Ahmed
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Registration date : 2006-10-07
 |  Subject: The Ill Effects of Sin Part 1  Tue Oct 02, 2007 2:12 pm | |
| The Ill Effects of Sin
The Ill Effects of
Sin Part 1
“Whatever of good reaches you, is from Allaah, but
whatever of evil befalls you, is from yourself.” [1]
Narrated by Ibn Umar : Allaah’s Messenger
(sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) said, “If Allaah sends punishment upon a nation
then it befalls upon the whole population indiscriminately and then they will be
resurrected (and judged) according to their deeds.”[2]
Whatever good
comes upon us - blessing or security - it is from Allaah, it is He who provided
that, its beginning and end, from his beneficence. It is He who granted us from
his bounty that we should carry out that which would lead to it, and it is He
who granted us His blessing and completed that for us. Many people today
attribute the misfortunes which befall them, whether relating to wealth and
economics, or security and political affairs to purely materialistic causes.
There is no doubt that this is due to their limited
understanding and weakness of their EEMAAN and their failure to reflect upon the
Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam).
Behind these reasons are causes prescribed as such by Allaah, However the
material reasons may be a means of bringing about what is due to the causes
prescribed by Allaah which necessitates the misfortune and punishment. Allaah,
the Mighty and Majestic says :“Evil (sins and disobedience of Allaah) has
appeared on the land and sea because of what the hands of men have earned (by
oppression and evil deeds etc.), that Allaah may make them taste a part of that
which they have done, in order that they may return (by repenting to
Allaah).” [3]
"O Muslim! you are the best and most noble of the
nations of Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic. Allaah does not punish this nation
for its disobedience and sins in the way that He punished the previous nations.
He will not cause its destruction with a single overwhelming punishment as
happened to ‘Aad, [4] when they were destroyed by the violent wind which He
unleashed upon them for seven nights and eight days in succession so that they
were left lying like the hollow trunks of palm trees, Do you see any remnants of
them.
Ibn ‘Abbas narrates that the Prophet (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam)
said “I was granted victory with As-Saba (Easterly Wind), and the nation of
‘Aad, was destroyed by Ad-Dabur (Westerly Wind).” [5] and Anas narrates that
“Whenever a strong wind blew, anxiety appeared on the face of the Prophet
(sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) (fearing that, that wind might be a sign of
Allaah’s wrath).” [6]
He will not destroy it (the ummah) with the
like of the punishment of Thamood [7] who were seized by the terrible shout and
the earthquake so that they lay prostate corpses in their homes. And He will not
destroy it with the like of the punishment of the people of Loot,[8] against
whom Allaah sent a violent wind and stones from the sky and turned their homes
upside down. O Muslims ! Allaah, from His Wisdom and his Mercy,
punishes this nation for its sins and disobedience by setting some part of it
upon the others so that they destroy one another and take each other prisoner,
Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, says “Say : ‘ He has power to send torment
on you from above you of from under your feet, or to cover you with confusion in
party strife, and make you to taste the violence of one another.’ See how
variously We explain the Ayaat [9], so that they may understand. But your
people (O Muhammed (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) have denied it (the Qur’aan)
though it is the truth. Say : ‘I am not responsible for your affairs.’ For
every news there is a fact (i.e. for everything there is an appointed term and
you will come to know).” [10]
It is also reported by Sa’d ibn Abee
Waqqaas, who said : “We went along with Allaah’s messenger (sallallahu alaihe
wa-sallam) until we came to the mosque of Banoo Mu’aawiyah, so Allaah’s
Messenger (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) entered and prayed two rak’ahs so we
prayed along with him, so he called upon his Lord for a long time, then said :
‘I asked my Lord for three things, I asked him that He should not destroy my
nation with a deluge so He granted me that; I asked Him that He should not
destroy my nation with famine as happened to the people of Fir’awn so He granted
me that; and I asked Him that they should not fight amongst themselves, but He
refused me that.” [11]
Misconceptions Cleared
There are some people who doubt and seek to cause doubts that sins
are a cause of misfortunes, and that is because of the weakness of their eeman
and their negligence in reflecting upon the book of Allaah, the Mighty and
Majestic as Allaah of the says in the Qur’aan, “And if the people of the
towns had believed and had taqwaa (Piety), certainly, We should have opened for
them blessing from the heavens and the earth, but they belied (The messengers).
So we took them (with punishment) for what they used to earn (polytheism and
crimes etc). Did the people of the towns then feel secure against the coming of
Our punishment by night while they are asleep ? Or, Did the people of the towns
then feel secure against the coming of Our punishment in the forenoon while they
play ? Did they then feel secure against the plot of Allaah. None feels secure
from the plot of Allaah except the people who are lost.”[12]
Daawah to the Ummah
Sins affect the security of a land,
they affect its ease, its prosperity, its economy and they affect the hearts of
its people. Sins cause alienation between the people. Sins cause one muslim to
regard his muslim brother as if he were upon a separate religion other than
Islaam. But if we sought to rectify ourselves, our families, our neighbours and
those in our areas, and everyone we are able to rectify , if we mutually
encouraged good and forbade evil, if we assisted those who do this with wisdom
and wise admonition then it would produce unity and harmony. Allaah the Mighty
and Majestic says : “Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to
all that is good (Islaam) enjoining the ma’roof [13] and forbidding the
munkar.[14] And it is those who are successful. And be not as those who
divided and differed among themselves after the clear proofs had come to them.
It is they for whom there is an awful torment.” [15]
Al-mugheerah
ibn Shu’bah related that the Prophet (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) said “A group
of my followers will remain victoriously upholding the truth until Allaah’s
order (the last hour) comes on them while they are still Victorious.” [16] It is
reported by Zaid ibn Thaabit that the Prophet (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam)
said “Allaah blesses any man who hears a saying of mine, memorises it and
understands it, then conveys it just as he heard it.”[17] O Servants of
Allaah ! Fear Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, and beware of neglecting the
prescribed laws of Allaah , beware of neglecting Allaah signs, beware of failing
to reflect upon the book of Allaah, beware of failing to know the Sunnah of
Allaah’s Messenger (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam), since in the Book of Allaah
and the Sunnah of his Prophet (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) lies your success
(if you cling to them , if you attest to the truth of what they inform of and
follow their commands). And since we have been looking at them from a
materialistic perspective the unbelievers are stronger and greater than us
through that. However if we look from an Islamic perspective by the way of the
Qur’aan and the Sunnah then we will abandon all that is a cause of these
misfortunes as Allaah says: “Verily , Allaah will help those who help His
(cause) Truly, Allaah is All-Strong, All-Mighty.”[18]
Some of the
‘Symptoms, Avoidance and Cures’ of Sins:
Narrated by Abu Huraira, The
Prophet (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) said “Avoid the seven great destructive
sins” the people asked O Allaah Messenger ! what are they ? He said “To join
others in worship along with Allaah, to practice sorcery, to kill the life which
Allaah has forbidden except for a just cause, to eat up Riba (usury, interest),
to eat up an orphan’s wealth, to show one’s back to the enemy and fleeing from
the battlefield at the time of fighting and to accuse chaste women, who never
even think of anything touching their chastity and are true believers”.[19]
Narrated by Abdullah bin Amr that the Prophet (sallallahu alaihe
wa-sallam) said “Whoever has the following four (characteristics) will be a pure
hypocrite and whoever has one of the following four characteristics will have
one characteristic of hypocrisy unless and until he gives it up. | |
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