Explanation of the author's statement: And his saying: ((He said, and whoever despairs of the mercy of his Lord, except the lost ones)).
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The Shaykh : Then he said: "And his saying [Al-Hijr 15:56]" is a clarification. The one who feels safe from the scheme of Allah is one in whom the aspect of hope has prevailed, if this expression is correct, but he was not concerned and thought that the blessings would last.
As for the second,[Al-Hijr 15:56] we look at the words of the speech, is an interrogative noun, and it is not conditional, because the verb after it is in the nominative case, and if it were conditional, it would be in the jussive case, and also because it did not complete the answer.
And his saying[Al-Hijr 15:56] what is the meaning of despair? Despair, the scholars said: it is the most severe form of hopelessness. Hopelessness has degrees, and when it reaches the highest degree, it is called despair, because the person despairs, withdraws, and distance is created between hope and expectation.
And his saying[Al-Hijr 15:56] this is mercy attributed to the doer, and its object is omitted, and the estimation is from the mercy of his Lord for him.
And his saying except is a particle of restriction, because the interrogative in his saying is intended for negation, for this reason we say: except is a particle of restriction and the lost ones is the subject of despair, meaning: no one despairs of the mercy of Allah except the lost ones. The lost one means the one who has lost guidance, the one who is lost and does not know what is obligatory for Allah the Mighty and Majestic, even though He, Glorified and Exalted is He, is near, the One who does not turn away, for this reason it came in the hadith .
As for the meaning of the verse, when Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was informed by the angels of a knowledgeable boy, he said to them:[Al-Hijr 15:54] meaning: that he (peace be upon him) considered it unlikely that there would be a child, and he had reached old age, and his wife was also barren and old, so he considered it unlikely and said: , meaning: are you informing us of a confirmed and actual matter, and I consider it unlikely, [Al-Hijr 15:55] meaning: with the truth that must happen, [Al-Hijr 15:55] meaning: do not consider it unlikely the mercy of Allah the Mighty and Majestic, and do not despair of the mercy of Allah, for Allah the Exalted is capable of all things, and how many a person reached extreme old age and was not given children, so Allah the Mighty and Majestic gave him children, for this reason it is not permissible for a person to despair of the mercy of Allah, so he said to them: [Al-Hijr 15:56] meaning: and I, praise be to Allah, am guided and knowledgeable, but I want to verify the matter, and increase in certainty and tranquility, and this is like the saying of Zakariyya (peace be upon him), what did Zakariyya say when Allah the Mighty and Majestic informed him? [Ali 'Imran 3:41] so this does not contradict certainty, but it is intended to increase what? Tranquility, like the saying of Ibrahim [Al-Baqarah 2:260].
So we understood that despair of the mercy of Allah, what is it? It is not permissible and it is misguidance, and that is because it is a bad opinion of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. A bad opinion of Allah is from two aspects: the first aspect: that it is a criticism of His power, for whoever knows that Allah is capable of all things does not consider anything unlikely regarding the power of Allah.
And the second: that it is a criticism of His mercy, because whoever knows that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, is Merciful, does not consider it unlikely that Allah the Mighty and Majestic will have mercy on him, for this reason the one who despairs is lost, the one who despairs of the mercy of his Lord is lost.
So if someone says: what is despair of the mercy of Allah? We say it is the most severe form of hopelessness, such that a person considers it unlikely that his desire will be fulfilled or his distress will be removed. Settle down, meaning that despair revolves around two things: a person considers it unlikely that his desire will be fulfilled or his distress will be removed, it revolves around this, despair revolves around this matter, so you do not consider it unlikely, my brother, that Allah will bring you what you desire, and you do not consider it unlikely that Allah will remove your distress, for how many a person fell into distress and thought there was no escape for him from it, so Allah the Exalted removed his distress, either by a previous deed of his or by a subsequent deed. The previous deed is like what happened to Yunus, Yunus fell into the belly of the whale in the darknesses of the sea, Allah the Mighty and Majestic said[As-Saffat 37:143-144] this one was saved by a previous deed, and many were saved by a subsequent deed, like the supplication of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) against the confederates on the night of the confederates, and his supplication at Badr, these were saved by a subsequent deed, which is supplication, and also the companions of the cave who the cave collapsed on them, for they had righteous deeds, but these righteous deeds did not repel it from them until they called upon Allah with them and sought nearness to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, through them.
