The reason for the withholding of rain from Muslims while it is not withheld from disbelievers

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The following message was sent by one of the listening brothers. He says: I often hear that the non-descent of rain from the sky is connected to worship. If that is the case, do those in India and elsewhere who are constantly hit by floods worship Allah more than we do? Or is the matter a rotation of the celestial spheres? I hope you will clarify this if you please. In reality, this is on the tongues of many people, O Shaykh.
Answer: It is obligatory for the believer and every Muslim to know that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, created the creation and took charge of their provision, whether they are disbelievers or Muslims. He said: :

And there is no creature on earth but that upon Allah is its provision

وَمَا مِنْ دَابَّةٍ فِي الأَرْضِ إِلَّا عَلَى اللَّهِ رِزْقُهَا

[Hud:6], and He said, Glorified and Exalted is He:

And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ ۝

[Adh-Dhariyat 51:56]

I do not desire from them any provision, nor do I desire that they feed Me. Indeed, it is Allah who is the Provider, the Owner of might and strength. [Adh-Dhariyat:56-58], and He said, Glorified and Exalted is He:

And how many a creature carries not its [own] provision. Allah provides for it and for you

وَكَأَيِّن مِنْ دَابَّةٍ لا تَحْمِلُ رِزْقَهَا اللَّهُ يَرْزُقُهَا وَإِيَّاكُم

[Al-Ankabut:60]. So He, Glorified and Exalted is He, created the creation from jinn and humans, disbelievers and Muslims, and took charge of their provision. So He sends down rain and causes rivers to flow in Islamic lands and others, and He provides for these and those. But He, Glorified and Exalted is He, disciplines His Muslim servants when they do what contradicts His Shari'ah and disobey His command. He may discipline them, He may punish them, so that they may become aware and beware of the causes of His anger. He withholds rain, just as He withheld it in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was the best of times, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was the best of people and his Companions were the best of servants. And yet they were tested with drought and barrenness until the Muslims asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to seek relief, and they said:

O Messenger of Allah! The wealth is ruined and the paths are cut off, so call upon Allah to send us relief. So he sought relief and raised his hands and said: O Allah, send us rain, O Allah, send us rain, O Allah, send us rain. So Allah sent down rain, and he was on the pulpit, peace and blessings be upon him. Allah caused a cloud to form while he was on the pulpit, then it expanded and rained. The people went out, their souls distressed by the intensity of the rain. The rain did not stop until the next Friday came. They came to him and said: O Messenger of Allah! The wealth is ruined and the paths are cut off, so call upon Allah to hold it back from us! So he laughed, peace and blessings be upon him—because of the weakness of the sons of Adam; in the first Friday they asked for rain, and in the next Friday they asked for it to be held back. So he raised his hands and said: O Allah, around us and not upon us. O Allah, on the hills, the high places, the bellies of the valleys, and the places where trees grow. Anas said: So the clouds burst apart immediately, and the city became like a hollow place, raining here and there.

يا رسول الله! هلكت الأموال وانقطعت السبل فادع الله أن يغيثنا، فاستغاث فرفع يديه وقال: اللهم أغثنا اللهم أغثنا اللهم أغثنا، فأنزل الله المطر وهو على المنبر عليه الصلاة والسلام أنشأ الله سحابة وهو على المنبر ثم اتسعت فأمطرت فخرج الناس تهمهم نفوسهم من شدة المطر فلم يزل المطر حتى جاءت الجمعة الأخرى، فجاءوا إليه وقالوا: يا رسول الله! هلكت الأموال وانقطعت السبل فادع الله أن يمسكها عنا! فضحك عليه الصلاة والسلام - من ضعف بني آدم في الجمعة الأولى يطلبون الغيث وفي الجمعة الأخرى يطلبون الإمساك- فرفع يديه وقال: اللهم حوالينا ولا علينا اللهم على الآكام والظراب وبطون الأودية ومنابت الشجر، قال أنس: فتمزق السحاب في الحال وصارت المدينة مثل الجوبة تمطر هاهنا وهاهنا

.
The point is that he (peace and blessings be upon him) sought relief and was afflicted with drought in his time, and his Companions were afflicted with drought, and they were the best of people, as a discipline and a warning so that people may become aware, and so that they may humble themselves to their Lord and ask Him of His bounty, Glorified and Exalted is He. For their discipline is good for them; they become aware and worship Him through supplication, humble themselves to Him, and know that He is the Provider. So it is like this for Islamic lands, even if their lands are better than the lands of the disbelievers, and they are better than the disbelievers, and they are the most worshipful of people to their Lord, Glorified and Exalted is He. But He tests them with ease and hardship: with ease so that they may be grateful, and with hardship so that they may become aware and be patient, and so that He may reward them with a great reward for their patience, and with a great reward for their gratitude. If they do not become aware, they are afflicted with drought and barrenness, or with the empowerment of enemies, or with something else, until they become aware, until they return to Allah, until they repent to Him, as He said, Glorified and Exalted is He:

And whatever strikes you of disaster - it is for what your hands have earned; but He pardons much.

