Imam al-Haddad on the Effects of Obedience and of Sin

An Excerpt from: The Epistle of Mutual Reminding with Loving Brothers from the People of Goodness and Deen

By: Imam 'Abd-Allah bin 'Alawi al-Haddad (1044 - 1132 AH)

Translated by: Khalil Abu Asmaa (Christopher Moore) © 2006

Chapter 3: The Pleasure of God is in His Obedience and His Wrath is in His Disobedience

By His will, God has made His pleasure in His obedience and His wrath in His disobedience. He has promised entrance to His Paradise to those who obey Him, by His mercy. And He has threatened those who disobey Him with entrance into the Fire, by His justice and wisdom. He has said:

These are the bounds set by God: God will admit those who obey Him and His Messenger to Gardens graced with flowing streams, and there they will stay—that is the supreme triumph! But those who disobey God and His Messenger and overstep His limits will be consigned by God to the Fire, and there they will stay—a humiliating torment awaits them! [Quran 4:13-14]

He has commanded His servants that have believed to hasten to His forgiveness and His Garden, and that they should protect themselves and their families from the Fire by following His command and avoiding His disobedience. He said:

Believers, guard yourselves and your families against a Fire fueled by people and stones, over which stand angels, stern and strong; angels who never disobey God’s commands to them, but do as they are ordered. [Quran 66:6]

Chapter 4: A mention of some of that which God honors those who obey Him and do good deeds for His sake

God has said:

To whoever, male or female, does good deeds and has faith, We shall give a good life and reward them according to the best of their actions. [Quran 16:97]

And He said:

God has made a promise to those among you who believe and do good deeds: He will make them successors to the land, as He did those who came before them; He will empower the religion He has chosen for them; and He will grant them security to replace their fear. [Quran 24:55]

And He said:

As for those who believe and do good deeds—We do not let the reward of anyone who does a good deed go to waste—they will have Gardens of lasting bliss graced with flowing streams. There they will they will be adorned with bracelets of gold. There they will wear fine garments of silk and brocade. There they will be comfortably seated on soft chairs. What a blessed reward! What a pleasant resting place! [Quran 18:30-31]

And He said:

The Lord of Mercy (Rahman) will give love to those who believe and do righteous deeds. [Quran 19:96]

Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said [concerning this verse]: He loves them and He causes the believers to love them.

The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, on behalf of His Lord:

Whoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me; I shall be at war with him. My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him. 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 foot with which he walks. Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. [al-Bukhari]

God has honored [these people] with this immense love that causes the very movements and stationary moments of the servant to be entirely for God. How wondrous is the one that performs what He has obligated him to do and then increases in supererogatory acts of obedience in order to get closer to Him!

He (peace and blessings be upon him) also said, on behalf of his Lord:

When my servant draws near to Me a handspan, I will draw near to him an arm’s length. And if he draws near to Me an arm’s length, I will draw near to him two arm’s length. And if he comes to me walking, I will come to him running.

Therefore, the drawing near of the servant to his Lord is by obeying and serving Him, and the drawing near of the Lord to His servant is through His bounty and mercy.

He (peace and blessings be upon him) also said, on behalf of his Lord:

I have prepared for My righteous servants what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what has never even occurred to a human heart.

And in the Pslams [of David]: “Oh son of Adam, obey Me and I will fill your heart with richness, your hands with provision, and your body with health.”

God revealed to this world: “Oh world (dunya), whoever serves Me, serve him. And whoever serves you, use him.”

Bishr ibn al-Harith (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The people of good (khayr) have gone with [the good of] both this world and the next.

Yahya ibn Mu’adh said: The sons of this world are served by slaves, but the sons of the Hereafter are served by free men.

Therefore, if you want, oh my brother, to have honor that will never end, dominion that will never be cut off, nobility that will never go away, majesty that will never perish, then obey your Lord! Indeed, God has placed all of that in His obedience, and He will bestow it upon those who obey Him from among His servants.

God has honored certain servants that have obeyed Him, freeing them from the slavery of vain passions. He purified their hearts from the filth of turning towards fleeting things. He has caused miracles (khawariq al-‘aadat) and amazing feats (‘aja’ib al-karamat) to flow at their hands: the informing of the unseen, the outpouring of blessings, and the answering of supplications.

Thereafter the people seek to acquire from their lights, they follow in their footsteps, they turn to Allah through them to alleviate their concerns, they ask Him—by their rank—to avert their calamities, they seek intercession through their footprints, and they seek blessings from the dust of their graves.

And it is God who has given them [i.e., His elect servants] even more than that: He has thrust some of His light into their hearts and has filled them with pure experiential knowledge and love of Him. He has given them tranquility in their solitude, with His remembrance; they are then estranged to His creation. He has prepared for them a permanent delight in the Abode of Bliss and promised them the gaze upon His noble countenance, and His being pleased with them is even greater: That is the supreme triumph [Quran 44:57] Everyone should strive to attain this [Quran 37:61].