The student : Shaykh, what is Yunus ...?
The Shaykh : No, it is more general, it was in the past,[As-Saffat 37:143-144].
The questioner : He said:[Al-Anbya 21:87].
The Shaykh : Yes, this is from it, but it indicates the past, for this reason when he said[Al-Anbya 21:87-88] he brought the fa' indicating order and succession, and that this followed his glorification, but the one indicating the past indicates that this is a previous thing.
Now we say what is despair? It is the most severe form of hopelessness, and it occurs in considering it unlikely that the desired will be fulfilled or the distress will be removed, and all of this is forbidden, and it is obligatory for a person to have a good opinion of Allah if he finds with him a reason for having a good opinion, to have a good opinion if he finds with him the reason. Yes?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Like what?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : No, because this originally has no hope to despair from, meaning there is no hope to despair from, for this reason we do not say, or for example a person died, it is not possible to return, because this has no hope to say that you have despaired and lost hope, yes.
So it is now clear that the author (may Allah have mercy on him) intended in this chapter that a person should combine between fear, so that he does not feel safe from the scheme of Allah, and hope, so that he does not despair of His mercy, because despair of the mercy of Allah causes a person to withdraw and not supplicate, and the world becomes narrow for him, and perhaps, and may Allah protect us, he will disbelieve, especially the one who worships Allah on a string, if good befalls him, he is reassured by it, and if a trial befalls him, he turns on his face.
And feeling safe from the scheme of Allah obliges a person to transgress and increase, and to think that he is self-sufficient and not to care about wasting the right of Allah, so each of them is at opposite extremes, and a person must be between fear and hope, so that he does not feel safe from the scheme of Allah and does not despair of His mercy.
Despair of His mercy is a wound in the aspect of hope, or not? And feeling safe from His scheme is a wound in the aspect of fear.
And I tell you that the deeds of the hearts are more severe than the deeds of the limbs. The deeds of the limbs, a person can do them with great ease, a person can, for example, in prayer stand and not move, and raise his hands at the takbir of ihram, and at the bowing, and at the rising from it, and bow with a straight back, to the last of what you know of the characteristics of prayer, can he? And with great ease, but the deeds of the hearts, from the love for Allah and the magnification of Him and the fear of Him and the hope in Him, this is a very, very difficult matter, until some of the Salaf said: "I have not treated my soul with anything as I have treated it with sincerity" with sincerity, which is the core of worship. One of us sees that, what Allah willed, he is the most sincere and most reliant person, and so on, but if he looks and turns a little, he finds that the heart is full of holes that need someone to patch it, so the deeds of the hearts, I urge you and myself, or I start with myself in reality, to consider and observe them always, and I think, and Allah knows best, that Allah did not legislate the acts of obedience except like the walls of a garden, to protect the original, which is the heart, because the acts of obedience are in the position of the walls that preserve the heart, so if a person cares for the walls but neglects the garden, what is the benefit? For this reason it is obligatory for us to care for the deeds of the hearts with complete care.
Then this station, which I mean the aspect of fear and hope, the speech on it has preceded, and that the scholars differed: does the aspect of hope prevail or the aspect of fear? Some of them said: the aspect of hope prevails, and some of them said: the aspect of fear prevails, and some of them said: they must be equal, and that they are for a person in his journey to his Lord in the position of the wings of a bird, if one of them breaks, the bird falls, and some of them said: in the state of health, the aspect of fear prevails until you are upright, and in the state of illness, the aspect of hope prevails, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sahih Muslim 2877c, and some of them distinguished between the act of obedience and the act of disobedience, and said: if you do the act of obedience, the aspect of hope prevails, because you did what you were commanded, and what remains is only the favor of Allah and His reward, and if you intend to commit a sin, the aspect of fear prevails until you are deterred from it.
In any case, a person is truly his own doctor as long as he is alert, wise, and resolute, and constantly reflects upon his heart; he is able to proceed toward Allah (Mighty and Majestic) in what is best for him. A person cannot make this matter a general rule, for some people are not rectified except by fear alone, and some are not rectified except by hope alone. So, for every situation, there is a specific discourse. However, originally, we follow the position of Imam Ahmad, who said: "It should be that his fear and his hope are equal, so whichever one prevails, its owner is destroyed". This is also the apparent meaning of the author's words; the apparent practice of the author, may Allah have mercy on him, Shaykh al-Islam Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab, is also that his fear and his hope should be equal, because he combined the two verses.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : What is possible?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : No, it is necessary. Whichever is more dominant, it is necessary. If he does not fear, he will fall into sin. Fear is necessary, and hope is also necessary.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : This is the chapter on fear and hope.
