The Wisdom Behind the Eclipse
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned in the sermon that Allah the Exalted brings about whatever He wills of His affairs, and among these are the lunar or solar eclipses. The lunar eclipse is for the moon, and the solar eclipse is for the sun, though the term "eclipse" is sometimes used for both.
He (Glorified and Exalted is He) brings this about to frighten His servants with it. The eclipse is a warning from Allah of a punishment whose causes have been established; it is not a punishment in itself, but a warning.As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (Allah frightens His servants with them) and He did not say: Allah punishes His servants with them. Rather, it is a frightening, and we do not know what lies beyond this frightening. There may be immediate or delayed punishments in souls, wealth, children, or families; general or specific punishments—we do not know.Therefore, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (When you see that, turn in fear to the remembrance of Allah) He did not say: stand up,And he did not say: pray, remember Allah,But he said: turn in fear, turn in fear to the remembrance of Allah and seeking His forgiveness, and say Allahu Akbar, give charity, pray, and free slaves. All these things indicate the greatness of this eclipse. Yet, because of the death of hearts in our time, it passes by as if it were a natural occurrence, as if a solar eclipse were its setting, so we stand up and pray Maghrib. When it eclipses, we stand up and pray the eclipse prayer without any fear or anxiety. We ask Allah to soften our hearts for His remembrance.
The truth is that the matter is serious, and the fact that the eclipse comes and goes with such ease, as if nothing had happened, clearly indicates that there is a trial in the hearts [Al-Mutaffifin: 14-17].
He (Glorified and Exalted is He) brings this about to frighten His servants with it. The eclipse is a warning from Allah of a punishment whose causes have been established; it is not a punishment in itself, but a warning.As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (Allah frightens His servants with them) and He did not say: Allah punishes His servants with them. Rather, it is a frightening, and we do not know what lies beyond this frightening. There may be immediate or delayed punishments in souls, wealth, children, or families; general or specific punishments—we do not know.Therefore, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (When you see that, turn in fear to the remembrance of Allah) He did not say: stand up,And he did not say: pray, remember Allah,But he said: turn in fear, turn in fear to the remembrance of Allah and seeking His forgiveness, and say Allahu Akbar, give charity, pray, and free slaves. All these things indicate the greatness of this eclipse. Yet, because of the death of hearts in our time, it passes by as if it were a natural occurrence, as if a solar eclipse were its setting, so we stand up and pray Maghrib. When it eclipses, we stand up and pray the eclipse prayer without any fear or anxiety. We ask Allah to soften our hearts for His remembrance.
The truth is that the matter is serious, and the fact that the eclipse comes and goes with such ease, as if nothing had happened, clearly indicates that there is a trial in the hearts