them and sanctify them by that” (Surah al-Taubah:103)

All of the obligatory deeds serve to purify us and draw us closer to Allah, all praises and glory be to Him.  They are like the root of a tree and voluntary deeds are like its branches. If the believer first fulfils the foundations, they are demonstrating their willingness to submit to Allah, and this in turn earns His approval. This commitment grows and spreads to the performance of voluntary deeds as a way of further pleasing  Allah. Obligatory deeds are also deeds of the heart. The heart must have a pure, sincere intention, free of envy and pride and other ills, in order for the action to be acceptable to Allah, all praises and glory be to Him. The servant of Allah therefore draws nearer to his Lord though purifying both their intention and action, and performing the obligatory duties for the sake of Allah alone.

“My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I love him.”

Allah’s servants draw near to Him by performing the duties that He, all praises and glory be to Him, has obligated us to perform. Those who strive even harder, and voluntarily perform extra good deeds, and protect themselves from acts that will earn Allah’s wrath, continue to draw nearer to Allah until He loves them. We can see in the example of human beings, that a person becomes beloved to another by doing more than is required to assist them. If a person, for example, returns something that he borrowed from another, but also gives a gift as thanks, that will make him beloved in the eyes of the one that lent to him. This hadith shows us that this works in the same way in the case of Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, His love for us grows as we strive harder to please Him.

There is ample evidence to indicate that a servant of Allah must also strive to stay away from what is forbidden (haraam) as well as what is disliked (makrooh). The Prophet* said: “Leave that which makes you doubt for that which does not make you doubt” (Ahmad)  “Place between you and the forbidden acts a covering [or barrier] of permissible acts.” (Recorded in ibn Habbaan)  ‘That which is lawful is clear, and that which is unlawful is clear, and between the two of them are doubtful [or ambiguous] matters about which not many people are knowledgeable. Thus, he who avoids these doubtful matters certainly clears himself in regard to his religion and honour. But he who falls into the doubtful matters falls into that which is unlawful, like a shepherd who pastures around a sanctuary, all but grazing therein. Verily every king has a sanctuary and Allah’s sanctuary is His prohibitions. In the body there is a morsel of flesh which, if it be sound, all of the body is sound and which, if it be diseased, all of the body is diseased. This part of the body is the heart.” (Recorded in Bukhari and Muslim)

Unfortunately, many Muslims consider the ‘legal’ definition of makrooh (a disliked act) which states that it is an act that the person will be rewarded for avoiding and will not be punished for committing, and therefore consider it ‘permissible’ to engage in such acts. But those who strive to be nearer to Allah, look beyond this definition and consider the act from the point of view of the value of the act in the sight of Allah, all praises and glory be to Him. When we consider that Allah, ‘dislikes’ the act, would we want to be one of those who perform it? Rather we should strive to stay away from such acts, even though they are not strictly forbidden. As we can see from the hadith cited above, when a person strays into performing dislikes acts, they come nearer to committing forbidden acts. If they should then slip into what in unlawful, they will fall into performing deeds that are hated by Allah.

An important aspect of performing voluntary deeds that many people neglect, is that they also make up for shortcomings in the obligatory deeds. If we ask ourselves about the quality of performance of our obligatory prayers, how many of us could say that we have no shortcomings that need to be made up? The Prophet* said: “The first deeds for which the slave of Allah will be held accountable for on the Day of Judgement will be his prayers. If they are in order, he will have prospered and been successful. But if they are wanting, he will have failed and been a loser. If there is some shortcoming in his obligatory, the Lord will say, ‘See if My slave has any voluntary prayers with which may be completed that which was wanting from the obligatory prayers’. Then the rest of his deeds will be judged in like fashion.” (Tirmidhi)

From this we can see why it is that those who perform the voluntary deeds receive the love of Allah, both in this life and the Hereafter. These are the people that Allah is describing in this part of the hadith. The Prophet* said: “If Allah loves a slave, He announces to Gabriel, ‘Verily Allah loves so and so, so love him.’ The Gabriel loves him and he announces to the inhabitants of the heavens ‘Verily Allah loves so and so, so love him’ Then the inhabitants of the heavens love him. And then he is granted the acceptance of the people of the earth.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

“And when I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, and his leg with which he walks. “

When we read this part of the hadith, the first question that comes to mind is, ‘What does it mean that Allah would become a person’s hearing etc?’. The scholars have differed in their interpretation of this phrase. The majority agree that this is an allegorical reference to Allah’s support for His wali. When the wali sincerely strives to get closer to Allah by performing obligatory and voluntary deeds, they will be raised in rank from imaan (faith) to ihsaan (goodness). Then they will able to worship Allah as if they see Him, and look at the world knowing that He sees them, turning to Him in their hearts and fearing Him such that they dare not disobey Him. Their hearts are filled with the greatness of Allah and there is no room for anything else. Their own desires are abandoned in favour of Allah’s. They look for Allah’s sake, see for His sake, hear for His sake, speak for Hi sake, and act for His sake.

Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, has described the people for whom He becomes their eyes, ears and so on, in the Qur’an. They are the type of people who do not even turn to the evil that they see. They are numb to the effects of other’s sins. This does not mean that they do not fulfill their duty of enjoining the good and forbidding the evil, but it means they would not be tempted by the evil around them. Allah says about them in the Qur’an: “And when they hear vanity, they withdraw from it and say: Unto us our works and unto you your works. Peace be unto you. We desire not the ignorant.” (al-Qasas:55)  “The faithful slaves of the Beneficent are those who walk on the earth modestly and when the foolish ones address them answer: Peace” (al-Furqaan:63)  This is the real essence of pure tawhid, the meaning of la ilaaha illa-llaah, when a person devotes all of their love, hope, fear and obedience to Allah alone. We love what Allah loves and hate what He hates, all praises and glory be to Him. Sins only occur when our own desires love something that Allah hates or dislike something that Allah loves, even if only for a short period of time. If a person gives into their own desires then this is actually a type of deficiency in their tawhid.

Purification of the Soul According to the Qur’an and Sunnah

This hadith describes how a person becomes beloved to Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, by purifying ourselves and our souls. It is through purifying ourselves that we draw closer to Allah, all praises and glory be to Him. As Allah tells us in the Qur’an: “The Day [of Judgement] whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, except him who comes to Allah with a clean, sound heart.” (al-Shuaraa:88-89) The purification of the soul is one of the main reasons why the Prophet* was sent. Allah tells us: “He it is who sent among the unlettered ones a messenger from among themselves, reciting to them His verses, purifying them, and teaching them the Book and the Sunnah. And, verily, they had been in manifest error.” (Al-Jummuah:2)

Since the Prophet* was sent to purify the souls of the people, there can be no question that his method of purification of the soul is the method that is approved by Allah and is pleasing to Him, all praises and glory be to Him. This path is clear and easy to follow:

1) We must first purify our beliefs and cleanse ourselves of any shirk or associating partners with Allah.

