O Allah, we hope for Your mercy. I can almost see her as she approached the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, with a steady step,
And a heart trembling with awe and fear.
She cast aside all human standards and scales.
She forgot the shame and the scandal.
She did not fear the people or the eyes of the people,
Nor what the people might say.
How could she be concerned with all that, when she had turned toward Allah?
And whoever turns toward Allah, Allah draws him near.
Allah loves him, grants him success,
And accepts his repentance.
It is Allah.
It is Allah.
I can almost see her saying:
"I truly hope for what is with the Lord, and I have
No request after His forgiveness."
If I am saved from my sin in this fleeting world,
How could I be saved and escape in the Hereafter?
She came seeking death.
Yes, she sought death.
For death is easy if it is accompanied by forgiveness and pardon,
And contentment and pleasure.
From a Merciful, Generous, Forgiving, and Bountiful Lord.
Death is easy,
If after it lies contentment and acceptance.
Death is easy,
If it extinguishes the burning pain,
The sting of disobedience,
And the reproach of conscience.
She stood before the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Unconcerned with a fleeting world,
Or a scandal that vanishes with the vanishing of the sin.
"O Messenger of Allah, I have committed a sin requiring a prescribed punishment, so purify me."
"O Messenger of Allah, I have committed a sin requiring a prescribed punishment, so purify me."
At that moment,
The Prophet, peace be upon him,
Turned his face away from her.
So she approached him from another side and said:
"O Messenger of Allah, I have committed a sin requiring a prescribed punishment, so purify me."
"I see, O Messenger of Allah, that you wish to turn me away,
Just as you turned away Ma'iz ibn Malik."
"By Allah, I am pregnant from adultery."
"I am pregnant from adultery."
At that, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, commanded her:
"Go until you have given birth."
I can almost see a question in the eyes of the listeners:
How did she leave?
Did she leave with joy filling her heart?
With relief mingling with her soul?
That she had been spared from certain death,
Even though she had done what she was commanded to do,
And the Messenger of Allah had turned her away?
No.
Rather, anxiety did not cease to dwell in her heart,
And the concerns of fear of Allah loomed over her thoughts.
A month passed, then another,
And pains gave birth to pains.
Then she came with her newborn, carrying him.
"Here I am, I have given birth, O Messenger of Allah,
So purify me."
The Kind and Merciful one said:
"Go until you have breastfed him and weaned him."
So she returned with her nursing son.
If only you could have seen her with her newborn in her arms,
While the people watched her with wonder and reverence.
Yet Satan continued to whisper to her and entice her,
"That is your chance,
You have done what was required of you,
And the Prophet turned you away repeatedly,
So do not return to him."
Did she respond?
Did she respond to all of that?
No.
Far be it from her to respond.
Because, simply put, she wanted what was with Allah.
So she turned toward Allah.
And whoever turns toward Allah,
Far be it from Him, the Almighty, to turn him away,
Or leave him to himself or to Satan.
"As for My servants, you have no authority over them."
A year passed, then another,
And she came with her child,
Who was holding a piece of bread, eating it.
She stood before the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
And said, "O Messenger of Allah,
Here I am, I have weaned him, so purify me."
How amazing she and her state were!
What faith is this that she carried?
What repentance is this that she was blessed with?
What persistence and resolve is this?
Three years, more or less,
Were enough to change her state,
To diminish her faith,
To diminish her patience and resolve,
And her turning toward her Lord.
No, a thousand times no.
The days followed one another,
The months succeeded each other,
And in every moment, she had a story with pain,
And in the world of sorrows, tales.
Two full years,
Every time she offered her breast to her child,
Or held him to her chest,
Her attachment to him increased,
And his attachment to her,
And her love for him,
And her love for him,
And his love for her.
For she was a mother,
And mothers have secrets and stories.
O you who disobey,
Return.
O you who sin,
Repent.
O you who are negligent,
Make amends.
All humiliation is in the pleasure of Allah, the Almighty,
And all honor is in the displeasure of Allah, even if it seems like humiliation.
And what is with Allah is better and more lasting.
If only my people knew.
If only my people knew.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, handed
The boy to a man among the Muslims,
And she was ordered to be buried up to her chest, then she was stoned.
At that moment,
Blood splattered from her head onto one of the Companions,
Who cursed her within the hearing of the Prophet, peace be upon him.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said
A statement that history has recorded:
"By Allah, she has repented a repentance,
By Allah, she has repented a repentance,
That if the collector of illegal taxes had repented it, it would have been accepted from him."
And in another narration: "If it were distributed among the people of Medina, it would have sufficed them."
O Allah!
History did not record a scandal for that woman,
Rather, it recorded a story of repentance,
Told to the ears of all Muslims throughout the ages,
Of a woman who turned toward Allah,
And Allah accepted her.
Do you know why, servants of Allah?
It is the fear of Allah.
It is the awe of Allah.
It is the glorification of Allah.
It is the glorification of Allah.
It elevates the souls,
So they find no rest except in the proximity of the Most Merciful,
In the Garden of Pleasure.
It is the awe of Allah
That did not cease in that believing woman,
When she fell into the snares of Satan,
And responded to him in a moment of weakness.
Yes, she sinned,
But she rose from her sin
With a heart filled with faith,
And a soul stung by the heat of disobedience.
Yes, she sinned,
But there arose in her heart
A station of glorifying the One she disobeyed.
Questions choked in her chest:
"How can I disobey my Lord, while He is my Creator,
And the Bestower of blessings upon me?
How can I disobey my Lord,
Who provided for me and granted me
Everything I hope for and everything I do not hope for?
How can I disobey Him when He has clothed me,
Sheltered me, fed me, and given me to drink?"
So that woman was not satisfied
Except with purification,
Even if that purification involved
The taking of a life,
A scandal in the eyes of some,
And the departure of life.
For what life are we living
While we disobey Allah?
What life are we living
While we disobey Allah?
I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan.
"And Paradise will be brought near
To the righteous, not far.
This is what you were promised
For every returner and keeper of the covenant,
“Who feareth the Beneficent in secret and cometh with a contrite heart.” (50:33)
Who came with a repentant heart.
Enter it in peace.
Enter it in peace.
Enter it in peace.
That is the Day of Eternity."
“There they have all that they desire, and there is more with Us.” (50:35)
“There they have all that they desire, and there is more with Us.” (50:35)
"And We have more."
Al-Hasan said:
"A man commits a sin and does not forget it,
And he remains fearful of it,
Until he enters Paradise."
O Allah, Your pleasure and Paradise.
O Allah, Your pleasure and Paradise.
O Allah, Your pleasure and Paradise.
O Allah, Your pleasure and Paradise.