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Bismillah irRahman irRaheem
In the Name of Allaah, The Most Gracious, The Most Kind
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Hijri date: Saturday 23 Jumaada al-awal 1420 A.H.
continued...
Another mufassir, Al Hassan Al Basri, may Allah have mercy on him, said by
way of explanation: Whenever you see Allah being very generous and liberal
to a people and they reject Him in various aspects, they do not see that
they are only "digging themselves deeper", they do not see that Allah will
punish them, as He has done to generations before them.
Qataadah said: Whenever Allah "takes" a people (meaning destroys them
punishes them), He first bestows upon them bounties and gifts until they
are deluded and they never delude Allah.
Hadith
'If you see Allah "give" a servant that of the world and he is a sinner
doing whatever he likes, it is only "istid-raaj" ' * [Related by Ahmad,
Ibn Jareer and Ibn Abi Haatim]
Isma'eel Raafi'e said; Of those things which are considered "Al'Aamin min
makrillah" for a person who continually commits sins and hopes for Allah's
forgiveness. [Ibn Abi Haatim]
Ibn Jareer gives the tafseer of the word "makr" as in the words of some of
the salaf: Allah leads the people along with "n'aim", blessings and
prosperity and He lets them enjoy this for a long time, then He gradually
seizes them with a seizure (punishment) of the All-Mighty, All-Capable to
carry out what He will. (see Suratul Qamar:42)
And we look at Allah's statement on the lips of His Prophet, Ibrahim,
alaihi as salaam, in Suratul Hijr: 56, {Wa mai-yaqanatu mir rahmatu
rabbih 'ilad-daaloon} "(Ibrahim said) And who despairs of the Mercy of his
Lord except those who are astray."
The writer has selected and focussed on this ayah and the ayah that
reflects it in direct opposition as a means of calling to our attention
that it is not permissible for one who fears Allah to despair if His Mercy,
rather, he should couple that fear with hope (al khauf [from the
punishment] ma'a ar-rajaa' [for forgiveness]) -- he fears his sins and
obeys and hopes for Allah's Mercy as Allah has said in Suratu Zamar:9,
"Is one who is obedient to Allah, prostrating himself or standing
(in prayer) during the hours of the night, fearing the Hereafter and hoping
for the Mercy of his Lord . . . (like one who -believes?) and the ayah in
Suratul Baqarah:218, "Verily, those who have believed and
those who have emigrated for the sake of Allah and striven hard in the Path
of Allah, all those HOPE for Allah's Mercy and Allah is oft-Forgiving, Most
Merciful."
Hoping (ar-rajaa') for Allah's Mercy and Forgiveness coupled with
continuous commission of sin and abandoning obedience to Allah is nothing
more than pure deception of the Shaitaan so that the person will fall into
fear and despair, not attempting to atone for his sins, thereby saving
himself from ultimate destruction, which is in contrast to those who
believe ('Ahli Emaan), who take waring and do what is necessary to be
successful in the next life, fearing Allah, ta'ala, and running away from
His punishment (by being obedient), deserving His Forgiveness and hoping
for His Blessings.
To further explain about "al khauf" and "ar-rajaa'" , the author gives
us the circumstances under which the ayah spoken by Nabi Ibrahim, peace be
upon him, in Suratul Hijr.
Allah, Glory be to Him, relates to us about His friend, Ibrahim
Khaleelullah, when he was given the good news of a son, Ishaaq, he said to
the angels, "Do you give glad tidings (of a son) when old age has
overtaken me? Or what then, is your news?" He said this because the norm
is that when a man becomes very advanced in age and his wife, as well, it
is quite remote that they would produce a child, but Allah has Power over
all things. So the angels said in response to Ibrahim, "We give you glad
tidings in truth . . ." about which there is no doubt.
Indeed, when Allah wants something to exist, He says "BE" and it is
". . . so do't be of those who despair."
In other words, don't give up hope -- the verb used in the explanation is
"ya'isa" which means to renoucnce or forgo or give up -- al hope --
so, that is, to reounce all hope or to forgo it or give up all hope of
Allah's Mercy and Forgiveness. Then, Ibrahim said, "And who despairs of
the Mercy of his Lord except those who are astray", because he knows that
there is nothingmore powerful than Allah's Might and Mercy, but he made
the first statement due to his astonishment (but only Allah knows).
His statement ". . . except those who are astray", some scholars say it
refers to those who have mistakenly gone off the right path or the
Disbelievers -- as in Surah Yusef: 87, ". . . certainly no one despairs of
Allah's mercy, except the people who disbelieve", the word used
is "al kaafiroon".
In relation to this, we have the hadith related by Ibn Abbass (may Allah be
pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah, peace be
upon him, was asked about the major sins. He said, "Ash-shirk billah
(ascribing partners to Allah), alya's min ruhillah (despairing of
being refreshed in the company of Allah), and al'aman min makrillah (having
the feeling of being safe from Allah's plan (for the disbelievers and those
who are disobedient to Him. [Al Bazzar, Ibn Abi Haatim and others]
His statement "Ash-shirk billah" is the most severe of the major sins. Ibn
Qayyim Al Jauziyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said, "Ash-
shirk illah is an outrage against the deity, diminishes divine power and
is a suspicion against the Lord of the worlds." The truth has
been spoken and advise has been given.
insh Allah to be continued
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