Chapter 5: A mention of the consequences of disobedience: humiliation, destruction, abasement, and ruin in this life and the next

God has said:

Hell will be the reward of those who return to their Lord as evildoers: there they will stay, neither living nor dying [Quran 20:74].

And He said:

Do the evildoers think they can escape us? How ill they judge! [Quran 29:4].

The meaning of “yasbiquna” in the preceding verse is “debilitate us” and “elude us”.

And He said:

…whoever disobeys God and His Messenger is far astray [Quran 33.36].

The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “The fornicator doesn’t fornicate while he is a believer. And the thief doesn’t steal while he is a believer. And the drinker of alcohol doesn’t drink while he is a believer.”

And the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When the servant commits a sin it becomes a black dot on his heart. If he repents, his heart is cleansed. If he goes back, such [blackness] will increase until his entire heart is dark.” This is just like what God said:

No indeed! Their hearts are encrusted with what they have done [Quran 83:14].

The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “The hardness of the heart is from excessive sins.” And he said: “Verily the servant is prevented from sustenance (material or otherwise) due to a sin he committed.”

God revealed to Moses: “Oh Moses, the first to die of my creation was Iblis (Satan)—God curse him—because he was the first one to disobey Me. And whoever disobeys Me I write them off as dead.”

Sa’id ibn al-Musayyab (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “The servants have not honored themselves with anything like the obedience of God. And they have not abased themselves with anything like the disobedience of God. It is sufficient divine victory for the believer that he should see his enemy in a state of disobedience to God.”

Muhammad ibn Wasi’ said: “The sin after the sin deadens the heart.”

One of the pious predecessors (Salaf) said: “If you disobey God and you think that He sees you, then you are belittling the gaze of God. But if you disobey Him and you think that He doesn’t see you, then you are a disbeliever.”

It was said to Wuhayb ibn al-Ward (may Allah have mercy on him): “Does one who disobeys God find the sweetness of worship?” He responded: “No. And neither does the one who intends to disobey God.”

The pious predecessors (Salaf) used to say: “Sins are the messenger of disbelief.”

To sum up, the sign of falling from the eye of God, and being in the displeasure of God, is engaging in disobedience. The persistently sinner is despised by the Most Merciful (maqit al-Rahman), the friend of the devil (wali al-Shaytan), and detested by the people of faith (baghid ahl al-iman).

So beware—Oh my brother!—of falling into the displeasure of God and His punishment by perpetrating His disobedience. Whenever your self (nafs) calls you to commit a sin remind it of God’s gaze over it and His looking upon you. Threaten it with what God has threatened those who disobey Him: a painful torment and an immense punishment. Even if the only thing that committing sins lead to was not attaining the stations of the forerunners (manazil al-sabiqeen) and missing out on the reward of the people of excellence (muhsineen), it would have been sufficient [deterrent].

How could it not be so? when all shame (‘aar), the Fire (nar), the wrath of the Compeller (al-Jabbar), and his anger (which the heavens and the earth cannot withstand) are all in sinning. We ask God for well-being by His graciousness.

Chapter 6: ….      

[MORE TO COME, in sha Allah…]

Comments

[anonymous]

beautiful

[abdullatif]

as sallamu alaikum wa Rahmatullah

inshaa Allah you are in the best of iman and health. May Allah give you good in this life and the next

Alhmadulillah these works sre truly inspiring

[Khalil]

Wa alaykum as-salam wa rahmatullah...

May Allah bless you with deep spiritual insight, complete outward and inward obedience to Allah, and profound love for all that He loves... Amin.

Thank you for the comments...

khalil moore

[sf]

Assalaam alaikum br. Khalil,

SubhanAllah!
May Allah(SWT) reward you and empower your pen for sharing this profoundly enlightening translation. Ameen

sf

[Khalil]

Wa alaykum as-salam wa rahmatullah!

Amin, Amin, Amin...

I really hope to be able to do much more of this kind of work. Make dua' that Allah facilitates this for the faqir. There are sooooo many amazing texts that I am sure the Muslim community would love to have access to in the English language. Ya Rubb!

khalil moore

[Anon]

Salams Sidi Khalil,

Its the selflessness and yearning to benefit others, in the words you spoke below, that increase my certainty of beleif in the Most High and in this way.

'There are sooooo many amazing texts that I am sure the Muslim community would love to have access to in the English language. Ya Rubb!'

My Sincere thanks to you for sharing with us.

[Khalil]

Wa alaykum as-salam "Anon":

May Allah bless you, take you by the hand, show you the paths of peace, rectify your state (inwardly and outwardly), place you in the presence and company of the righteous, and accept all of your deeds, whether big or small... Amin.

Thank you for your words of kindness. May Allah help us to do more for His sake. Amin.

Sincerely,
khalil moore

[Ummu Alwi]

BismilLah
Al-Salaamu alaykum.

JazakaAllahu khairan for sharing this beautiful translation with us. May Allah increase you, give barakah in your time, strength, mind and for your family.
May Allah make us amongst the people who gets lots of benefit from your deeds..
Remember me and my family in your duas.

[nai]

Allahuakbar..

a good one..