People love talks on Jannah. Let the imaam deliver a twenty minute pre-khutbah talk on Jahannam and there will be objections. ‘Scare tactics’ they comment, ‘why frighten our youngsters?’ The same applies to talks on the horrific conditions of the Day of Qiyaamah. Are such objections justifiable? Does Allah not discuss these topics in the Qur’aan? Of course he does; He discusses them frequently. In fact, the names He uses for the Day of Qiyaamah and their meanings (why is the Day of Qiyaamah called such names) is a discussion of its own. As-Saa’ah (The Hour), Al-Aazifah (The Close One), Al-Waaqi’ah (The Ocassion), Al-Haaqqah (The Definite One), Al-Qaari’ah (The Clatterer) to quote a few. There are also vivid descriptions of the situation on that day. Let us look at one particular aayah in this regard.
يَوْمَ تَجِدُ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَّا عَمِلَتْ مِنْ خَيْرٍ مُّحْضَرًا وَمَا عَمِلَتْ مِن سُوَءٍ تَوَدُّ لَوْ أَنَّ بَيْنَهَا وَبَيْنَهُ أَمَدًا بَعِيدًا وَيُحَذِّرُكُمُ اللَّهُ نَفْسَهُ وَاللَّهُ رَؤُوفُ بِالْعِبَادِ
The day when every soul will find the good and bad it had done presented (in front of him) and he will wish that between him and his actions is a vast distance. Allah warns you of Himself. Allah is compassionate to His servants.
Alternatively, this aayah could be translated as:
The day when every soul will find the good it had done presented (in front of him) and as for the bad he had done, he will wish that between him and his actions is a vast distance. Allah warns you of Himself. Allah is compassionate to His servants.
• Scholars of Arabic would appreciate the usage of the word بَعِيدًا – the madd (prolonging of the voice) suits the meaning of a vast distance.
• Warning our subordinates (children, students and others), we say, ‘Do not make me angry, I am warning you!’ The words “Allah warns you of himself” are similar in nature.
• Observe how Allah Ta’aala reminds us of His compassion immediately after warning us of His punishment. After saying وَيُحَذِّرُكُمُ اللَّهُ نَفْسَهُ “Allah warns you of himself”, He says وَاللَّهُ رَؤُوفُ بِالْعِبَادِ “Allah is compassionate to His servants”. Is there any contradiction in mentioning His compassion so soon after such a stern warning? . . . No, there is no contradiction. Moreover, there are two reasons for mentioning the two alongside each other:
1. It is an indication that Allah Ta’aala warns us because He pities us. If He had no pity for us, He would not have warned us.
Lesson: This is a lesson to all parents and teachers. When reprimanding our children and students, our actions must be motivated by compassion instead of anger. Unfortunately, most of us act out of anger when reprimanding our children and students (if we are teachers). We do not have their interests at heart. The result is therefore ineffective. There is a famous adage:
تَخَلّقُوْا بِأخلاقِ الله
Adopt the ways of Allah.
Thus, students of pious ‘ulamaa fondly recall the reprimands (possibly beatings too) of their teachers.
2. The second reason for Allah’s reminding us of His compassion immediately after warning us of Himself (i.e. His punishment) is to avoid despondency. If Allah only speaks of His punishment, man will become despondent and ‘throw in the towel’. Nevertheless, only speaking of His mercy and never referring to His punishment would also be inappropriate. It would result in complacency. Thus, Allah Ta’aala neither speaks only of His punishment nor does He speak only of His mercy. He speaks of both. Neither does He describe Jannah only nor does He describe Jahannam only. He describes both. This phenomenon is consistent throughout the Qur’aan and this is ‘The Balanced Approach’ referred to in the title of this article.
Lesson: Once again we cite the adage ‘Adopt the ways of Allah’. Da’wah workers should refrain from speaking only of Jahannam thereby causing people to object. Furthermore, when discussing aayaat and ahaadith regarding Jahannam, they should discuss Jannah as well. Nonetheless, objectors to occasional descriptions of Jahannam are also in error.
