Explanation of the Author's Statement: The Chapter on the Statement of Allah the Exalted: "Indeed, that is Satan who frightens his awliya (close friends of Allah), so do not fear them, and fear Me, if you are believers."
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The Shaykh : Then he said: "The Chapter on the Statement of Allah the Exalted: [Ali 'Imran 3:175]" The author (may Allah have mercy on him) followed the chapter on fear with the chapter on love, meaning he placed the chapter on fear after the chapter on love, because worship is based on these two matters: love and fear. Through love, one obeys commands, and through fear, one avoids prohibitions. Yes, this is the chapter on fear. Yes, this is from the beauty of his arrangement and his jurisprudence. Worship cannot exist or be completed except upon these two foundations: love, which drives a person to perform obedience, and fear, which drives him to abandon disobedience. Even though the one who abandons disobedience also seeks to reach Allah, this is a necessary consequence of abandoning disobedience, not the foundation. If you asked the one who does not commit zina why, he would say, "Out of fear of Allah." If you asked the one who prays, he would say, "Out of hope for the reward of Allah and love for Him." Although each is attached to the other, even the one who fears Allah and wants to be saved from His punishment will reach His mercy, and even the one who obeys Allah wants to reach His mercy and be saved from His punishment. But the intended primary motive for performing obedience that drives one to it is love, and for abandoning disobedience that drives one to it is fear. Know that the people of knowledge, or rather the masters of spiritual conduct—this is more accurate, because scholars are of different types; the masters of spiritual conduct mean the masters of direction, sincerity, reliance, and worship, and the like—differed on whether it is better for a person to let the aspect of fear prevail or to let the aspect of hope prevail. Some people of knowledge said: The aspect of fear should prevail, yes, to drive him to avoid disobedience and then to perform obedience. Others said: The aspect of hope should prevail, so that he remains optimistic, and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was pleased with good omens. Some scholars said: In performing obedience, the aspect of hope should prevail, and in committing disobedience, the aspect of fear should prevail, in order to prevent him from disobedience. Then, if he sins, he fears the punishment and repents. And in the aspect of obedience, what prevails? The aspect of hope, and that the One who bestowed upon him and guided him to perform this obedience will bless him (Blessed and Exalted is He) with its acceptance. Yes, because whoever is guided to a deed, this is a sign that Allah will accept it from him if he performs it in the manner required of him. As some of the Salaf said, if Allah guides you to supplication, expect the response, or wait for the response, because Allah says: [Ghafir 40:60] The important thing is that there are two opinions.
The third opinion says: It should be that in the state of illness, the aspect of hope prevails, and in the state of health, the aspect of fear prevails. In the aspect of illness, so that he transitions from this world while having a good opinion of Allah, so the aspect of hope prevails. And in the time of health, the aspect of fear prevails so that it prevents him from sins. And Imam Ahmad said: "His fear and his hope should be equal; whichever one prevails, its owner is ruined." Meaning, neither one should prevail. He makes them like the wings of a bird. If the two wings of a bird are not equal, the bird falls. If you cut the feathers from one wing and let it fly, it will not fly if the second wing is complete. But the opinion that is stronger in my view is that in the aspect of obedience, the aspect of hope prevails, yes, and in the aspect of disobedience, the aspect of fear prevails. This is the closest thing, though it is not the completely close one, because Allah the Exalted says:[Al-Mu'minun 23:60] Meaning, they fear that it will not be accepted from them. But it can also be said that this verse is contradicted by other verses or other hadiths, such as His statement (Mighty and Majestic) in the Holy Hadith: Sunan Ibn Majah 3822Sahih (Darussalam) In any case, fear is one of the two pillars, or one of the two foundations, that drive a person to worship Allah. The first foundation is love, and the second foundation is fear. Every worshipper must have both, otherwise his worship will be disordered. Yes.
The questioner : ... the second ... in the state of health, the aspect of fear prevails, and in the state of illness
The Shaykh : Even in the state of illness, because we do not say that the aspect of hope should prevail for the sick person, because I fear that it will lead him to feel secure from the scheme of Allah if the aspect of hope prevails.
The questioner : ... having a good opinion of Allah.