2) We must strive to become beloved to Allah by performing deeds that are obligatory upon us.

3) We should strive to perform extra voluntary good deeds which will make us even more beloved to Allah.

This is the correct path for purification as outlined in the Qur’an and Sunnah. It is a path that does not necessarily take a long amount of time or involve any passing through levels or stages. A person could become an auliyaa of Allah very quickly if they have sincerity and devotion to Allah. Anyone who claims that one can draw closer to Allah by means other than this, such as through other practices or the assistance of a pious person, is no different to the idol worshippers who claimed they were getting closer to Allah by worshipping their idols. The evidence clearly contradicts them.

Purification of the Soul According to the Sufis

Historically and contemporarily speaking, it has been the Sufis who claim to follow the path of purification. This hadith provides one of the main sources by which their claims can be evaluated in that it shows us the path for how one can become beloved to Allah. For the Sufis, the path to become a wali of Allah is a long and arduous journey. One must do spiritual exercises and through many stages to get to this level. As detailed in Zarabozo’s commentary on this hadith, the Sufi’s begin their path with fulfilling obligatory deeds, but when they move to the ‘second level’, it is recommended that the person only perform obligatory deeds and spend the rest of the time on other exercises. The path also contains practices that are not contained in the Qur’an and Sunnah such as zuhd (renunciation of the world), special types of rhyming dhikr, listening to music and dancing. After all of these, one finally ‘witnesses’ Allah, which is for them the essence of being a wali. In reality, this is a heretical path that has no basis in the Qur’an and Sunnah. It has as its goal the ‘witnessing of Allah’, whereas the purification according to the Qur’an and Sunnah seeks only to make a servant the best servant that they can be, nothing more or different to that.

Some Sufis use this hadith to try and prove their belief in fanaa (annihilation and loss of oneself in God), hulool (incarnation in God) and ittihaad (union with Allah). They argue that this hadith states that Allah is becoming one’s vision, hearing and so forth, so the person must be becoming one with Allah. In reality though, this hadith is an argument against that concept, because it makes the distinction between the Creator Allah and the created wali. Allah makes it clear that he opposes those who oppose His auliyaa, hence they are clearly separate from Him and He Protects them. The remainder of the hadith also shows us that the wali comes to Allah to ask of Him – Why would they need to do that if they had become one with Him? We can see from this that no matter how pious the wali of Allah becomes, they are still only human beings and dependent on Him, the Sublime the Glorious.

“Were he to ask of Me, I would surely give him; and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it.”

Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, is able to grant His servant anything that He wishes, without any need of him having to ask for it. But it is through being asked, and granting the request, that Allah becomes more beloved to the slave and the slave becomes even more beloved to Allah. This hadith shows us that if a person performs the obligatory deeds and further voluntary good deeds, and stays away from what is forbidden (haraam) and disliked (makrooh), this person will be honoured with a special place with respect to Allah. Allah’s love will cover them, such that if they ask Him, He will grant their request, and if they were to seek refuge in Him, He would grant them refuge and respite. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him said: “There are from the slaves of Allah people who, if they were to make an oath upon Allah, He would certainly fulfill it.” (Bukhari)

It is interesting to note that many early Muslims  often preferred to patiently bear the afflictions of this world, in the hope that they would receive the reward of Allah in the Hereafter. One of the Companions of the Prophet* who was promised Paradise, Saad ibn Abu Waqaas, lost his sight later in his life. He was told by his friends that he should ask Allah to return it. His reply was, “The decree of Allah is more beloved to me than my eyesight.” As some of the early scholars have noted, Allah knows what is best for His slaves. Sometimes a believer will ask for something while Allah knows that what they ask for is not what is best for them. As a result, Allah may not answer the supplication directly, but rather He may give the believer something that is better for them in both this life and the Hereafter. The Prophet* told us: “There is no Muslim who supplicates Allah with a supplication that does not contain anything sinful or ask for the ties of kinship to be broken, save that Allah gives him one of three things: either he will give him what he asks for soon, or He will delay it for him for the Hereafter or he will keep a similar evil away from him.” (Ahmad)

The Benefits of Asking Allah

One might ask, ‘What is the benefit of asking Allah when He already knows what is in our hearts and what is best for us?’ When Allah gives the person what they have asked for, and the person realises that Allah has responded to their supplication, this brings them joy and a deeper faith, which encourages them to do more good deeds in order to draw closer to Allah. In addition, supplication is one of the greatest forms of worship, and all its benefits would be lost to the person if they were not to make dua. Finally, the wali of Allah is freeing themselves from the illusion of self-sufficiency. Everything is in Allah’s hands, we are completely dependent on Him for everything and we need to remind ourselves of this. No matter what level of closeness to Allah one reaches, we will always be reliant on Him.

Children's Feedback

Place of parents in Islam and our lives

26 February2012
Khaibar Falls (3);Intentions, Actions and Rewards

Seerah of Muhammed*
*: May the Peace, Blessings and Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

The use of catapults in warfare

Last week we briefly mentioned how the Muslim Army found a quantity of weapons stored in cellars, including some engines of war. These were brought out to be used in other assaults, a ballista (catapults) for hurling rocks and two testudos for bringing men up to the walls beneath an impregnable roof so that they could breach an entrance; thanks to these engines, the easier fortresses fell one by one. The first powerful resistance they encountered was at a stronghold named Na'im, Here the garrison came out in great force, and on that day every attack made by the Muslims was repulsed.

Shortly after this battle, the Jews moved to ’Abi Castle and barricaded themselves inside. The same events recurred; the Muslims besieged the new site for three days and then the great Muslim hero Abu Dujanah Sammak bin Kharshah Al-Ansari — of the red ribbon — led the Muslim army and broke into the castle, conducted fierce military operations within and forced the remaining Jews to flee for their lives into another fort, An-Nizar. An-Nizar was the most powerful fort, and the Jews came to the established conviction that it was too immune to be stormed, so they deemed it a safe place for their children and women. The Muslims, however, were not dismayed but dragged on the siege, but because standing at a commanding top, the fort was impregnable. The Jews inside were too cowardly to meet the Muslims in open fight but rather hurled a shower of arrows and stones on the attackers. Considering this situation, the Prophet* ordered that rams be used and these proved effective and caused cracks in the ramparts providing an easy access into the heart of the fort, where the Jews were put to rout and fled in all directions leaving behind their women and children. With these series of military victories, the first division of Khaibar was totally reduced, and the Jews in the other minor fortresses evacuated them and fled to the second division.