More Examples
حم تَنْزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ مِنَ اللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ غَافِرِ الذَّنْبِ وَقَابِلِ التَّوْبِ شَدِيدِ الْعِقَابِ ذِي الطَّوْلِ
لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ إِلَيْهِ الْمَصِيرُ
Ha Meem (Nobody but Allah knows the meaning of these letters. The revelation of the Qur’aan is from Allah, The All-Mighty, All-Knowing, The Forgiver of Sin and the Accepter of Repentance, The Possessor of Severe Punishment, The Possessor of Bounty); there is no deity but He, unto Him is the return.
نَبِّىءْ عِبَادِي أَنِّي أَنَا الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ وَ أَنَّ عَذَابِي هُوَ الْعَذَابُ الأَلِيمَ
Inform my servants that I am The All-Forgiving, Most Merciful and that my punishment is the painful punishment.
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَسَرِيعُ الْعِقَابِ وَإِنَّهُ لَغَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ
Certainly your Rabb is swift in punishing and certainly He is most forgiving and merciful.
يَوْمَ تَبْيَضُّ وُجُوهٌ وَتَسْوَدُّ وُجُوهٌ
The day when some faces will be white (shining)
and others will be black (dull).
إِنَّ الْأَبْرَارَ لَفِي نَعِيمٍ وَإِنَّ الْفُجَّارَ لَفِي جَحِيمٍ
The pious will undoubtedly be in bounty and the sinners will undoubtedly be in the fire.
Based on the attributes of Allah, certain aayaat of the Qur’aan and ahaadith of Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wasallam, scholars commonly say:
الإيمانُ بينَ الخوفِ و الرجاء
Imaan is between fear and hope.
The purpose of mentioning the above attributes alongside each other is to maintain this balance between hope and fear. Thus, the famous commentator of the Qur’aan, Ibn Katheer (ra), writes in his commentary of the first aayah:
يقرن هذين الوصفين كثيرًا في مواضع متعددة من القرآن؛ ليبقى العبد بين الرجاء والخوف
In many instances Allah mentions these two attributes alongside each other so that man will remain between hope and fear.
Why the Balance?
Explaining the reason why the Believer must have fear and hope, Ibn ‘Alaan (ra) comments, “so that fear will deter him from contravention and hope will motivate him to do good deeds”. He says further that the reason why such fear and hope must be equal is that:
الغالب في القرآن ذكر الترغيب والترهيب مقترنين
“The general practice in the Qur’aan is to mention targheeb and tarheeb alongside each other.”
Targheeb is encouragement to do good deeds and is achieved by reference to Allah’s mercy and the reward for such deeds. Tarheeb is discouragement of sin and is achieved by reference to Allah’s anger and the punishment for sin. Thus, the balance between the two is in essence the balance between fear and hope.
Lesson: As already mentioned, imams, da’wah workers etc. must always observe this balance. Focusing only on Jahannam and punishment may drive the audience or some of them to despondency. Hence, their talks result in more harm than benefit. (Although, it must be acknowledged that such people are few.)
Umar (ra) and the Alcoholic
Sayyiduna ‘Umar (ra) was informed of a person who would previously visit him regularly but had since become an alcoholic. Sayyiduna ‘Umar (ra) immediately sent him a letter in which he merely stated:
From ‘Umar bin Khattaab to So-and-so
I remind you of the praises of Allah, The All-Mighty, All-Knowing, The Forgiver of Sin and the Accepter of Repentance, The Possessor of Severe Punishment, The Possessor of Bounty); there is no deity but He, unto Him is the return.
When dispatching the letter, Sayyiduna ‘Umar (ra) instructed the messenger to ensure that the person concerned is sober when he passes the letter to him. Sayyiduna ‘Umar (ra) then requested the people sitting with him to make du’aa for this person’s guidance.
