*Riyad al-Salihin* from the words of the Master of the Messengers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Chapter on the Virtue of Hope.
Allah Almighty said, reporting about the righteous servant:
“And ye will remember what I say unto you. I confide my cause unto Allah. Lo! Allah is Seer of (His) slaves.” (40:44)
“And ye will remember what I say unto you. I confide my cause unto Allah. Lo! Allah is Seer of (His) slaves.” (40:44)
“So Allah warded off from him the evils which they plotted, while a dreadful doom encompassed Pharaoh's folk,” (40:45)
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him,
from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), that he said:
"Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, said:
'I am as My servant expects Me to be,
and I am with him wherever he remembers Me.
By Allah, Allah is more pleased with the repentance of His servant than one of you would be upon finding his lost mount in a barren desert.
Whoever draws near to Me by a handspan,
I draw near to him by an arm's length;
and whoever draws near to Me by an arm's length,
I draw near to him by a fathom;
and if he comes to Me walking,
I come to him at speed.'"
Agreed upon.
And this is the wording of one of the narrations in Muslim.
And it is narrated in the two *Sahih* collections:
"And I am with him when (*heena*) he remembers Me," with the letter *nun*,
while in this narration it is "wherever (*haythu*)," with the letter *tha'*.
And both are authentic.
"As My servant expects Me to be":
meaning, in his hoping in Me and thinking well of Me.
"His lost mount (*dalatuhu*)":
meaning, his riding beast that he had lost,
which carried his provisions and his water.
"The barren desert (*al-fala*)":
meaning, the land in which there is no water.
Among the benefits derived from the hadith:
Affirming the attributes of Speech, Joy, and Coming for Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He.
And what is obligatory regarding this subject
is affirmation without resemblance (to creation),
and transcendence without negation.
Encouragement to think well of Allah and to hope for His mercy,
and hastening to repent and draw close to Him through acts of obedience.
Affirming the special accompaniment (*al-ma'iyyah*) specific to the believers,
which entails care, protection,
divine guidance, victory, and support;
and it is distinct from the general accompaniment
that encompasses all of creation,
which is by His all-encompassing knowledge.
And on the authority of Jabir Ibn 'Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with them both,
that he heard the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
say three days before his death:
"Let none of you die except while thinking well of Allah, the Exalted and Glorious."
Narrated by Muslim.
"Let none of you die":
meaning, let one strive so that death reaches him while he is in this state.
"Thinking well":
meaning, hoping for His mercy and His pardon.
Among the benefits derived from the hadith:
The Prophet's keenness (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to guide his Ummah,
and his immense compassion for it in all his circumstances,
even while he was in his final terminal illness (peace be upon him),
offering sincere counsel to his Ummah and pointing it toward the paths of salvation.
Warning against despair and despondency,
and encouraging hope,
especially at the time of death.
And on the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say:
"Allah Almighty said:
'O son of Adam!
So long as you call upon Me and hope in Me,
I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I do not mind.
O son of Adam!
Were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky,
and then you were to ask forgiveness of Me,
I would forgive you, and I do not mind.
O son of Adam!
Were you to come to Me with an earthful of sins,
and then meet Me without associating anything with Me,
I would come to you with an earthful of forgiveness.'"
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
"The clouds of the sky (*'anan al-sama'*)":
It is said to mean whatever appears before you of it,
meaning what is visible when you raise your head;
and it is said to mean the clouds.
"An earthful (*qurab al-ard*)":
It is what nearly fills it.
And Allah knows best.
Among the benefits derived from the hadith:
The vastness of Allah's bounty, the Exalted and Glorious, and His generosity,
for indeed His mercy encompasses all things.
Encouragement to seek forgiveness, make supplication, and place one's hope in Allah, Exalted is He.
The immense virtue of Tawhid (monotheism),
for no matter how numerous or heinous sins may be,
their forgiveness is hoped for from Allah, the Exalted and Glorious,
so long as the servant does not associate any partner with Allah.
Chapter on Combining Fear and Hope.
Know that the preferred state for a servant during good health
is to be both fearful and hopeful,
with his fear and hope being equal.
But in times of illness,
hope should become purely predominant.
And the principles of the Sharia from the texts of the Book and the Sunnah
and other sources are abundantly clear in supporting that.
Allah Almighty said:
“Are they then secure from Allah's scheme? None deemeth himself secure from Allah's scheme save folk that perish.” (7:99)
◁except the people who are losers.▷
And He, Exalted is He, said:
“Go, O my sons, and ascertain concerning Joseph and his brother, and despair not of the Spirit of Allah. Lo! none despaireth of the Spirit of Allah save disbelieving folk.” (12:87)
◁except the disbelieving people.▷
And He, Exalted is He, said:
◁On the Day when some faces will turn white▷
◁and other faces will turn black.▷
And He, Exalted is He, said:
“And (remember) when thy Lord proclaimed that He would raise against them till the Day of Resurrection those who would lay on them a cruel torment. Lo! verily thy Lord is swift in prosecution and lo! verily He is Forgiving, Merciful.” (7:167)
◁and indeed, He is Forgiving and Merciful.▷
And He, Exalted is He, said:
◁Indeed, the righteous will be in pleasure,▷
“And lo! the wicked verily will be in hell;” (82:14)
And He, Exalted is He, said:
“Then, as for him whose scales are heavy (with good works),” (101:6)
◁he will be in a pleasant life.▷
“But as for him whose scales are light,” (101:8)
◁his mother will be an abyss.▷
And the verses conveying this meaning are numerous,
so fear and hope are combined
in two paired verses,
or across several verses, or even within a single verse.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him,
that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"If the believer knew
the punishment that is with Allah,
no one would hope for His Paradise;
and if the disbeliever knew
the mercy that is with Allah,
no one would despair of His Paradise."
Narrated by Muslim.
Among the benefits derived from the hadith:
Urging fear of the punishment of Allah Almighty
and hope for His reward,
His forgiveness, and His good pleasure.
A servant should not rely entirely upon his deeds
and become conceited on account of them,
nor should he abandon righteous deeds relying merely
on the mercy and forgiveness of Allah Almighty.
And on the authority of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him,
that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"When the funeral bier is set down
and the people—or the men—carry it upon their shoulders,
if the deceased was righteous, it says:
'Advance me! Advance me!'
But if it was not righteous,
it says:
'Woe unto it! Where are you taking it?'
Everything hears its cry except human beings,
and were a human being to hear it, he would fall unconscious."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
"It is set down": meaning, placed upon the bier before the men so that they may carry it.
"Advance me": meaning, hasten with me.
"Woe unto it": an expression of terror and utter remorse.
"He would fall unconscious": meaning, he would faint,
and that is due to the terrifying severity of the sound he would hear.
Among the benefits derived from the hadith:
It is the Sunnah to carry the funeral bier upon the shoulders of men.
Carrying funeral biers is specific to men, to the exclusion of women.
Allah Almighty shows His servants their dwellings
and what is prepared for them in this state;
thus the believer yearns for the honor prepared for him,
while the disbeliever and the wicked tremble in horror at the painful torment awaiting them.
There are certain sounds that creatures other than humans can hear,
while human beings are unable to hear them.
And this is among the miraculous signs,
which modern science has indeed confirmed.
And on the authority of Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Paradise is closer to any one of you than the strap of his sandal,
and the Fire is likewise."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
*Riyad al-Salihin*.