Explanation of Hadiths from al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib by al-Mundhiri, from the Book of Repentance and Asceticism: The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said

The Shaykh : Tonight we studied in the book *Al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib* by Al-Hafiz Al-Mundhiri, the twenty-eighth hadith. It says: And from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said Muslim narrated it. This hadith is a warning from the Messenger (may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him) to his Ummah... It is something no human mind can fully conceive: great trials like the dark patches of the night, in which the Muslim is tested, becoming a believer in the morning and a disbeliever in the evening, and vice versa. His (peace be upon him) statement means only good deeds. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) is encouraging his Ummah, especially in the later times, where the further we go in time, the more trials increase among us, and the closer we get to the major signs of the Hour, he commands us in this authentic hadith to hasten to these trials with good deeds, meaning to face them with good deeds, so that when we are caught by surprise by them, we will have armored and armed ourselves with these good deeds, which will stand between us and falling into such trials that are like the dark patches of the night. So the Muslim’s safety from any of these trials mentioned generally in this hadith, or from other trials some of which will be mentioned in a following hadith, the way out of all these trials is only good deeds. By good deeds, the Muslim arms himself and fortifies himself against passing through these strange stages that the Messenger (peace be upon him) describes for his people And the reason? The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified it by his statement And a hadith like this does not require much understanding. We see people and how they are tested because of this world, through positions, status, ranks, and the like. So the Muslim must arm himself with good deeds. And there is no doubt, and no ambiguity, that good deeds, as we have mentioned to you repeatedly, do not benefit their owner in any way unless this good deed is coupled with correct faith. And correct faith is not achieved except by believing in what came from Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and by the correct understanding that matches what the Salaf of this Ummah were upon, including the four Imams. It is not permissible for a Muslim to turn to good deeds seeking the Day of Resurrection, while at the same time neglecting the correction of his creed. In that case, his good deeds will be scattered dust, as our Lord (Blessed and Exalted is He) said in His Book regarding those who associated partners with their Lord Therefore, we must always and forever remember, when the mention of good deeds passes us, to always and forever couple it with correct faith as well. And there is no verse except that it begins with the mention of faith, then follows with the mention of good deeds, such as His (Exalted is He) saying I say this because we are in a time where desires and religious innovations have increased, some of which we have inherited from long, distant centuries, and some of which have sprouted in the present era. Therefore, the most important thing a Muslim must concern himself with is correcting his creed, and then adding to that the abundance of good deeds, because faith is not just correct belief, but good deeds are also part of faith. So when the Messenger (may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him) encourages us here to hasten to those trials with good deeds, he is encouraging us to do so to make a protection and a strong fortress between us and these trials, preventing these good deeds from causing us to fall into such dark trials that This is the first hadith that Muslim narrated in his Sahih.