The catapult is a war machine that is used to demolish walls behind which the enemies fortify themselves. The Prophet (peace be upon him) used it to throw stones at those walls, but he most certainly did not employ snakes or fire. The intended targets were the fortifications and the enemy combatants who were fighting from their stations upon the fortifications and from directly behind them. The targets intended by the catapults were clearly not civilians, women, or children, though there was a possibility under those circumstances that some civilians could have been injured unintentionally. This, however, is quite different than intentionally attacking civilian targets, women, and children. Any direct attack against such people is categorically unlawful and had been expressly prohibited by the Prophet*. During the battles of those days a catapult served the same purpose as artillery serves in modern warfare.

Modern Western armies claim to fight with ‘Smart Weapons’ but many of these lead to the killing of innocent people – including aerial bombing, drone attacks, army tank fire, cluster munitions. Indeed, the greatest terror attacks in history (Nagasaki & Hiroshima atomic bombs) were clearly aimed to kill civilians and not just military persons. Hence, Muslims should be aware of the rules of warfare and other countries should not preach justice and fairness when they clearly do not care about innocents dying on or near a battlefield, or even far away from a battlefield (as with current US policy).

The little girl and the Prophet

A brief story about how a young girl, along with other female helpers who wanted to take care of the wounded during the battle, was sat with the Prophet* on his camel. When they dismounted the Prophet* noticed that she was curled up by the foot of the camel and he also saw some blood stain on the saddle. He* enquired whether this was the first time she had her menses and she said it was and he reassured her, and told her to wash the stain with salt and water – which she did. After the battle and the distribution of the spoils of war, the Prophet* sought her out by name and personally put a necklace around her neck. She later said that she never parted with the necklace and wrote in her will that when she died, as a sign of respect for the Prophet*, she wanted her body to be washed with water mixed with salt.

Khaibar falls

The last of the strongholds to make any resistance was Qamus. This belonged to the family of Kinanah, one of the richest and most powerful clans of the Bani Nadir. Some of them had long lived in Khaibar whereas others of the family, including Kinanah himself, had recently settled there after they had been exiled from Yathrib. It was they especially who had been counting on the help of Ghatafan, whose failure to keep their promise had been an unnerving disappointment for them; and they were still further demoralised by the bad news brought by all those fugitives who had now crowded into Qamus. They none the less held out for fourteen days; then Kinanah sent word that he wished to come to terms with the Prophet, who said he was willing to negotiate.

Ibn Abi Al-Huqaiq was despatched to the Messenger of Allah* to negotiate the surrender treaty. The Prophet* agreed to spare their lives on condition they evacuate Khaibar and the adjacent land, leaving whatever gold and silver they had in their possession. However, he stipulated that he would disavow any commitment if they concealed anything. So the chieftain came down from the fortress with others of his family; and it was agreed that none of the garrison should be put to death or made captive -neither they nor their families -on condition that they should leave Khaibar and that all their possessions should become the property of the victors. The Prophet then added a further clause, namely that his obligation to spare their lives and let them go free should be annulled with regard to anyone who might try to conceal any of his possessions. Kinanah and the others agreed to this; and the Prophet called on Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Ali and Zubayr and ten of the Jews to witness the agreement.

After the fall of Qamus the two remaining fortresses surrendered on the same terms. Then the Jews of Khaibar consulted together, and sent a deputation to the Prophet, suggesting that since they were skilled in the management of their farms and their orchards he should allow them to remain in their homes, and they would pay him a yearly rent of half the produce. To this the Prophet agreed; but he stipulated that if in the future he decided to banish them they must go.

Thus, the Muslims had a decisive victory. The Jews lost ninety-three (93) men while the loss on the Muslim side was only nineteen (19) men.

Stealing from the Spoils of War

Abu Hurayra said, "We went out with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in the yea rof Khaybar. We did not capture any gold or silver except for personal effects, clothes, and baggage. Rifaa ibn Zayd presented a black slave boy to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, whose name was Midam. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, made for Wadi'l-Qura, and when he arrived there, Midam was unsaddling the camel of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, when a stray arrow struck and killed him. The people said, Praise be to Allah! The Garden!' The Messenger of Allah said, 'No! By He in whose hand my self is! The cloak which he took from the spoils on the Day of Khaybar before they were distributed will blaze with fire on him.' When the people heard that, a man brought a sandal-strap or two sandal-straps to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'A sandal-strap or two sandal-straps of fire!' "

Story of Kinanah

Shortly afterwards, the forts were handed over to the Muslims and all Khaibar was reduced and brought under the sway of Islam. This treaty notwithstanding, Abi Al-Huqaiq’s two sons concealed a leather bag full of jewels, and money belonging to Huyai bin Al-Akhtab, who carried it with him when Banu Nadir had been banished. But it soon became clear to both Jews and Muslims that much wealth was being hidden. Where was the famed treasure of the Bani Nadir which they had brought with them from Medina, and which they had so lavishly displayed in their procession through its streets? The Prophet questioned Kinanah about this, and he replied that since their arrival in Khaibar the treasure had all been sold to pay for more arms and armour and fortifications. The Jews knew that he was lying, and were all the more apprehensive because many of them now believed themselves to be in the presence of a Prophet. They held that they had no need to follow him, because he had not been sent to them; but it would be clearly vain to try to deceive him. One of them, who had Kinanah's welfare at heart, went to him and begged him to hide nothing, for if he did the Prophet would certainly be informed of it. Kinanah angrily rebuked him; but within less than a day the treasure was discovered, and Kinanah was put to death together with a cousin of his who was found to be privy to the concealment. Their families were made captive. Abi Al-Huqaiq’s two sons were killed in recompense for breaching the covenant, and Safiyah, Huyai’s daughter was taken as a captive.