Upon receiving the letter, the man read its contents a few times and said, “The Forgiver of Sin and the Accepter of Repentance, the Possessor of Severe Punishment. He warned me of His punishment and He promised to forgive me.” He then cried bitterly, repented to Allah and gave up his evil habit. When news of his transformation reached Sayyiduna ‘Umar (ra), he remarked, “That is what you should do. When you see that your brother has slipped, guide him and make du’aa that Allah guide him to repent but do not help Shaytaan over him.”
The Ambiyaa
All the Ambiyaa including Nabi Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wasallam have been described in the Qur’aan as bearers of glad-tidings and warners.
رُّسُلاً مُّبَشِّرِينَ وَمُنذِرِينَ لِئَلاَّ يَكُونَ لِلنَّاسِ عَلَى اللَّهِ حُجَّةٌ
“Messengers who were bearers of glad-tidings and warners so that the people would have no argument against Allah . . .”
إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ بِالْحَقِّ بَشِيرًا وَنَذِيرًا وَلاَ تُسْأَلُ عَنْ أَصْحَابِ الْجَحِيمِ
“Surely we sent you with the truth, as a bearer of glad-tidings and a warner.”
Since we have been commanded to emulate the Ambiyaa, especially Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wasallam, we too have to be bearers of glad-tidings and warners. This is yet another reason why we have to adopt a ‘balanced approach’.
Interesting Observation
• Amr bil-Ma’roof (encouraging good) and Nahy-‘anil-Munkar (prohibiting evil) play an important role in the sharee’ah and have been mentioned several times in the Qur’aan. Their nature is similar to targheeb and tarheeb. The noteworthy point is that whenever they are mentioned in the Qur’aan, Amr bil-Ma’roof is always mentioned before Nahy-‘anil-Munkar.
• Similarly, whenever Allah Ta’aala describes the Ambiyaa and Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wasallam as bearers of glad-tidings and warners, He always mentions glad-tidings before the warning.
• Likewise, in Surahs Ghaafir and Al-Hijr, Allah Ta’aala mentioned غَافِرِ الذَّنْبِ وَقَابِلِ التَّوْبِ (The Forgiver of Sin and the Accepter of Repentance) and أَنَا الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ (I am The All-Forgiving, Most Merciful) before شَدِيدِ الْعِقَابِ (The Possessor of Severe Punishment) and عَذَابِي هُوَ الْعَذَابُ الأَلِيمَ (my punishment is the painful punishment).
• This is an indication that although we require a ‘balanced approach’, we should speak more of Jannah, Allah’s forgiveness and His mercy. It also indicates that Allah’s mercy surpasses His anger. In this regard, Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wasallam said that when Allah created the creation, He ordained that His mercy surpasses His anger. Thus, the words إن رحمتي غلبت غضبي (My mercy surpasses my anger) are inscribed above His ‘arsh (throne).
Another Observation
• Another noteworthy observation is that while Allah describes Himself as The Forgiving, The Merciful and The Compassionate, He never describes Himself as الْمُعَذّب (The Punisher). He merely states that His punishment is severe.
• Furthermore, the word forms utilised to describe Allah as forgiving and merciful (i.e. الْغَفُورُ and الرَّحِيمُ) constitute a form of hyperbole; they show excessiveness in meaning. (Such word formation is called مبالغة) However, the words utilised for describing Allah’s punishment as painful and severe are straightforward.
• This is an indication that Allah’s promise is weightier than His warning. On the one hand, this is meant to increase our hope in Allah’s mercy, on the other hand it is another lesson with regards our approach to da’wah.
In conclusion, we beseech Allah Ta’aala for His forgiveness and mercy آمين
و صلى الله على نبينا محمد و على آله و أصحابه أجمعين
و الحمد لله رب العلمين
Abu Hudhaifa Muhammad Karolia
07 Shawwaal 1435 / 03 August 2014
Al-Jaami’ah Al-Mahmoodiah
Persida, Springs