CRYING IN FEAR OF THE FIRE IS A REDEMPTION FROM IT
Crying in Fear of the Fire is a Redemption from it
If one was to cry fearing the Fire he will be spared from it, and he who seeks protection from it shall gain it. When a person cries fearing the Fire, he is in fact crying from the fear of Allah. For he who avoids transgressing the boundaries set by Allah hoping not to displease Him has indeed feared Him.
Abu Hurayrah (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said; “He who sheds tears fearing Allah shall not enter Hell and will do so only if milk returns to the teats.” ( It is an expression meaning this can never happen. ) This was reported by Nasal and Tirmidhi (Tirmidhi, #1633)
Ibn ‘Abbas (radi Allahu ‘anhuma) said that he heard the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) say, “The eyes that shed tears in the early hours of the morning will not be touched by Hellfire (similar to) the eyes that keep vigilance for the sake of Allah.” (Tirmidhi, #1639)
Ibn Mas`ud (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said: “A person who sheds even one tear [like the size of a fly’s head] from the fear of Allah and as a result is taken ill, will be spared from Hellfire.” This was reported by Ibn Majah. (Ibn Majah, #4197)
It was narrated by Nadhr Ibn Sa’id with a traceable chain of transmission to the Prophet (pbuh) that he said: “No eye wells with tears from the fear of Allah except that He bars that body from Hellfire. If the tears were to flow to his cheeks, then his face shall not be subjected to disgrace. If a man weeps for his nation, Allah will spare it from Hellfire solely because of the tears of that man. Every deed has its rewards but the reward for tears [shed from the fear of Allah]is the extinguishing of many seas of Hellfire.”
Farqad Al-Sabkhi said: ‘I read in some books that Paradise will plead to Allah on behalf of the one who cried yearning for it. It will say to Allah, ‘O Lord, let him enter Paradise as he had cried yearning me!’ Hell will seek protection from Allah on behalf of the one who cried fearing it. It will say to Allah, ‘O Lord, protect him from the Fire as he had cried fearing that he will enter me!’
It was narrated by ‘Abdu’l-Rahman Ibn Samrah (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) that the Prophet (pbuh) said: “I saw a dream last night ” It’s a long hadith in which he described the dream thus, “I saw a man from my nation on the edge of Hell. Fear of Allah overtook him and he was saved from it. I saw another man from my nation topple into Hell. Tears from the fear of Allah, the Most Exalted started to well in his eyes so he was removed from Hell.” (Tahrim(66): 6)
In another hadith narrated on the authority of Anas (radiyAllahu ‘anhu), he heard the Prophet (pbuh) read the verse:
“O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones. “ (It is mentioned by Suyuti in his al-Jami al-Kabir and TabaranI in his al-Kabir)
Upon hearing this, a dark complexioned man in the Prophet’s presence started to weep loudly. Angel Jibril (alayhi as-salam) descended and asked,’Whom is this man who is crying?’ The Prophet (pbuh) replied that he was an Abyssinian and praised him much. To that Jibril (‘alayhi as-salarn) said: “Allah, the Most Exalted said: ‘By My Might, Power and Loftiness above My Throne, no slave of Mine cries fearing Me in this world except that Ishall increase his laughter in Paradise.’”
Section One:
Seeking Protection from Hellfire
Allah, the Most High said:
“Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], “Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You [above such a thing]; then protect us from the punishment of the Fire. Our Lord, indeed whoever You admit to the Fire—You have disgraced him, and for the wrongdoers there are no helpers. Our Lord, indeed we have heard a caller [Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)] calling to faith, [saying],‘Believe in your Lord,’ and we have believed.OurLord,so forgive us oursins and remove from us our misdeeds and cause us to die among the righteous. Our Lord, and grant us what You promised us through Your messengers and do not disgrace us on the Day of Resurrection. Indeed, You do not fail in [Your] promise.’ And their Lord responded to them. “ (Al-‘Imran (2): 191-195)
In a sound hadith narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (radiyAllahu ‘anhu), the Prophet (pbuh) said pertaining to the Angels encompassing gatherings of remembrance (dhikr). He (pbuh) said: “Allah, the Most Exalted, asks them (i.e. the Angels), though He is the All-Knowing, “From what to these people seek protection?” The Angels will say, “From Hellfire.” He will ask, “Have they seen it?” They will reply, “No. By Allah, have they not seen it?” He will say, “What if they were to see it?” The Angels will reply, “If they do see it, they will fear it more.” Allah will say, “Indeed I call you as witness to (the fact that) I have forgiven them of their sins.” (Bukhari, #6408 and Muslim, #2689.)
Abu Hurayrah (radiyAllahu ‘anhu) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said: “On a very hot day, if a man says, ‘There is no deity except Allah. How hot is this day. O Allah! Protect me from the Fire of Hell.’Allah will say to Hell, ‘A slave among my slaves has sought protection in Me from your Fire. I call you as witness that indeed I have given him protection.’ On a bitter cold day, if a man says, ‘There is no deity but Allah. How cold is this day. O Allah! Protect me from the Zamharir of Hell. Allah will say to Hell, ‘A slave among my slaves has sought protection in Me from your zamharir., I call you as witness that indeed I have given him protection.’The Companions asked the Prophet (pbuh): ‘What is the zamharir of Hell?’ He replied, “It is a house in which the disbeliever is thrown wherein his appearance alters (i.e. his body is cut and deformed) as a result of the bitter cold.” (Ibn al-Sunni, ‘Amal al-Yawm wal-Layl’, #306; and Abu Nu’aym in his work of similar tide. The isnad is weak as graded by Al-Sakhawi in his, Al-Maqasid al-Husnah’, #537; and Al-Ajluni in his, ‘Kashf al-Khafa’, 2/466.)
By Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali
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