Zainab tries to poison the Prophet*

When all the terms had been agreed upon, and when the victorious army had rested, the widowed wife of Sallam ibn Mishkam roasted a lamb and poisoned every part of it with a deadly poison which she concentrated especially in the shoulders, having learnt on inquiry that the Prophet preferred the shoulder of lamb to the other joints. Then she brought it to the camp and set it before him, whereupon he thanked her and invited those of his Companions who were present to sup with him. It happened on this occasion that seated next to the Prophet was a Khazrajite named Bishr, the son of that Bara' who had led the Muslims of Yathrib to the Second 'Aqabah and who had been the first ever to pray the ritual prayer in the direction of Mecca. When the Prophet took a mouthful of lamb, Bishr did the same and swallowed it, but the Prophet spat out what was in his mouth, saying to the others: "Hold off your hands! This shoulder proclaimeth unto me that it is poisoned." He sent for the woman and asked her if she had poisoned the joint. "Who told thee?" she asked. "The shoulder itself," said the Prophet. "What made thee do it?" "Well thou knowest," she said, "what thou hast done unto my people; and thou hast slain my father and mine uncle and my husband. So I told myself: 'If he be a king, I shall be well quit of him; and if he be a Prophet he will be informed of the poison.' " The Prophet none the less pardoned the woman. The face of Bishr was already ashen pale, and he died shortly afterwards. Then it is narrated in some hadith that the lady was killed because of Bishr’s death.

Nawawi's Forty Hadith

Hadith 37: Intentions, Actions and Rewards

“… from among the sayings he relates from His Lord (glorified and exalted be He)”

This statement shows us that this is a qudsi hadith, in which the Prophet, peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, directly related words of Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, that were not to be contained in the Qur’an.

 ”Verily, Allah recorded the good deeds and the evil deeds.”

Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, has already recorded and decreed which deeds are deserving of reward and which are deserving of punishment. In this narration of the hadith the wording is “Allah recorded” implying that Allah Himself recorded these things. In other narrations it states that the angels record the deeds at the command of Allah, which is the more common understanding, supported by other hadith.  These two understandings have been reconciled by some scholars who stated that the recording by Allah implies two matters. One is the recording of the good and bad deeds by Allah in the Preserved Tablet (al-Lauh al-Mahfoodh), which took place before any of the deeds were actually performed, according to Allah’s knowledge of when they will occur. The second recording is when the person actually performs the deeds, at which time they are recorded by the angels according to Allah’s justice and mercy. Imam at-Tabari said that in this hadith is evidence for the statement that the Two Recording Angels, [assigned to each person to write down the good and bad deeds of that person], write down not just the actions but also what the person intends to do of good or evil, and they know what he resolves to do in his heart. Other scholars think that the Two Angels only write down that which is apparent from the outward actions of the person, or from what they hear him say. It may be that the  Two Angels know all that which a person intends in his heart, and it is conceivable that Allah has granted for them a means to attain this knowledge [which is from the Knowledge of the Ghayb or Unseen], just as He has granted a means to many of the Prophets to attain knowledge of many things from the Unseen. However, we should not argue about these 2 possibilities as this is part of the Knowledge of the Unseen. The fact that all our good and bad deeds are recorded should be a reminder to us that anything we do and say should not be taken lightly. Nothing escapes Allah’s knowledge, and everything will be recorded as either a good or bad deed. This should cause us to pause before we act and ask ourselves, ‘Will this be recorded for me as a good deed or an evil deed?’ Call yourself to account before you are called to account.

“Then He clarified how [that recording should occur:] whoever decided to do a good deed but he did not do it, Allah records it with Him as a complete good deed.”

We can see from this hadith that Allah  has divided deeds into four categories: deciding to do good deeds and then not doing them, doing good deeds, deciding to do evil deeds and then not doing them and doing evil deeds.

1. The first concept to understand is al-haajis, which is a fleeting thought that occurs in one’s mind but does not stay. This kind of thought can occur to anyone and its content may be quite evil, but we are not held accountable for this. This hadith is not referring to this type of thought.

2. The second concept to understand is al-khaatir, which is a thought that comes into one’s mind, that a person gives some thought or consideration to, but then dismisses. This thought can also be quite evil, coming either from shaitan or one’s own soul, but once it has passed the person does not give anymore consideration to it. We are not held responsible for this type of thought either.

3. The third concept is ‘the speech of a person to himself’ and this goes beyond the other levels to contemplate whether or not we should actually perform this action. If we do not act on this then we will not be held responsible for this thought.

By the mercy of Allah we are not held accountable for any of the above listed type of thoughts. The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, advised us: “Verily, Allah has overlooked for [the members of] my nation what their souls think about as long as they do not act on it or speak about it.” (Recorded in al-Bukhari and Muslim)  Although we are not held accountable, if evil thoughts do come to our minds we should refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan.

4. The next level is a decision or al-hamm, and that is what this portion of the hadith is referring to. This is where the heart is determined to do a specific act. It is a decision that is just short of a complete resolution to act. It is this type of intention that this hadith is referring to. So whoever decides in their heart, and becomes determined to do a good deed, but they are unable to do it, will have a reward with Allah that is equal to a complete good deed. This determination in the heart, it should be noted is different to having a fleeting thought, or lightly contemplating something. This special reward is reserved for those who had resolved in their hearts to do a good deed, for the sake of Allah, but were unable to do it. And Allah knows best what is in the hearts.

“And if he decided to do it and actually did it, Allah records it with Him as ten good deeds up to seven hundred up to many times over.”

SubhanAllah, such is the mercy of Allah that when we actually do a good deed, He not only rewards us for that, but He increases our reward at least ten times! Allah tells us in the Qur’an: “Whoever brings a good deed shall have ten times the like thereof” (Surah al-Anaam:160) How easy Allah makes it for us to make our scale of good deeds heavy on the Day of Judgement, all praises and glory be to Him. The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, tells us in this part of the hadith, that some good deeds could actually receive up to seven hundred times the reward of the deed. We should immediately ask ourselves, what is it that secures a reward as great as seven hundred times? One deed that is specifically multiplied seven hundred fold, is the act of giving wealth for the sake of Allah. Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, says in the Qur’an: “The likeness of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah is as that of a grain [of corn]. It grows seven ears and each ear has a hundred grains. Allah gives manifold increase to whom He wills. And Allah is all-sufficient for His creatures’ needs, All-Knowing” (Surah al-Baqarah:261) There is also the following example from the hadith: “On the authority of Abu Masood al-Ansaari who said: A man came with a camel and its reigns, saying, “This is for the sake of Allah.” The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “For you, on the Day of Resurrection, will be seven hundred camels, all of them with their reigns.” (Recorded in Muslim)  We also have hadith that tell us that a deed may be rewarded so many times over that the total amount is known only to Allah. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Every good deed that a human performs is multiplied ten times up to seven hundred. And Allah has said, ‘Except for the fast for it is done for My sake and I shall reward it [even more]. The person leaves his desires and food for My sake…” (Recorded in al-Bukhari and Muslim)

Patience and perseverance is another deed that is rewarded by an amount that is known only to Allah. Allah says in the Qur’an: “Only those who are patient shall receive their reward in full without measure.” (Surah al-Zumar:10) In fact, the same deed may be performed by two different people and the reward for each of them may be totally different. We can see from this, that the amount of multiple reward is based on a number of factors, including the excellence of one’s Islam, one’s sincerity and purity in action, the excellence of the deed itself and the need for the deed done. In this way even a small deed may secure a large reward with Allah.

