SINS !!!

Society Religion & Philosophy
1

Fwd’ing

The Consequences of Sin

No emphasis is placed on abstaining from sins. So what is sin? Anything which displeases Allah is a sin. People complain that they do not have tranquillity in their homes or peace of mind after reading Salaah, tahajjud and even after performing their tasbeehaat. They ask me the reason for this. They complain to me, “Why can’t I get peace of mind or peace of heart?” Women are especially prone to this, often saying, “I have performed so much ibadaah, but to no avail!”

The reason for this is that our focus is not on the sins we commit. We continue sinning again and again. Rasoolullah (SAW)told us that when someone sins Allah’s wrath descends on that person. The wrath comes in the form of diseases, decrease in provisions, worries, accidents, children’s ill-heath, fighting at home, divorce and so on. The words of Allah are the absolute truth, yet we do not pay attention to the amount of sins we are committing. We only count our good deeds!

Many women often ask for set recitations to read so that they can overcome a problem. Many people often ask me to recite certain wazaif (set recitations from Quran or ahadith), but I refuse. I know that there will be no benefit from reciting these wazaif. Help does not come from these wazaif. Allah’s anger is incurred, and problems arise, due to the sins of the individual. From our disobedience evil sprouts and the result is fighting and fitna. A sinner does not have, and can never have, peace of mind - a sinner always has a thousand problems. You are deluding yourself if you think that by uttering certain recitations all will be fine. Sins have an effect. Rasoolullah (SAW)has shown us the example of the Bani Israeel (Children of Israel) . They were the chosen people, but could not refrain from committing sins, and hence were cursed and destroyed. Whatever laws of Allah were sent to them were ignored, and thus Allah’s wrath and curse engulfed them.

Whenever a man or woman becomes virtuous, by both practising according to the Deen and abstaining from sins, he or she receives Allah’s blessings. Allah (SWT) says that there is no limit to His blessings. Allah’s help is always with His obedient servants, wherever they go. All their problems disappear and they are left without worry. Just as there is no limit to the blessings of Allah, there is also a great wrath and curse upon those who sin, a curse that continues to the extent of seven generations. This is the effect of sinning, so there is no such thing as a small sin. A sin is any act that angers Allah. Do not take it lightly if Allah is displeased with a person, for a sin is a sin. Imagine a curse which continues through seven generations. Can anyone fight with Allah? Did Firoun (Pharaoh) fight? He was destroyed. Powerful people have come and gone, but none could play games with Allah for they all fought a losing battle. They were rich and had power, and even today you have individuals or nations with similar attributes. What happened to the Soviet Union? Allah sb() broke it into bits and pieces. Do not think America is strong and powerful for it is nothing in the sight of Allah. Allah is the all-Powerful and is the Lord of everything.

When Allah’s curse descends, it affects all those who are disobedient, whether they are Muslim or non-Muslim. Even for those people who go to Makkah and Madinah, and then carry on sinning, there is a terrible punishment.

2

Backbiting removes all Good Deeds

Another major sin being committed today is backbiting (gheebah), especially amongst our women. Wherever they meet each other, all they want to do is backbite - it has become like a hobby for them. They backbite about their friends and relatives without understanding the consequences of committing this major sin. In the Ahadeeth it has been said that this sin is worse than adultery. Backbiting is to talk about another behind their back. If you talk to others about a certain characteristic of a person, knowing that he or she will dislike you doing so, then you are backbiting, even if that person does possess that characteristic. If that person does not possess that particular quality, then you are slandering them, which is an even greater sin to commit. There is no need for us to talk about others - backbiting is a terrible sin. If people knew how awful the sin of backbiting is they would never do it. Backbiting takes away all the good deeds of a person. If, after praying Salaah, going for Hajj, reciting tasbeehaat, keeping fasts, reciting the Qur'an, you then backbite, all of your ibadaah is washed away.

Jabir bin Abdullah (RA) narrates:

Once we were sitting with Rasoolullah (SAW)when a terrible smell encompassed us. We asked Rasoolullah (SAW)'What is this smell?' Rasoolullah (SAW) replied, 'this is the smell of those who backbited in this dunya and are now in Hell.'