And who despairs of the mercy of his Lord except for those astray?"
ومن يقنط من رحمة ربه إلا الضالونAs for the second,
And who despairs of the mercy of his Lord except for those astray?"
ومن يقنط من رحمة ربه إلا الضالونWho despairs
من يقنطAnd his saying
who despairs of the mercy of his Lord
من يقنط من رحمة ربهAnd his saying
of the mercy of his Lord
من رحمة ربهAnd his saying
Except the lost ones
إلا الضالونAnd whoever despairs
ومن يقنطOur Lord is amazed at the despair of His servants and the nearness of His change. He looks at you, old and despairing, and He keeps laughing, knowing that your relief is near.
عجب ربنا من قنوط عباده وقرب غِيَره، ينظر إليكم أزلين قنطين فيظل يضحك يعلم أن فرجكم قريبAs for the meaning of the verse, when Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was informed by the angels of a knowledgeable boy, he said to them:
Have you given me good tidings although old age has come upon me? Then of what [wonder] do you inform?"
أبشرتموني على أن مسني الكبر فبم تبشرونSo with what do you give me good tidings?
فبم تبشرونThey said, "We have given you good tidings in truth
قالوا بشرناك بالحقso do not be of the despairing."
فلا تكن من القانطينAnd who despairs of the mercy of his Lord except for those astray?"
ومن يقنط من رحمة ربه إلا الضالونHe said, "My Lord, make for me a sign." He Said, "Your sign is that you will not [be able to] speak to the people for three days except by gesture
قال رب اجعل لي آية قال آيتك ألا تكلم الناس ثلاثة أيام إلا رمزا"My Lord, show me how You give life to the dead." [Allah] said, "Have you not believed?" He said, "Yes, but [I ask] only that my heart may be satisfied."
رب أرني كيف تحيي الموتى قال أولم تؤمن قال بلى ولكن ليطمئن قلبيSo we understood that despair of the mercy of Allah, what is it? It is not permissible and it is misguidance, and that is because it is a bad opinion of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. A bad opinion of Allah is from two aspects: the first aspect: that it is a criticism of His power, for whoever knows that Allah is capable of all things does not consider anything unlikely regarding the power of Allah.
And the second: that it is a criticism of His mercy, because whoever knows that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, is Merciful, does not consider it unlikely that Allah the Mighty and Majestic will have mercy on him, for this reason the one who despairs is lost, the one who despairs of the mercy of his Lord is lost.
So if someone says: what is despair of the mercy of Allah? We say it is the most severe form of hopelessness, such that a person considers it unlikely that his desire will be fulfilled or his distress will be removed. Settle down, meaning that despair revolves around two things: a person considers it unlikely that his desire will be fulfilled or his distress will be removed, it revolves around this, despair revolves around this matter, so you do not consider it unlikely, my brother, that Allah will bring you what you desire, and you do not consider it unlikely that Allah will remove your distress, for how many a person fell into distress and thought there was no escape for him from it, so Allah the Exalted removed his distress, either by a previous deed of his or by a subsequent deed. The previous deed is like what happened to Yunus, Yunus fell into the belly of the whale in the darknesses of the sea, Allah the Mighty and Majestic said
(143) And had he not been of those who exalt Allah, (144) He would have remained inside its belly until the Day they are resurrected.
فلولا أنه كان من المسبحين للبث في بطنه إلى يوم يبعثونThe student : Shaykh, what is Yunus ...?
The Shaykh : No, it is more general, it was in the past,
(143) And had he not been of those who exalt Allah, (144) He would have remained inside its belly until the Day they are resurrected.
كان من المسبحين للبث في بطنهThe questioner : He said:
There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers."
لا إله إلا أنت سبحانك إني كنت من الظالمينThe Shaykh : Yes, this is from it, but it indicates the past, for this reason when he said
(87) And [mention] the man of the fish, when he went off in anger and thought that We would not decree [anything] upon him. And he called out within the darknesses, "There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers." (88) So We responded to him and saved him from the distress. And thus do We save the believers.
