The Shaykh’s remarks on the hadith of the man who killed ninety-nine souls.

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The Shaykh : A clearer explanation of the effect of a corrupt environment on the people residing in it is the well-known hadith, whose authenticity is established by the narration of al-Bukhari and Muslim, namely his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):The Shaykh : ...narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim, namely his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):

There was among those before you a man who killed ninety-nine souls, then he wanted to repent, so he asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth, and he was directed to a monk, so he came to him and said: I have killed ninety-nine souls, is there any repentance for me? He said: No, you have killed ninety-nine souls and you have repentance! There is no repentance for you. So he killed him and completed the hundred.

كان فيمن كان قبلكم رجل قتل تسعة وتسعين نفساً، ثم أراد أن يتوب، فسأل عن أعلم أهل الأرض، فدُل على راهب، فجاء إليه وقال : أنا قتلت تسعة وتسعين نفساً، فهل لي من توبة.؟ قال : لا، قتلت تسعة وتسعين نفساً ولك توبة! لا توبة لك ، فقتله وأتم به المائة

However, as it appears from the full story, he was sincere in his intention to repent. Therefore, he continued to ask for the most knowledgeable person on earth until he was directed to a scholar. This scholar had previously asked the same question, but the one who directed him was ignorant. Instead of directing him to a scholar, he directed him to a monk. The term "monk" is an allusion to his worship combined with his ignorance, and this ignorance was evident in his answer, where he told him: "There is no repentance for you." So he killed him.
The Shaykh : As for the second time, his luck was good, as he was directed to a scholar, so he went to him and said to him:

I have killed a hundred souls, and I want to repent to Allah (Mighty and Majestic), is there any repentance for me? He said: Who is preventing you from repentance? But you are in a land of evil – here is the point – but you are in a land of evil, so leave it for such-and-such a village whose people are righteous.

أنا قتلت مائة نفس، وأريد أن أتوب إلى الله عز وجل، فهل لي من توبة.؟ قال : ومن يحول بينك وبين التوبة.؟ ولكنك بأرض سوءٍ -هنا الشاهد- ولكنك بأرض سوءٍ فاخرج منها إلى القرية الفلانية الصالح أهلها

Then he set out walking toward it, because he was sincere in his question and submissive to the scholar’s answer. When the scholar made it clear to him that he did not suffer this misery and kill a hundred souls without right except because he lived in a polluted, corrupt atmosphere, he should leave this town for the town whose people are righteous, and he specified it for him, so he set out walking.

And on the way, death came to him, so the angels of mercy and the angels of punishment disputed over him, each claiming that it was their right to take his soul, so Allah sent to them a judge to measure the distance between him and each of the two villages; the village he left and the village he was heading to. They measured and found him closer to the village whose people are righteous by the distance of a man’s stride, so the angels of mercy took charge of him.

وفي الطريق جاءه الموت، فتنازعته ملائكة الرحمة وملائكة العذاب، كل يدعي بأنه من حقه أن يتولى نزع روحه، فأرسل الله إليهم حكماً أن قيسوا ما بينه وبين كل من القريتين؛ القرية التي خرج منها والتي خرج قاصداً إليها ، فقاسوا فوجدوه أقرب إلى القرية الصالح أهلها بمقدار ميل الإنسان في مشيته، فتولته ملائكة الرحمة

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The Shaykh : The point of this hadith is that that scholar truly knew the cause of this man’s misery and his decision to kill a hundred souls, which was that he was living in a corrupt atmosphere.
The Shaykh : This hadith and what was mentioned before indicates that a Muslim must surround himself with a righteous environment and righteous companions, and must stay away from bad companions and a bad environment so as not to be affected by it. This is the reason for the deviation of some people, whether they are from the callers to Allah or from the general public.

Source www.al-albany.com

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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