“If he decided to do an evil deed but he did not do it, Allah records it with Him as one complete good deed.”

If a person considers doing an evil deed, but fears Allah and changes their mind, a full good deed is recorded for them. From this we can see that restraining oneself from evil for the sake of Allah, is a good deed and deserves to be rewarded as such. If a person is able to make restraint for the sake of Allah a part of their character, Allah promises they be from among the inhabitants of Paradise: “But as for him who feared standing before his Lord and restrained himself from impure evil desires and lusts, verily, Paradise will be his abode,” (Surah al-Naaziaat:40-41)  It may be the case that someone decides not to perform an evil deed, simply out of fear of what others may think of them. In this case some scholars say that the person may be held accountable for this intention, because they put the fear of men over fear of Allah, and Allah knows best. If a person decided to perform an evil deed and is prevented from doing so simply by circumstance, they will still be held accountable for this evil intention. The question arises – if a person decides to do a good deed and it is counted as a good deed, shouldn’t the one who decides to do an evil deed have it counted as an evil deed? The answer is that this is part of the blessings and mercy of Allah, all praises and glory be to Him. Allah records the evil deeds of people and them responsible for it as an act of justice on His part. And He forgives other deeds and disregards the decision to do evil as an act of His mercy. We can see the wisdom behind this mercy when we consider that if a person knows they will be held accountable just for the evil thought, there is not much to stop them from actually committing the sin. But if that person restrains themselves, no evil deed will be recorded for them, in fact there is the incentive of achieving a good deed. Then, if they actually go forward and do the good deed, it will be multiplied for them many times. And Allah is the most Just, full of Mercy.

1. The one who decides or just has the intention to do the evil act but then he refrains from doing it because of his fear of the people or does not like to be blamed by them. Some scholars say this person will be punished.

 2. The person decides to do the evil act but was not able to perform it because of external factors (qadr). For example, a person decides to break into a house to steal, but he does not succeed and runs away because a police car is driving around the area. Some scholars say that he will be punished though he did not steal.

 3. Someone who decides and has the intention to do the evil act, makes the effort but is not able to perform it because of his lack of strength or capabilities. Scholars say this person will be punished. For instance, if two Muslims fight each other with the intention of killing each other, as stated in the well-known hadith, both the killer and the one who has been killed will be in the Hellfire. The Companions asked: "O Messenger of Allah, this is the killer - what about the poor person who has been killed?" The Prophet*, said he had the intention to kill his friend or brother but was not able to because he was killed himself.

 4. Someone has the intention to do an evil act and talks to others about it but does not do it. Some scholars say that he will be punished just because of his bad intention. Other scholars say he will not be punished unless the sin itself is the impermissible kind of speech like slander, backbiting or lying.

”If he decided to do it and he actually did it, Allah records it as one evil deed.”

Allah is not unjust to any of His creation. If a person commits an evil deed, it is recorded as one bad deed without any multiplication. Allah, all praises and glory be to Him, tells us in the Qur’an: “Whoever brings an evil deed shall have only the recompense of the like thereof, and they will not be wronged.” (Surah al-Anaam:160) From above, that when a person intends to do a good deed, this is in itself considered a good deed, and if they then go on to perform the deed, the reward is multiplied a minimum of ten times. If a person intends to do an evil deed, but does not do it, a good deed is recorded for them. If they actually perform an evil deed, it is only counted as one evil deed with no multiplication. We should note though that evil deeds do differ in their weight and gravity. So whilst they are only counted as one evil deed, some of these deeds may be graver than others. Very grave sins include destructive sins such as adultery, murder, shirk and so forth. The time at which the sin is committed may contribute to the gravity, such as wrongdoing committed during the Inviolable Months, being worse than that committed at other times. The sanctity of the place where the wrongdoing was committed also increases the gravity of the sin. Allah says of sins committed in the Inviolable Mosque: “And whoever inclines to evil therein or to do wrong, him We shall cause to taste a painful torment” (Surah al-Hajj:26)

The nobility of the person, or the fact that they are taken as an example can also make the sin graver. Allah says: “O wives of the Prophet! Whoever of you commits an open illegal sexual intercourse, the torment for her will be doubled. And that is easy for Allah.” (Surah Al Ahzaab:30)

Many scholars have also noted that if a person shows pleasure at having committed a sin the enormity of the sin would be considered greater. The sin is also made greater by telling others about what you have done. The Prophet, peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, said: “All of my Nation are to be forgiven except those who publicise their sins. Publicising the sins includes a person doing something during the night and then in the morning, although Allah had kept that act concealed for him, he says, ‘O so and so, last night I did such and such’. He spent the whole night being concealed by his Lord and in the morning he uncovered what Allah had kept concealed for him.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

The enormity of the sin is also greater when there is little excuse for the person to commit the sin. This means that the act was not committed by a person who was overcome by their desires. The Prophet, peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, said: “There are three [categories of people] to whom Allah will not speak [any pleasing words], for whom Allah will not cleanse of their sins and at whom Allah will not look and they shall have a grievous punishment. [They are] an old man who commits illegal sexual intercourse, a lying king and an arrogant impoverished person.” (Recorded by Muslim)

If we consider how merciful Allah is with recompensing our deeds, we will see that the only ones who are destroyed are those who destroy themselves willingly. If a person restrains themselves and then does a good deed, they will find their reward multiplied by Allah. And Allah is the Most Just, the Most Kind.