لا إله إلا أنت سبحانك إني كنت من الظالمين فاستجبنا له ونجيناه من الغمNow we say what is despair? It is the most severe form of hopelessness, and it occurs in considering it unlikely that the desired will be fulfilled or the distress will be removed, and all of this is forbidden, and it is obligatory for a person to have a good opinion of Allah if he finds with him a reason for having a good opinion, to have a good opinion if he finds with him the reason. Yes?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Like what?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : No, because this originally has no hope to despair from, meaning there is no hope to despair from, for this reason we do not say, or for example a person died, it is not possible to return, because this has no hope to say that you have despaired and lost hope, yes.
So it is now clear that the author (may Allah have mercy on him) intended in this chapter that a person should combine between fear, so that he does not feel safe from the scheme of Allah, and hope, so that he does not despair of His mercy, because despair of the mercy of Allah causes a person to withdraw and not supplicate, and the world becomes narrow for him, and perhaps, and may Allah protect us, he will disbelieve, especially the one who worships Allah on a string, if good befalls him, he is reassured by it, and if a trial befalls him, he turns on his face.
And feeling safe from the scheme of Allah obliges a person to transgress and increase, and to think that he is self-sufficient and not to care about wasting the right of Allah, so each of them is at opposite extremes, and a person must be between fear and hope, so that he does not feel safe from the scheme of Allah and does not despair of His mercy.
Despair of His mercy is a wound in the aspect of hope, or not? And feeling safe from His scheme is a wound in the aspect of fear.
And I tell you that the deeds of the hearts are more severe than the deeds of the limbs. The deeds of the limbs, a person can do them with great ease, a person can, for example, in prayer stand and not move, and raise his hands at the takbir of ihram, and at the bowing, and at the rising from it, and bow with a straight back, to the last of what you know of the characteristics of prayer, can he? And with great ease, but the deeds of the hearts, from the love for Allah and the magnification of Him and the fear of Him and the hope in Him, this is a very, very difficult matter, until some of the Salaf said: "I have not treated my soul with anything as I have treated it with sincerity" with sincerity, which is the core of worship. One of us sees that, what Allah willed, he is the most sincere and most reliant person, and so on, but if he looks and turns a little, he finds that the heart is full of holes that need someone to patch it, so the deeds of the hearts, I urge you and myself, or I start with myself in reality, to consider and observe them always, and I think, and Allah knows best, that Allah did not legislate the acts of obedience except like the walls of a garden, to protect the original, which is the heart, because the acts of obedience are in the position of the walls that preserve the heart, so if a person cares for the walls but neglects the garden, what is the benefit? For this reason it is obligatory for us to care for the deeds of the hearts with complete care.
Then this station, which I mean the aspect of fear and hope, the speech on it has preceded, and that the scholars differed: does the aspect of hope prevail or the aspect of fear? Some of them said: the aspect of hope prevails, and some of them said: the aspect of fear prevails, and some of them said: they must be equal, and that they are for a person in his journey to his Lord in the position of the wings of a bird, if one of them breaks, the bird falls, and some of them said: in the state of health, the aspect of fear prevails until you are upright, and in the state of illness, the aspect of hope prevails, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
None of you should die but hoping only good from Allah
لا يموتن أحدكم إلا وهو يحسن الظن باللهIn any case, a person is truly his own doctor as long as he is alert, wise, and resolute, and constantly reflects upon his heart; he is able to proceed toward Allah (Mighty and Majestic) in what is best for him. A person cannot make this matter a general rule, for some people are not rectified except by fear alone, and some are not rectified except by hope alone. So, for every situation, there is a specific discourse. However, originally, we follow the position of Imam Ahmad, who said: "It should be that his fear and his hope are equal, so whichever one prevails, its owner is destroyed". This is also the apparent meaning of the author's words; the apparent practice of the author, may Allah have mercy on him, Shaykh al-Islam Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab, is also that his fear and his hope should be equal, because he combined the two verses.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : What is possible?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : No, it is necessary. Whichever is more dominant, it is necessary. If he does not fear, he will fall into sin. Fear is necessary, and hope is also necessary.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : This is the chapter on fear and hope.