Astaghfirullah, can you comprehend this widespread and terrible sin which has become so commonplace? Abu Amamah (RA) narrates that there will be people on the Day of Judgement who will have no good deeds to their names. They will say, 'I have performed Hajj and Umrah and have done a lot of dhikr. I have recited the Qur'an and read my Salaah and my tahajjud. I was a devout worshipper. So where are my good deeds?' Allah will reply, "All your deeds have been wiped clean by your backbiting".This sin has the same effect on ibaadah as a hole in the bottom of a container does to water that is poured into it. You will see that after a while there will be no water left in the container. When we are raised up in the Hereafter we will find out the true consequences of this sin and how much of our ibadaah we wasted. There will also be a terrible punishment for people who slander. To attribute false things to someone is to commit the sin of slander. When people cross the bridge of Siraat, those who slandered will be stopped. The hell fire will be on all sides. They will be asked to bring forward witnesses for their slanderous remarks, and they will only be allowed to move once they have done so.

3

Remove All Pictures

Another major sin prevalent everywhere is pictures. Shaytaan has fooled us into thinking that it is a minor sin, when in actual fact it is a major sin. People have been so misled that they think this is not even a sin! To keep pictures is a big sin.

Ali karamallah wajhu said that Rasoolullah (SAW) ordered him to take down and throw away any pictures he saw.
(MUSLIM)

There should never be pictures in any household for the hadith clearly states that the angels of mercy will never come to the house where there are pictures. No matter how much dhikr you do in a house which contains pictures, you will not find any angels of mercy entering there. Purify your homes from pictures. If you have any pictures, then rip them up and throw them away. There are two things that prevent angels of mercy from entering a house: pictures and dogs.

Once Rasoolullah (SAW) made a promise to meet Jibreel (RA) at a specified time. Rasoolullah (SAW) waited and waited until the time had elapsed, but Jibreel (RA) did not arrive. Rasoolullah (SAW) saw a dog in the house and chased it out. As soon as the dog left the house, Jibreel (RA) came and informed Rasoolullah (SAW) that angels do not enter houses where there are dogs or pictures present. Look at the rank and status of Rasoolullah (SAW) and look at the lesson which we should learn from this. Do we think that this does not apply to us? If the angels of mercy will not come to our houses, how will we receive mercy? How will there be peace in that household?

4

“I have come to destroy musical instruments”

Music and singing have also become normal practice in many households. By recording, taping and watching videos and so on, music in its various forms has entered our households. In Musnad Ahmad it is recorded that Rasoolullah (SAW) said,

"I have come to destroy musical instruments."

Islam does not tolerate us listening to music so get rid of these satanic practices. It has been reported in the Ahadeeth that those who listen to music will be tortured by molten lead being poured into their ears. This torture will be inflicted on those who either listen to or play music.

5

*TV -Three Sins in One *

Shaytaan has made it very easy for the Muslims to commit all these three major sins, that is music, pictures and adultery, all at once. All we have to do is purchase a box by the name of television and, in one instant, we can commit all three of these big sins. By viewing pictures of ghair mehram men and women whilst listening to music, we commit all three in one go. There is a galaxy of sins before us. On one side of the room we have a TV and on the other side we have pictures of Makkah and Madinah. When we have khatams, or when we recite the Qur'an, we place a cover over the TV! We fool ourselves by telling others; "We have only bought the TV for the children!" The slogan of those same mothers who want to make their sons into friends of Allah is, "The children can watch cartoons and we only watch the News!"

What sin is not comitted when you watch TV? By viewing pictures of the opposite sex, you are always committing sins whilst watching the TV. There is an immense amount immorality shown on television, together with music, singing and dancing. It all emanates from that box! Can the mercy of Allah come to a place where there are Haraam activities taking place? Can we play games with Allah? How can we break the laws of Allah? People say, "Certain ulema or a certain alim has said that it is permissible to watch TV, videos and to make video films." Do not follow these so-called ulema - follow the Qur'an and the Hadith. In every era there are Ulema Soo (evil/false scholars) and there are Ulema Haqq (true scholars). The ulema soo have sold the deen of Allah for the sake of a few pennies. They have played games with the laws of Allah.

There was a king by the name of Akbar of whom you may have heard. He was one of the great moghul emperors of India, and a devout worshipper. He used to pray tahajjud, recite the Qur'an and his feet used to swell from standing for long periods in nawafil (optional) Salaah. He was a pious and pure man, but then he created a new deen by the name of deeni Akbar, in which he changed the laws of Allah to his own, and made himself god! The main reason for his straying from the truth was the deviated ulema of his court who changed the laws of Allah. They made haraam into halaal and vice versa, legalised marriage with idol worshippers, and changed the deen of Allah into the deen of Akbar.

We should try to abstain from these sins, and not seek fatwas (rulings) from the sold-out scholars. Every source is of two types - you have pure and you have contaminated. You can find pure milk and you can also find contaminated milk. We have had true prophets (may Allah be pleased with them) and we have had false Prophets, like Gulam Ahmad Mirza. So we should recognise those who are true from those who are false. The Shari'ah and Sunnah should be the criteria for this judgement. We should look at the life of Rasoolullah (SAW) and the lives of the Sahaabah (RA). If we find examples from there then we should follow them. And if we find no evidence for certain practices, then we should refrain.