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13 March 2011

13 March 2011

Seerah of Muhammed*
*: May the Peace, Blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

The Muslims are winning and the Quraish flee

Ibn Ishaq said: "Then Allah sent down His Help unto the Muslims and verified His Promise to them. They chased the idolaters and evacuated them from their camp. No doubt it was a certain defeat." In a version by ‘Abdullah bin Az- Zubair that his father had said: "By Allah, I was watching the servants of Hind bint ‘Utbah and her women friends fleeing with their garments gathered up. No one was there to prevent us from capturing them." Al- Bara’ bin ‘Azib said: "When we fought them, they fled, and their women could be seen fleeing in the mountains with their anklets and legs revealed." The Muslims pursued the enemies putting them to sword and collecting the spoils.

War activities went on and on fiercely with the Muslims in full command of the whole

military developments until the idolaters finally staggered and retreated, leaving all motives of alleged pride, and affected dignity in oblivion, and their standard trodden by the feet of the fighters with none ever courageous enough to approach it.

The Archers’ Fatal Mistake

While the small army of Islam were recording the second absolute and clear victory over the Meccans the majority of the archers on the mountainside committed a fatal mistake that turned the whole situation upside down, and constituted a source of heavy losses amongst the Muslims. Previously, the archers had received positive orders to their position whatever the course of the main engagement. In spite of those strict orders, and their leader’s — ‘Abdullah bin Jubair — warning, forty archers deserted their posts, enticed by the too soon roar of victory as well as worldly avarice for the spoils of war. The others, however, nine in number and ‘Abdullah, their leader, decided to abide by the Prophet’s* order and stay where they were until they were given leave or killed to the last. Consequently the cleft was left inadequately defended .

The shrewd Khalid bin Al-Waleed seized this golden opportunity to turn swiftly round to the rear of the Muslim army and encompass them. Exterminating Ibn Jubair and his group, they fell promptly upon the rear of the Muslims and his horsemen uttered a shout that signalled the new military developments. The polytheists returned once again to counterattack the Muslims. An idolist woman — called ‘Umra bint ‘Alqama Al-Harithiyah — rushed to the lying-on-earth standard, picked it up and hoisted it. The idolaters gathered together around the standard and called out unto one another till they encircled the Muslims and stoodfast to fight again.

Tide turns against the Muslims

The Muslims got entrapped between two parts of the enemy. The Messenger of Allah* was then among a small group of fighters — nine in number at the rear of the army, watching the engagement and braving the Muslim fighters. Khalid and his men took him by utter surprise, and obliged him to follow either of two options:

a. To flee for his life and abandon his army to its doomed end, or

b. To take action at the risk of his life, rally the ranks of the Muslims again and work their way through the hills of Uhud towards the encompassed army.

The genius of the Messenger of Allah*, his peerless and matchless courage made him opt for the second course. He raised his voice calling out unto his Companions: "Slaves of Allah." He did that though he knew that his loud voice would be heard by the idolaters before it was heard by the Muslims. He called out unto them risking his life in this delicate situation. The idolaters, indeed, recognized him and reached his position even before the other Muslims could do so.

The encompassment of the Muslims revealed three categories of people: The first group were those who were only interested in themselves and they went so mad that they fled. They left the battlefield and did not know what happened to the others.

Some of this group fled as far as Medina. Some others went up the mountain. The second Muslim group were those who returned to the battle, but mixed with the idolaters in such a way that they could not recognize one another. Consequently some of them were killed by mistake. ‘Aishah [R] said: "When it was Uhud Battle, the idolaters were utterly defeated. Satan then called out: ‘O slaves of Allah. Beware the rear (i.e. the enemy is approaching from behind)’. So those who were at the front turned back and fought the ones who were behind." Then Hudhaifah caught sight of his father ‘Al-Yaman’ about to be killed by other Muslims. So he said: "O servants of Allah! Beware! This is my father. This is my father." ‘Aishah [R] said: "But they did not part with him till he was killed." Hudhaifah then said: "May Allah forgive you." And ‘Urwa said: "By Allah, from that time on Hudhaifah has always been blessed and wealthy till he died."

At this awkward time they heard someone calling: "Muhammad is killed." This news made them even more bewildered and almost out of sense. Their morale broke down, or almost did in a great number of individuals. Some of them stopped fighting, slackened, and cast down their weapons. Others thought of getting in touch with ‘Abdullah bin Ubai — the head of the hypocrites — and seeking his assistance to fetch them a security pledge from Abu Sufyan.

An Emigrant passed by a Helper who was besmeared by blood. He said: "O fellow! Have you heard of Muhammad*’s murder?" The Helper answered: "If Muhammad* were killed, then he must have completed the delivery of the Message. So fight in defence of your religion!"

Ansar Defend the Prophet

As those groups of Muslims were receiving the blows of the idolaters and resisting instantly, the fight flared up around the Messenger of Allah*, who had only nine people around him. We have already mentioned that when the idolaters started their encompassment there were only nine persons around the Messenger of Allah*; and that as soon as he called out unto the Muslims: "Come on! I am the Messenger of Allah*," the idolaters heard his voice and recognized him. So they turned back and attacked him with all their power before any of his Companions ran to his aid.

A violent raging struggle broke out between the nine Muslims and the idolaters during which peerless sort of love, self-sacrifice, bravery and heroism were revealed. Muslim, on the authority of Anas bin Malik narrated that the Messenger of Allah* along with seven Helpers and two Emigrants, was confined to a trap when the idolaters attacked him. The Messenger of Allah* then said: " He who pushes back those idolaters, will be housed in Paradise." or "He will be my Companion in Paradise." One of the Helpers stepped forward and fought the idolaters in defence of the Prophet* till he was killed. Then they attacked the Messenger* again. The same process was repeated again and again till all the seven Helpers were killed. Then the Messenger of Allah* said to his two Quraishite Companions: "We have not done justice to our Companions." The last of those seven Helpers was ‘Amara bin Yazeed bin As-Sakan, who kept on fighting till his wounds neutralized him and he fell dead.

Thabit bin Ad-Dahdah called unto his people saying: "O kinfolk of Helpers, if Muhammad* were killed, Allah is Everlasting and He never dies. Fight in defence of your Faith. Allah will help you and so you will be victorious." A group of Helpers joined him and all set out and attacked a battalion of Khalid’s horsemen. He kept on fighting till he and his friends were killed. With such boldness and encouragement, the Muslims soon recovered their spirits, came round to senses and desisted the idea of surrender or contacting the hypocrite ‘Abdullah bin Ubai. They took up arms and resumed the fight attempting to make way to the headquarters, particularly after the news of the Prophet*’s death had been falsified. The glad tidings nerved them, and helped them to manage quite successfully the break of the military blockade, and concentrate their forces in an immune place to resume a relentless and fierce fight against the polytheists. The third group of Muslims were those who cared for nothing except the Prophet*. At the head of them were notable Companions like Abu Bakr, ‘Umar bin Al- Khattab, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib and others, who hastened to protect the Prophet* through unrivalled devotion.