وَمَا أَصَابَكُمْ مِنْ مُصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ وَيَعْفُوا عَنْ كَثِيرٍ

[Ash-Shura:30]. And He said regarding the story of Uhud, when they were afflicted with what they were afflicted with of defeat:

Why [is it that] when a [single] disaster struck you [on the day of Uhud], although you had struck [the enemy in the battle of Badr] with one twice as great

أَوَلَمَّا أَصَابَتْكُمْ مُصِيبَةٌ قَدْ أَصَبْتُمْ مِثْلَيْهَا

[Al-Imran:165], meaning: the day of Badr

you said, "From where is this?" Say, "It is from yourselves."

قُلْتُمْ أَنَّى هَذَا قُلْ هُوََ مِنْ عِنْدِ أَنْفُسِكُمْ

[Al-Imran:165]. The Muslims were victorious over the disbelievers at Badr, and Allah defeated the disbelievers; they took seventy of them captive and killed seventy of the disbelievers... the call to the disbelievers and victory for the Muslims. And on the day of Uhud, calamities befell the Muslims because of their own actions. For the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered the archers to hold the pass behind the Muslims, and there were fifty of them, and Abdullah ibn Jubayr was their commander. He said to them:

Do not leave your positions, even if you see us being torn apart by birds.

لا تبرحوا مكانكم ولو رأيتمونا تخطفنا الطير

Whether we are victorious or not, do not leave your place. When Allah gave the Muslims victory and the disbelievers fled, the archers thought that this was the decision and that the matter was over and that nothing remained but to gather the spoils. So they left their place. Their commander ordered them to stay and reminded them of the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), but they refused him and said: The matter is over and the disbelievers have fled. When they did that, the cavalry of the disbelievers came from behind the Muslims and entered through this pass that they had neglected, and the calamity befell the Muslims because of their own actions.
The point is that the Muslims may be tested with matters that serve as a reminder for them and contain benefits for them, and your Lord is the most Wise and the most Knowing, Glorified and Exalted is He. So that they may become aware and know that victory is in the hand of Allah, and that the fact that they worshipped Allah and that they had the Messenger of Allah among them is not sufficient. Rather, it is necessary to act in obedience to Allah, it is necessary to carry out the command of Allah, and it is necessary to be patient in the jihad against the enemies of Allah. For this reason, He warned them with His saying, Glorified and Exalted is He:

Why [is it that] when a [single] disaster struck you [on the day of Uhud], although you had struck [the enemy in the battle of Badr] with one twice as great, you said, "From where is this?" Say, "It is from yourselves."

أَوَلَمَّا أَصَابَتْكُمْ مُصِيبَةٌ قَدْ أَصَبْتُمْ مِثْلَيْهَا قُلْتُمْ أَنَّى هَذَا قُلْ هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ أَنْفُسِكُمْ

[Al-Imran:165].
If the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Companions were afflicted with the punishments of sins and tested as others are tested, how much more so for others? As for those disbelievers, they have been left to themselves; they obeyed Satan and followed Satan in India and other than India, and in America, and in England, and in every place. If Allah grants them blessings and sends down their provisions and rain comes to them, it is a gradual leading astray for them, and the end is wretched. As He said: :

So when they forgot that by which they had been reminded, We opened to them the doors of every [good] thing until, when they rejoiced in that which they were given, We seized them suddenly

فَلَمَّا نَسُوا مَا ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ فَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ أَبْوَابَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ حَتَّى إِذَا فَرِحُوا بِمَا أُوتُوا أَخَذْنَاهُمْ بَغْتَةً

[Al-An'am:44]. So punishments descend upon them, just as they descended upon them in the First and Second World Wars. Punishments descended upon them because of disbelief and sins. So Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, gives them respite but does not neglect them, Glorified and Exalted is He:

And Allah is not unaware of what you do.

وَمَا اللَّهُ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّاا تَعْمَلُونَ

[Al-Baqarah:74]. And He says, Glorified and Exalted is He:

And I will give them time. Indeed, my plan is firm.

وَأُمْلِي لَهُمْ إِنَّ كَيْدِي مَتِينٌ

[Al-A'raf:183]. So Allah may give respite to the disbelievers and continue to send down blessings upon them, such as rain, the flowing of rivers, and the production of fruits. Then He takes them when He wills, taking them as the Mighty, the Capable, Glorified and Exalted is He. Then they are gradually led astray thereafter; as the blessings increase and security continues for them while they are in the disobedience of Allah and in disbelief in Him, the punishment on the Day of Resurrection becomes greater and more severe for them on the Day of Resurrection than if they had been taken in this world with some measure of it.
So the sensible person should not be deceived by these matters, and the Muslim should be aware of these matters. The Muslims may be tested, and then they may have a good outcome. Then their testing benefits them: if they are tested with ease and they are grateful, that benefits them. And if they are tested with hardship and they submit to Allah, are patient, ask Him, seek His aid, Glorified and Exalted is He, and repent to Him, that benefits them.
We ask Allah for success and guidance for everyone.
The presenter: So the issue of the celestial spheres that our brother mentions has no connection to this topic?
The Shaykh: No, he thinks it is a custom. It is not a custom; rather, Allah has the ruling in it, Glorified and Exalted is He. Yes.

Source binbaz.org.sa

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

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