THE AUTHOR’S INTRODUCTION
With the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Most Merciful
The Imam, may Allah bestow His mercy upon him,said:
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon Muhammad the seal of the Prophets, the leader of the pious, the Messenger of the Lord of all the worlds, and upon his Family, his Companions and those that followed them until the Day of Judgment.
Allah Created His creation to acknowledge Him, to worship Him and fear Him. He has made proofs that point to His greatness and magnificence such that He is held in respect and awe with a mighty fear. He described to them His severe punishment and the place of torment prepared for those who defy Him, leading mankind to fortify himself with enacting good deeds. Allah, the Most High, has often mentioned Hellfire in His Book and the torment it contains for its dwellers.
It contains [the tree of] al-Zaqum, humiliation, boiling water, chains, shackles and other many horrific things. He calls on His slaves to fear Him and abide by his Commands, mentioning these things so that His Pleasure is sought.They are also called to abstain from all that is prohibited and disliked. He who ponders upon the noble Qur’an will find it very surprising. This is also the case with authentic Sunnah that interprets the meaning of the Book.
Similarly, the lives of the righteous predecessors and learned scholars from the Companions of the Prophet(pbuh) and their followers (tabi`in) will surprise him. If he reflects on their lives and the principles they held pertaining to fearing Allah and humbling themselves to Him, he will realise that such principles accorded them the higher virtues and prestige. They strived endlessly to fulfill all obligations and refrain from even the minute aspects of things that are suspect and disliked, let alone things prohibited. Thus, the scholars said:‘The fear of Allah, the Most High,shields the heart of those who are pious from the enchantments of this world and the doubtful things.’
Allah, the Most High, has promised Paradise for the one who fears Him among the people of faith. As He said:
“But for those who feared the position of their Lord, there are two Gardens.” (al-Rahman (55): 46)
Mujahid said regarding this verse, ‘In this verse, Allah is saying that He is observant of all deeds one earns for himself. He who wants to perform a deed and fears the rank (maqam) of his Lord as regards this deed, then for him are two gardens (janntan).’ He added, ‘This is (about) a man who was planning to sin but remembered the rank (maqam) of his Lord and abstained from the sin.’ It is reported that he also said: ‘He is a person who thought of sinning imasiya) but left it when remembering Allah.’
‘Ali Ibn Abl Talhah narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas (radi Allahu ‘anhuma) that he said: ‘Allah has promised Paradise for the believers who fear His position (maqam) and fulfill all obligations ( ‘ fara’id).’
Al-Hasan said: ‘Paradise said: ‘O Lord, for whom did you create me?’ He, the Most High, replied: ‘For him who worships Me while fearing Me.’
Yazid Ibn ‘Abdullah said: We used to discuss that the dweller of Hellfire is one whose fear of Allah did not deter him from sinning.’
Wahab Ibn Munabih said: ‘Allah is not worshipped except by having fear of Him.’
Abu Sulayman al-Daranl said: ‘The origin of all goodness in the world and the Hereafter is the fear of Allah, the Most High. Every heart that does not have the fear of Allah is a heart that’s corrupted.’
Wuhayb Ibn Al-Warad said: We were informed about a similitude for the fear of Allah in the body. It was said that fear of Allah is like a man who is in his house and in charge of it, as long as the owner of the house lives there. However, if the owner leaves the house and admits another person in the house, the house becomes corrupted. Similarly, the fear of Allah Almighty, if present in the body, is in-charge as long as there is the fear of Allah in it. When the fear of Allah leaves, the body becomes corrupted so much so that when a man passes by a gathering of people, they say, ‘This is an awful person and they would say to one another: ‘what do you think of such a person?’ They would reply: ‘we have no feelings but hatred towards him.’ This is if the fear of Allah leaves the man’s body. If a man who fears Allah passed by them, they would remark:’he is such a blessed person.’They would ask each other:’what do you think of him?’They would reply: ‘we have no feelings but love for him.”
Fudayl Ibn `Iyyad said:’Fear is better than hope if the person is healthy. If he is terminally ill, then hope is better.’
Ibn Al-Mubarak was asked about two men, one of whom fears Allah while the other was killed in the battlefield fighting for the sake of Allah Almighty. He replied, ‘The one I have greater admiration for is he who fears Allah more while among the people.’
I sought guidance from Allah, the Most High, regarding the compilation of a book containing the description of Hellfire and of what is prepared for the dwellers therein of torment and punishment. With the Will of Allah,it will deter the soul from transgression and be an impetus to nourish and guide the soul—especially in our present time that is characterised and overwhelmed by laziness and neglect.
The soul is overpowered by desires and it seeks Allah for safety. Desires do not leave the heart except by one of two things: (Having a) fear that is awful and incendiary; or a yearning that is pleasant and worrying.
I have titled the book `Al-Takhwif min al-Nar wal-Tarif bi Hali Dar al-Bawar’ [The Fear of Hellfire and Knowing the State of its Dwellers – [Fleeing from the Fire]]. I have divided it into thirty chapters [and sub-sections].
May Allah protect us from the Fire of Hell, may He put a barrier between the fire and us, by His Grace and Mercy.
By Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali
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