The Prophet* is injured

After the fall of Ibn Sakan, the Messenger of Allah* remained alone with only those two Quraishites. Abu ‘Uthman said: "At that time, there were none with the Prophet* except Talha bin ‘Ubaidullah and Sa‘d bin Abi Waqqas. That was a most awkward and dangerous hour for the Prophet*, but it was a golden opportunity for the idolaters who promptly took advantage of it. They concentrated their attack on the Prophet* and looked forward to killing him.

‘Utbah bin Abi Waqqas pelted him with stones. One of the stones fell on his face. His lower right incisor Ruba‘iya (i.e. the tooth that is between a canine and a front tooth) was injured. His lower lip was wounded. He was also attacked by ‘Abdullah bin Shihab Az-Zuhri who cleaved his forehead. ‘Abdullah bin Qami’a (Qami’a means ‘a humiliated woman’), who was an obstinate strong horseman, struck him violently on his shoulder with his sword; and that stroke hurt the Messenger of Allah* for over a month — though it was not strong enough to break his two armours. He dealt a heavy blow on his cheek. It was so strong that two rings of his iron-ringed helmet penetrated into his holy cheek. "Take this stroke from me, I am Ibn Qami’a." He said while striking the Messenger with his sword. The Messenger of Allah* replied — while he was wiping the blood flowing on his face: "I implore Allah to humiliate you." In Al-Bukhari it is stated his incisor broke, his head was cleaved, and that he started wiping the blood off it and saying: "(I wonder) how can people who cut the face of their Prophet* and break the incisor of his — he who calls them to worship Allah. How can such people thrive or be successful?"

It is quite certain that killing the Prophet* was their primary aim, but the two Mohajir — Sa‘d bin Abi Waqqas and Talha bin ‘Ubaidullah, who showed great and rare courage and fought so fiercely and boldly that — though they were only two — were able to stop the idolaters short of realizing their aim. They were of the best skillful Arab archers and kept on militating in defence of the Messenger of Allah* till the whole squad of idolaters was driven off him*.

The Messenger of Allah* emptied his quiver of arrows and said to Sa‘d bin Abi Waqqas: "Shoot, an arrow Sa‘d. May my father and mother be sacrified for you." The Prophet* had never gathered his parents except in the case of Sa‘d — a privilege granted to him for his efficiency.  Jabir said: "When the idolaters reached him, the Messenger of Allah* said: ‘Who will suffice us their evils (i.e. fight them back)?’ Talha said: ‘I will.’" Then Jabir mentioned the advance of the Helpers to fight and how they were killed one after the other. "When all the Helpers were killed, Talha proceeded forward to fight as much as the other eleven ones did till his hand was hurt and his fingers were cut off. So he said: ‘Be they cut off!’ The Prophet* said: ‘If you had said: In the Name of Allah, the angels would have raised you up before the people’s very eyes.’" Then he said: "Allah drove the idolaters off them." It is stated that Talha had sustained thirty- nine or thirty-five wounds, and his fingers (i.e. the forefinger and the one next to it — got paralyzed. The Prophet* then said about Talha: "He who desires to see a martyr walking on the ground, let him look at Talha bin ‘Ubaidullah."

All those events happened in no time. If the Prophet*’s elite Companions had realized the grave situation immediately, they would have rushed on the spot and would not have left him sustain these wounds. Unfortunately, they got there after the Messenger of Allah* had been wounded and six of the Helpers killed, the seventh was staggering under the brunt of wounds and desperately militating in defence of the Prophet*. However as soon as they arrived they encircled the Messenger with their bodies and weapons and were alert enough to prevent the enemies from reaching him. The first one who returned to give help, was his cavemate Abu Bakr As-Siddiq.

Abu Bakr had said: "When it was Uhud Day and at the time that the Prophet* was left behind, I was the first to go back and see him. Before him I saw a man fighting to shield him from the enemies. I said to myself: ‘I wish he were Talha. Let my father and mother be sacrificed for you. (O Allah) Let him be Talha! Let my parents be sacrificed for you!’ On the way, I was overtaken by Abu ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah, who was then moving as swiftly as a bird. We both rushed to dress the Prophet*’s wounds. There we found Talha suffering from serious wounds before the Messenger of Allah*. The Prophet* said: ‘See to your brother. His deed entitled him for an abode in Paradise.’ I noticed that two rings of the iron-ringed helmet had penetrated his cheek. So I set out to take them out; but Abu ‘Ubaidah demanded: ‘By Allah, O Abu Bakr — I beseech you, let me do it myself.’ Fearing to hurt the Prophet* he started pulling one of the two rings out very slowly and carefully with his mouth.

At those awkward moments of that day, a group of Muslim heroes gathered around the Prophet* forming a shield to protect him from the idolaters. Some of them were Abu Dujana, Mus‘ab bin ‘Umair, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib, Sahl bin Haneef, Malik bin — Sinan the father of Abu Sa‘îd Al-Khudri, Umm‘Amara, Nusaiba bint Ka‘b Al-Maziniya, Qatada bin An-Nu‘man, ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab, Hatib bin Abi Balta‘a and Abu Talha. The number of idolaters was steadily increasing; and their attacks, naturally, got severer. Their press had increased to an extent that the Messenger of Allah* fell into one of the holes dug and designed by Abu ‘Amir Al-Fasiq to be used as traps.