The Shaykh : Having a good opinion of Allah when he performs a righteous deed, and we return to the opinion we chose.
Now, fear of Allah the Mighty and Majestic also has degrees; it is not just one degree. Some people exaggerate in their fear, some people are negligent in their fear, and some people are moderate in their fear. The moderate fear is the one that restrains you from the prohibitions of Allah only. This fear, do not add to it; make it drive you, or make it a guard for you against the sins of Allah only. If you add to that, it will lead you to despair of the mercy of Allah and to despondency from His mercy. So the moderate, sound, balanced fear is the one that prevents its owner from the prohibitions of Allah only, not that it drives you to fear everything so that you fall into despondency from the mercy of Allah. And some people are negligent in fear; they do not exaggerate in it, they are negligent in it. Whenever you forbid them from a sin, they say:[Al-Hijr 15:49] And they are like the one who said: He does not read the verse that follows, and what is the verse that follows? [Al-Hijr 15:50] Many people are advised and they say this: "Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." Yes, so this is also very weak fear. And the correct thing, as I told you, and this is what the Shaykh al-Islam and Ibn al-Qayyim mentioned, is that the moderate, balanced fear is what prevents you from the prohibitions of Allah, not what makes you despair of His mercy. Perform the righteous deed, refrain from the forbidden, and be confident in Allah the Mighty and Majestic, because the promise of Allah is not broken. Yes.
And now we return to the divisions of fear according to the people of knowledge. They say: Fear is divided into categories:
Fear of worship and glorification, which is called the fear of the heart. This is only appropriate for Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And whoever associates with Allah in it anyone else is a mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah) with major shirk (associating partners with Allah), like those who fear idols, or fear the dead, or fear those they claim are awliya (close friends of Allah). Yes, he says, "You see that this wali (close friend of Allah) gestures at you, even if he is in the East and you are in the West." Yes, this, the people of knowledge say, is from major shirk (associating partners with Allah), and it is the fear of worship, submission, and humility, as those who worship graves and the like do. They fear the one in the grave more than they fear the Lord of the Worlds, and I seek refuge in Allah. And they claim that he is able to harm them and benefit them.
Submission and obedience. And as for this chapter, it is in the chapter of apprehension and fear. How beautiful it is that the author followed that chapter with this chapter. It has been mentioned to us previously that a person should have his fear and his hope on an equal footing, except that when he performs obedience, the aspect of hope should prevail, and when he commits disobedience or intends to commit disobedience, the aspect of fear should prevail. We have previously mentioned the disagreement of the scholars on this issue. Know that fear is of two types: fear of worship and fear of custom. As for fear of worship, it is that this fear is an internal, secret fear that obligates the one who has it to swear oaths, worship, and draw near to the one feared, as is done with Allah the Mighty and Majestic. This is like the fear of the dead and the awliya (close friends of Allah), and the like of those by whom people are frightened. This fear is worship, as you know, and directing it to other than Allah is from major shirk (associating partners with Allah) that takes one out of the religion. For example, if a person fears a buried wali (close friend of Allah), as some ignorant common people do who deify these awliya (close friends of Allah), saying, "The awliya (close friends of Allah) have a secret that will destroy you if you do not worship him." For example, this worshipful, secret fear obligates the one who fears to attach his heart to the one feared, as he attaches it to Allah the Mighty and Majestic. So what is the ruling on this type? This is major shirk (associating partners with Allah) that takes one out of the religion.
The second type is natural fear, which arises from one’s nature and disposition. If this fear leads to abandoning an obligatory duty, it is forbidden. If it leads to committing a forbidden act, it is forbidden. If it leads only to something permissible, what is its ruling? It is permissible. So this natural fear is judged by its outcome and by what it leads to. If it leads to a forbidden act, whether by committing a sin or by abandoning an obligation, it is forbidden. If it leads a person to something permissible for him, there is no harm in it. An example is a man who fears something out of natural fear, and because of this fear he abandons prayer even though it is obligatory, meaning that this fear does not actually affect him. We would say to him: It is forbidden for you to have this fear that leads you to abandon an obligation. Rather, go out and defend yourself as much as you can. Or if someone says to him: “Do this forbidden act, or I will do such and such to you,” and he is unable to carry out the threat, this is also a fear that is not permissible, because it leads him into a forbidden act without him having an excuse. A natural fear, such as seeing a fire burning in a place and running away from it to save oneself, is permissible. Is it permissible or not? It is permissible, and it may even be obligatory if it leads to saving one’s life.