As I said earlier, we find women, music and adultery and all sorts of gross immorality on the TV. Just as a bottle of wine is haraam, so is one drop of it. If we keep a bottle of wine in our fridge do we think that the angels of mercy will come in to our homes? No, they will not enter places where there are haraam things. Similarly the TV is haraam and to say that we are watching the Ka'abah on TV is absurd. Whatever is haraam in total is also haraam in part. No one can make haraam into halaal. People have misconceptions about the TV and say it has help spread Islam, but this is impossible. No Haraam tool can spread Islam.

People say we should hold functions for our youngsters, have some music and films and then preach to them about Islam! How can you teach Islam in this kind of haraam environment? Beware of these people for this is an age of darkness and an age of sin. We are getting closer to the time of the coming of Imam Mahdi. Rasoolullah (SAW) has foretold about the times in which we are living. People will wake up as Muslims and become kafirs in the evening. This is apparent today. This is a time of friction and tribulation as foretold by Rasoolullah (SAW).

6

*Purdah - Segregation *

Many Muslim women suffer from an inferiority complex and so they aspire to western values. It is an absolute necessity for a woman to observe purdah because Allah has ordered purdah for the women. Hadhrat A'isha (RA) narrated a hadith which tells us how terrible a sin it is to disregard purdah. A woman, who was going to the Mosque for prayers, once passed in front of Rasoolullah (SAW). Rasoolullah (SAW) said to A'isha(RA) , "See that women who is not observing purdah - the Bani Israeel were destroyed due to their women's lack of observing purdah."

The whole nation was destroyed because their women did not observe purdah. Allah (SWT) has forbidden women to go outdoors if they are not observing the laws of purdah. The Shari'ah requires women to be completely covered before going outdoors. There is very strict punishment for not observing the laws of segregation. It is stated in the hadith that women who do not observe purdah will be thrown into a cauldron which has been lit with hot burning coal. **On the night of Mi'raaj, Rasoolullah (SAW) was shown women who were being punished because of their lack of observing purdah in this world. Another hadith states that **whenever a woman steps outdoors whilst wearing perfume, she is an adulterer. Whatever has been reported by Rasoolullah (SAW) is the absolute truth. Our Iman and certainty is weak because we cannot comprehend the punishments that are proven from these Ahadeeth.

I have mentioned a few of the major sins. We have to abstain from these and save ourselves. The punishments of the Hereafter are very severe. However we have the opportunity to save ourselves in this world. We should repent from all these major sins - not observing purdah, listening to music, singing and dancing, watching television, leaving Salaah, and backbiting.

7

The Punishment for Neglecting Salaah

Let us look at the sins which are being committed on a daily basis. First of all look at the sins related to Salaah (prayer). Salaah is an obligatory duty which Allah has ordained. It has many blessings and it is a major sin to leave it. As I said earlier, Allah's wrath comes due to the sins that we commit. A hadith in Tabraani says,

"If anyone leaves Salaah he becomes a kafir."

This applies to both men and women. Mufassireen (commentators of the Qur'an) have stated that even if the individual does not become a kafir, he or she has reached the border of kufr and will definitely die a kafir. This is the position of those who regularly miss their prayers, knowing full well that Salaah is obligatory for them. Even if they perform Hajj, there is no excuse knowingly to neglect praying Salaah.

Then there are those who are not regular with their prayers. They pray Dhuhr late and sometimes wake up for Fajr and other times oversleep. We have been told in a hadith that for those who are not concerned about missing their Salaah, or have a lack of interest and laziness towards Salaah, there are fifteen punishments. Some of these punishments come in this lifetime, some at the time of death, some in the grave and some in the Hereafter. Out of these fifteen punishments the lightest is that Allah does not accept any of their prayers. Even if they ask somebody to pray for them, Allah will not accept that prayer. Although Allah accepts the prayers of the pious and righteous, when they pray for someone who does not perform His Salaah, Allah does not accept the prayer.

You may have heard the narration about a young woman who passed away and suffered punishment in the grave. This is a true story for us to reflect upon. Even today there are cases of people seeing the punishment of the grave being inflicted on their relatives. The Quran and Ahadeeth cannot be wrong. They have explained about the punishment of the grave and it is the truth. The young woman passed away, so the people prayed her janazah Salaah and then buried her. The girl's brother went home and found his wallet was missing and realized that it must have fallen into his sister's grave. He went back to the grave, which was still fresh, to retrieve his wallet. When he dug the grave he found his sister was burning in fire and in immense pain. Astounded, he jumped back and went to inquire the reason for this punishment. People found out that she used to be irregular in Salaah. This is what will happen in the graves of those who are lazy in performing Salaah. So when a person does not pray at all, how will he have peace and tranquillity?