Hadith
Hadith 24 of Nawawi's 40 Hadith: (Hadith Qudsi)

It was relayed on the authority of Abu Dhar al-Ghifari that the Prophet* said, of what he related from his Lord, magnified and exhalted be He, Who said: "O My servants, I have made oppression unlawful for Me and unlawful for you, so do not commit oppression against one another. O My servants, all of you are liable to err except for those whom I guide on the right path, therefore seek guidance from Me so that I should direct you to the right path. O My servants, all of you are hungry (needy) except for those whom I feed, therefore seek food from Me so that I may feed you. O My servants, all of you are naked (need clothes) except for those whom I provide garments, therefore seek clothing from Me so that I should clothe you. O My servants, you sin by night and by day and I am there to pardon your sins, therefore seek forgiveness from Me so that I should grant you pardon. O My servants, you can neither do Me any harm nor can you do Me any good. O My servants, even if the first amongst you and the last amongst you and the whole human race of yours and that of Jinns become as pious as the most pious heart of any one amongst you, it will not add anything to My Power or Kingdom. O My servants, even if the first amongst you and the last amongst you and the whole human race of yours and that of Jinns become as wicked as the most wicked heart of anyone amongst you, it will not decrease anything from My Power or Kingdom. O My servants, even if the first amongst you and the last amongst you and the whole human race of yours and that of Jinns gather together on a sector of land and all ask of Me and if I were to give everyone of them what they asked, that will not in any way decrease what I have anymore than a needle decreases what is in the ocean when it is put into it. O My servants, these deeds of yours which I am recording for you I shall reward you for them, so he who finds good should praise Allah and he who finds other than that should not blame anyone but himself." [Muslim]

As also mentioned in many verses of the Qur'an, Allah affirms His absolute justice (fairness) and negates that He has never committed any kind of injustice towards anyone. Some verses of the holy Qur'an in this regards are: "Your Lord is not at all unjust to His slaves" [41:46]; "No wise shall We be unjust to them but it is they who have been unjust to themselves" [43:76]; "And Allah wills no injustice for His slaves" [40:31]; and "...and Allah wills no injustice to the world" [3:108].

The forbidden injustices include all forms.

- The first, the highest level and the most extreme form of injustice is al-shirk or associating partners with Allah. Allah says in the Qur'an: "Verily joining others in worship with Allah is a great form of injustice indeed" [31:13]

- The second form is unjust towards one ownself such as committing sins.

- The third form is dhulm or unjust towards others whether human beings or other creatures.

The hadith shows us that humans are always in great need for Allah. We need Allah for everything because we are poor and needy. Allah is the only One Who does not need anybody. He does not need anything from us. He is the Almighty and the Most Powerful. So a Muslim should show his or her need to Allah all the time and should seek Allah's support and Tawfiq in whatever he or she does. That is why we are ordered to do a lot of dhikr all the time because it expresses our needs to Allah. It is by the help of Allah that we are able to do things. We are able to move and walk. We are able to sleep and wake up and do all our activities. All our internal bodily systems such as breathing, blood circulation and digestion and so on depend and work on Allah's Will. If any of these functions stop working, no one can bring it back to normal except Allah. So we should always be grateful to Allah.

Guidance is a great mercy and ni'mah from Allah the Almighty. It is very important for every Muslim to know that the most valuable thing that we have in our life is this guidance. Allah has guided us to the right path or iman and we have to be grateful to Him. This guidance in the form of the Qur'an was revealed to us by Allah through His Messenger, Muhammad*. So we should stick to its guidance and follow its teachings as a guide for us in everything we do in our lives. Our efforts alone cannot guide us. Even though we have our own will and choice, they are not independent. They are under Allah's will and choice and belong to Him. We have aql (mind) but again it is created by Allah. We also have fitrah or the natural deposition but it is also created by Allah and belongs to Him. All these things are created by Allah. Allah showed us the right way to follow and be guided and warn us against Shaitan who is our greatest enemy and cause of our wrongdoings and misguidance. Allah also showed us how to deal with our own desires which He created in us. He told us that we should not be misled by these desires. We have to use them in the right ways.

When it comes to the issue of misguidance, we must know that it is not from the choice of Allah because He does not want us to be misguided. It is from our own will and choice. When someone is misguided it is his or her own attitude and behaviour and it is he or she who chooses it to be like that. For example, takabur (arrogance) is one source of misguidance but it is a person's character and attitude which affect the heart and cause misguidance. So when a person chooses to be misguided he or she will be so by his or her own will and not by Allah's misguidance. Allah's misguidance comes later as punishment for the person who chooses to be misguided. But if the person is misguided because of external factors which is out of his hands, he will be excused.

At the end of the hadith it is mentioned and stressed that whoever finds good record he should be thankful to Allah and praise Him for that, and anyone who finds other than that, which means bad record, he should not blame anyone except himself. This is a clear statement that shows the personal responsibility of one's actions. It is the person's own will and choice and not Allah's. Allah is al-A'dil or Just. He never does injustice to His servants. In the Qur'an, we can find many verses that explain how people blame themselves during the Day of Judgment for not following the right path. It is the people themselves who chose to be misguided and hence they cannot blame any one else but themselves. This is also an important aspect of al-qadar that should be understood.

The door of Taubah or repentance is open for all. The acceptance of our repentance is always available. Islam is a practical religion. It acknowledges our weaknesses. People are always subject to wrongdoings. They may neglect or delay performing obligations (wajib) or they may even indulge in sins (ma'asi') but Allah is Oft-Forgiving and His door is open to all wrongdoers. We are given the chance to repent and come back to Allah. This is a mercy from Allah. If we truly repent to Allah, our sins will be forgiven and even the bad records will be changed into good ones. Allah is telling us that He is Forgiving, Merciful and Compassionate. He requires us to come to Him and seek His forgiveness. We should know that the door of Allah is open to us all the time. If we do something wrong at night, we should come back to Him in the morning and if we do something wrong in the morning, we should come to seek His forgiveness during the night. We are always encouraged to do istighfar, which means to remember Allah and praise Him by reciting His Dhikr. We should maintain this istighfar regularly, for example, during the morning and evening times. It is also recommended to recite these adhkar after the salah and in some other specific times. We are encouraged to read these dhikr in our hearts.

The hadith shows the generosity of Almighty Allah. Allah gives His servants a lot of bounties and favours. The more they ask Him, the more He gives them His Ni'mah and countless Bounties. He wants us to ask Him more and seek His help and support. This is different from human beings because humans do not like to be asked frequently. The more you ask a human, the more they hate you and eventually will turn away from you. But the more we ask Allah the more He gives us. He wants us to come closer to Him and show Him our needs and humbleness. He will be pleased by our frequent taubah and repentance. This is also a kind of ibadah which is required to be practiced.

The hadith shows us the proper relationship between mankind and Allah. It shows us the many attributes of Allah such as being Merciful, Forgiving, Powerful and Compassionate. In contrast, we as human beings are poor, needy and weak. We are in continuous need for Allah, our creator and sustainer. We need His Guidance, Help and Support. That is why in every raka'ah of our salah we are required to recite Umu al-Kitab or Surah al-Fatihah. We recite it at least 17 times everyday. It reminds us of our extreme need for our Lord and His Guidance and Support. Also this will strengthen our faith and iman.

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