There is a third type of fear that can be called fear but is not really fear; it is the illusion that a person imagines a source of fear exists when it does not. For example, he sees the shadow of a tree moving and thinks that it is an enemy threatening him. Yes, this is not what a believer should be. Rather, a person should drive such thoughts away from himself, because all illusions that come to the soul and have no reality, if one does not drive them away, will destroy you. This applies to this issue and others. Illusions that have no reality are not something a person should submit to. Rather, he should drive them away. If they lead him to a forbidden act or to abandoning an obligation, submitting to them becomes forbidden. So, this fear—real fear—divides into two categories. As for the third, we said it is an illusion, and a person should not let it affect him at all.
The first type of fear is the fear of a servant regarding deifying others. It is the hidden fear that is in the heart, where the heart holds fear of this source of fear and awe of it, just as one fears Allah (Mighty and Majestic). We said that this is...
The student: Major shirk.
The Shaykh : It is major shirk that takes one out of the religion, because fearing the creation in terms of worship is among the greatest acts of worship.
The second category is natural fear, and we said that a person is not blamed for it unless it leads to abandoning an obligation or committing a forbidden act; otherwise, a person is not blamed for it because it is by nature. We said that this type may sometimes be obligatory. When is it obligatory? It is obligatory if it leads to saving one’s life from destruction. Yes, fine. Suppose someone says: “Do not fear the fire.” If the fire is burning and coming toward you, and he says, “Do not fear it,” you say, “How can I not fear it? I fear it and save my life, I run, and I act according to this fear.”
As for the illusion, we said that even if it is counted as fear, it has no reality; it is not fear, and a person should not submit to it or follow it, because it leads him to many matters, not just in this issue, but in the issue of some inspirations that come to hearts, or in the issue of waswas (whispers) in prayer, or in ablution, or in transactions, or in other things. All of this that has no reality, a person should drive away and never submit to it. Now we know that fear and its connection to tawhid (the oneness of Allah) are very clear, because some of its categories are shirk (associating partners with Allah) that contradicts what? Tawhid. And this book was written to establish tawhid and to free oneself from what contradicts it.
The questioner : Like the fear of the Shaykh...
The Shaykh : The fear of the Shaykh is from shirk, because the Shaykh...
The questioner : Fear, meaning from one who knows him.
The Shaykh : From the ruler, this is real, natural fear.
The questioner : No, not a ruler.
The questioner : From you, for example, Your Eminence knows...
The Shaykh : If you are afraid I will hit you, that is natural fear, yes.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes... Now, the important thing is that this is from... Fear of apparent matters is from natural fear. Fear of apparent matters is from natural fear. For example, if a ceiling above someone is leaning and about to fall, and he fears it will fall on him, he fears it and moves away. He fears this. What is this? Is this fear of worship or natural? It is natural, because he fears an apparent, clear matter. But if he fears the buried Shaykh who has been dead for a hundred years, whose bones have decayed, and he fears him, this is hidden fear, because it is not a natural, apparent thing that is seen to be feared. That is why you find that those who have this fear in their hearts fear this thing with a hidden fear that is not disclosed, leading to worship and deifying him, and their hearts become attached to him more than they are attached to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Yes, that is right.
That is only Satan who frightens [you] of his supporters. So fear them not, but fear Me, if you are [indeed] believers.
إنما ذلكم الشيطان يخوف أولياءه فلا تخافوهم وخافون إن كنتم مؤمنينAnd your Lord says, "Call upon Me; I will respond to you."
وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْThe third opinion says: It should be that in the state of illness, the aspect of hope prevails, and in the state of health, the aspect of fear prevails. In the aspect of illness, so that he transitions from this world while having a good opinion of Allah, so the aspect of hope prevails. And in the time of health, the aspect of fear prevails so that it prevents him from sins. And Imam Ahmad said: "His fear and his hope should be equal; whichever one prevails, its owner is ruined." Meaning, neither one should prevail. He makes them like the wings of a bird. If the two wings of a bird are not equal, the bird falls. If you cut the feathers from one wing and let it fly, it will not fly if the second wing is complete. But the opinion that is stronger in my view is that in the aspect of obedience, the aspect of hope prevails, yes, and in the aspect of disobedience, the aspect of fear prevails. This is the closest thing, though it is not the completely close one, because Allah the Exalted says:
And they who give what they give while their hearts are fearful because they will be returning to their Lord -
والذين يؤتون ما آتوا وقلوبهم وجلة أنهم إلى ربهم راجعونI am as My slave thinks I am, and I am with him when he mentions Me
أنا عند ظن عبدي بي وأنا معه حين يذكرنيThe questioner : ... the second ... in the state of health, the aspect of fear prevails, and in the state of illness
The Shaykh : Even in the state of illness, because we do not say that the aspect of hope should prevail for the sick person, because I fear that it will lead him to feel secure from the scheme of Allah if the aspect of hope prevails.
The questioner : ... having a good opinion of Allah.
The Shaykh : Having a good opinion of Allah when he performs a righteous deed, and we return to the opinion we chose.
Now, fear of Allah the Mighty and Majestic also has degrees; it is not just one degree. Some people exaggerate in their fear, some people are negligent in their fear, and some people are moderate in their fear. The moderate fear is the one that restrains you from the prohibitions of Allah only. This fear, do not add to it; make it drive you, or make it a guard for you against the sins of Allah only. If you add to that, it will lead you to despair of the mercy of Allah and to despondency from His mercy. So the moderate, sound, balanced fear is the one that prevents its owner from the prohibitions of Allah only, not that it drives you to fear everything so that you fall into despondency from the mercy of Allah. And some people are negligent in fear; they do not exaggerate in it, they are negligent in it. Whenever you forbid them from a sin, they say:
[O Muhammad], inform My servants that it is I who am the Forgiving, the Merciful.
نبئ عبادي أني أنا الغفور الرحيمWoe to the praying ones
فويل للمصلينAnd that it is My punishment which is the painful punishment.
وأن عذابي هو العذابُ الأليمAnd now we return to the divisions of fear according to the people of knowledge. They say: Fear is divided into categories:
Fear of worship and glorification, which is called the fear of the heart. This is only appropriate for Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And whoever associates with Allah in it anyone else is a mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah) with major shirk (associating partners with Allah), like those who fear idols, or fear the dead, or fear those they claim are awliya (close friends of Allah). Yes, he says, "You see that this wali (close friend of Allah) gestures at you, even if he is in the East and you are in the West." Yes, this, the people of knowledge say, is from major shirk (associating partners with Allah), and it is the fear of worship, submission, and humility, as those who worship graves and the like do. They fear the one in the grave more than they fear the Lord of the Worlds, and I seek refuge in Allah. And they claim that he is able to harm them and benefit them.
Submission and obedience. And as for this chapter, it is in the chapter of apprehension and fear. How beautiful it is that the author followed that chapter with this chapter. It has been mentioned to us previously that a person should have his fear and his hope on an equal footing, except that when he performs obedience, the aspect of hope should prevail, and when he commits disobedience or intends to commit disobedience, the aspect of fear should prevail. We have previously mentioned the disagreement of the scholars on this issue. Know that fear is of two types: fear of worship and fear of custom. As for fear of worship, it is that this fear is an internal, secret fear that obligates the one who has it to swear oaths, worship, and draw near to the one feared, as is done with Allah the Mighty and Majestic. This is like the fear of the dead and the awliya (close friends of Allah), and the like of those by whom people are frightened. This fear is worship, as you know, and directing it to other than Allah is from major shirk (associating partners with Allah) that takes one out of the religion. For example, if a person fears a buried wali (close friend of Allah), as some ignorant common people do who deify these awliya (close friends of Allah), saying, "The awliya (close friends of Allah) have a secret that will destroy you if you do not worship him." For example, this worshipful, secret fear obligates the one who fears to attach his heart to the one feared, as he attaches it to Allah the Mighty and Majestic. So what is the ruling on this type? This is major shirk (associating partners with Allah) that takes one out of the religion.