8

**Repent and Allah will forgive you **

The verse I recited at the beginning shows that Allah has immeasurable mercy for us, especially for women. We are still alive and we can have our sins forgiven. It is mankind’s nature to sin and thus men and women will continue to sin. Rasoolullah (SAW) has stated that our problems and worries arise because of our sins and that the way to cure all of this is to repent. How should women repent? When someone turns towards Allah and repents, Allah forgives all her sins.

Once someone came to Rasoolullah (SAW) and said, “I have committed a major sin.” Rasoolullah (SAW) said, “Repent and Allah will forgive you.” Rasoolullah (SAW) said, “Even if your sins fill the earth up to the sky, Allah will still forgive you.”
(Tirmidhi)

Allah forgives people when they repent. As soon as you repent Allah will forgive you. You will then become purified of all the sins that you committed. We should always repent immediately after we have committed a sin.

How should we repent? To recite (like parrots) “Astaghfirullah” three times is not repentance! Once someone complained to me that his child always kept pestering him for money and requested me to advise his son not to do so. The son said astaghfirullah a few times. A little while passed and then the son again asked his father for some money. This is exactly the state of the Muslims today. Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah and then back to watching TV! Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah and then you miss your prayers. People read astaghfirullah a hundred or a thousand times but do not realise that to simply repeat certain words is not repentance. Repentance should be made with a feeling of guilt and remorse for having committed a sin and with a vow never to do it again. We should feel as guilty as a young lad who drinks alcohol and appears in front of his father and should cry over the sins we have committed - this is the sign of true repentance. You should recall the sins that you committed, then ask forgiveness for them, and then promise never to commit those sins again.

Firstly you should feel remorse, then you should mention the sin and then you should promise never to commit that sin again. Shaytaan will immediately come and put stray thoughts into your mind by saying, “Don’t repent because you cannot stop committing sins. Repent some other time.” Never listen to the whisperings of Shaytaan - remember that you are asking for forgiveness and help from Allah the All Powerful. Shaytaan is no match for the power of Allah. Remember Allah is with those who repent, and even if you commit another sin, repent again and again. Always have the firm intention that you do not want to commit those major sins again. You are living with your worries and problems due to the sins that you have been committing and the thing which will save you from all of them is true repentance. When Allah (SWT) forgives someone, He orders the angels to transform all the sins of that individual into good deeds. Allah protects those who have sincerely repented from their sins. Make the intention and effort to repent.

Men and women are different. Women are weaker in some aspects - how can we change this when this is how Allah created them? Allah has not made Jumu’ah Salaah obligatory for women, Allah has not made Eid Salaah for women, and Allah has ordained that women should say their prayers at home. Why then do women make unnecessary effort and hardship for themselves? Even in Makkah and Madinah, I tell people, “why do you women walk around worried and distraught even in the Haramain Shareefain?” Rasoolullah (SAW) has said, **“It is better for women to pray at home than to pray behind me” ** and that is concerning the physical presence of Rasoolullah (SAW) himself. If women are going for tawaaf or for visiting the blessed chamber of Rasoolullah (SAW) , and this coincides with the prayer time, then it is permissible to pray Salaah there. But to go out with the intention of saying prayers in those mosques is not allowed, for there is greater reward for women to pray at home. Whether in Makkah or Madinah, Manchester or London, the Law of Allah is one. Who says that women should go to the mosques? The order is to pray in the homes - not just in the homes, but in the deepest corner of the house. If the order for praying is to pray in the deepest corner of the house, then how can women justify going out to work?

The Shari’ah states that women’s clothing, the burqah, should completely hide the outline of the body - this is Islamic law. (See the booklet “The Sunnah Way of Dressing”](Beauty of Islam - www.beautyofislam.org) for full details.) The covering of the face has been specified in the Shari’ah - although not obligatory, it is highly commendable, especially in this time of fitna. It is not permissible for women to go outdoors unnecessarily. The woman can work only if it is absolutely essential - for example if the man is unable to earn an income. Even then she must observe purdah and not break the laws of Shari’ah. If women go out for work when there is no need for them to do so, then they will bring no blessings to their homes, only misfortune. Allah has revealed a full verse in the Qur’an ordering women to stay indoors. (Surah Ahzab Ayah 33).

[This message has been edited by Sadiaa (edited June 25, 2001).]