The second type is natural fear, which arises from one’s nature and disposition. If this fear leads to abandoning an obligatory duty, it is forbidden. If it leads to committing a forbidden act, it is forbidden. If it leads only to something permissible, what is its ruling? It is permissible. So this natural fear is judged by its outcome and by what it leads to. If it leads to a forbidden act, whether by committing a sin or by abandoning an obligation, it is forbidden. If it leads a person to something permissible for him, there is no harm in it. An example is a man who fears something out of natural fear, and because of this fear he abandons prayer even though it is obligatory, meaning that this fear does not actually affect him. We would say to him: It is forbidden for you to have this fear that leads you to abandon an obligation. Rather, go out and defend yourself as much as you can. Or if someone says to him: “Do this forbidden act, or I will do such and such to you,” and he is unable to carry out the threat, this is also a fear that is not permissible, because it leads him into a forbidden act without him having an excuse. A natural fear, such as seeing a fire burning in a place and running away from it to save oneself, is permissible. Is it permissible or not? It is permissible, and it may even be obligatory if it leads to saving one’s life.
There is a third type of fear that can be called fear but is not really fear; it is the illusion that a person imagines a source of fear exists when it does not. For example, he sees the shadow of a tree moving and thinks that it is an enemy threatening him. Yes, this is not what a believer should be. Rather, a person should drive such thoughts away from himself, because all illusions that come to the soul and have no reality, if one does not drive them away, will destroy you. This applies to this issue and others. Illusions that have no reality are not something a person should submit to. Rather, he should drive them away. If they lead him to a forbidden act or to abandoning an obligation, submitting to them becomes forbidden. So, this fear—real fear—divides into two categories. As for the third, we said it is an illusion, and a person should not let it affect him at all.
The first type of fear is the fear of a servant regarding deifying others. It is the hidden fear that is in the heart, where the heart holds fear of this source of fear and awe of it, just as one fears Allah (Mighty and Majestic). We said that this is...
The student: Major shirk.
The Shaykh : It is major shirk that takes one out of the religion, because fearing the creation in terms of worship is among the greatest acts of worship.
The second category is natural fear, and we said that a person is not blamed for it unless it leads to abandoning an obligation or committing a forbidden act; otherwise, a person is not blamed for it because it is by nature. We said that this type may sometimes be obligatory. When is it obligatory? It is obligatory if it leads to saving one’s life from destruction. Yes, fine. Suppose someone says: “Do not fear the fire.” If the fire is burning and coming toward you, and he says, “Do not fear it,” you say, “How can I not fear it? I fear it and save my life, I run, and I act according to this fear.”
As for the illusion, we said that even if it is counted as fear, it has no reality; it is not fear, and a person should not submit to it or follow it, because it leads him to many matters, not just in this issue, but in the issue of some inspirations that come to hearts, or in the issue of waswas (whispers) in prayer, or in ablution, or in transactions, or in other things. All of this that has no reality, a person should drive away and never submit to it. Now we know that fear and its connection to tawhid (the oneness of Allah) are very clear, because some of its categories are shirk (associating partners with Allah) that contradicts what? Tawhid. And this book was written to establish tawhid and to free oneself from what contradicts it.
The questioner : Like the fear of the Shaykh...
The Shaykh : The fear of the Shaykh is from shirk, because the Shaykh...
The questioner : Fear, meaning from one who knows him.
The Shaykh : From the ruler, this is real, natural fear.
The questioner : No, not a ruler.
The questioner : From you, for example, Your Eminence knows...
The Shaykh : If you are afraid I will hit you, that is natural fear, yes.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes... Now, the important thing is that this is from... Fear of apparent matters is from natural fear. Fear of apparent matters is from natural fear. For example, if a ceiling above someone is leaning and about to fall, and he fears it will fall on him, he fears it and moves away. He fears this. What is this? Is this fear of worship or natural? It is natural, because he fears an apparent, clear matter. But if he fears the buried Shaykh who has been dead for a hundred years, whose bones have decayed, and he fears him, this is hidden fear, because it is not a natural, apparent thing that is seen to be feared. That is why you find that those who have this fear in their hearts fear this thing with a hidden fear that is not disclosed, leading to worship and deifying him, and their hearts become attached to him more than they are attached to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Yes, that is right.