Our mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.
“O ‘A’ishah, they are those who pray, give charity, and whose hearts are fearful.”
In these blessed days, people turn toward acts of obedience and increase in them.
This is part of Allah’s grace upon the people.
It is also due to what Allah has specifically favored this virtuous month with,
such as the chaining of the devils, the closing of the gates of Hell, and the opening of the gates of Paradise.
As people turn toward various forms of obedience,
such as prayers, charity, and the recitation of the Qur’an,
you find them also supplicating, asking Allah to accept these deeds from them.
This is the characteristic of the believer:
the fear of non-acceptance.
Allah the Exalted said:
“Lo! those who go in awe for fear of their Lord.” (23:57)
“And those who believe in the revelations of their Lord,” (23:58)
“And those who ascribe not partners unto their Lord,” (23:59)
“And those who give that which they give with hearts afraid because they are about to return unto their Lord,” (23:60)
“And those who give that which they give with hearts afraid because they are about to return unto their Lord,” (23:60)
“These race for the good things, and they shall win them in the race.” (23:61)
When ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, read this verse,
she thought it referred to the disobedient.
So she asked the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, about the verse.
She said, “O Messenger of Allah,
“And those who give that which they give with hearts afraid because they are about to return unto their Lord,” (23:60)
are they those who commit errors and perform sins?”
He replied, “No, O ‘A’ishah.
They are those who pray, give charity, and whose hearts are fearful.”
Narrated by al-Tabarani in al-Awsat.
Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
“They give their charity
while fearing that it will not be accepted from them,
because of their fear that they may have fallen short in fulfilling
the conditions of giving.”
This is a matter of compassion and caution.
The people of faith perform righteous deeds,
yet they fear that their deeds will not be accepted
due to their shortcomings or a lack of sincerity.
Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
“The fear of those among the salaf who feared
that their deeds would not be accepted
stemmed from their fear that they had not performed the deed
in the manner commanded.”
Al-Hasan al-Basri said:
“By Allah, they performed acts of obedience
and strove in them,
yet they feared that they would be rejected.”
Indeed, the believer combines excellence with fear,
while the hypocrite combines wrongdoing with a sense of security.
Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
“Allah the Exalted described the people of felicity
as having excellence coupled with fear,
and described the wretched as having wrongdoing coupled with a sense of security.”
This fear of the non-acceptance of deeds
led them to hasten toward good works,
just as Allah the Almighty described them.
“These race for the good things, and they shall win them in the race.” (23:61)
Al-Sa‘di, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
“Meaning, in the arena of hastening toward acts of goodness,
their concern is what draws them closer to Allah,
and their intent is directed toward what saves them from His punishment.”
So, every good deed they heard of,
or for which an opportunity arose,
they seized it and hastened to perform it.
This fear is praiseworthy,
because it led them to hasten toward good works.
Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
“His fear of falling short in obedience
is a sign of the perfection of his obedience.”
This instruction from the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
to ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
left its mark on her life
and on her hastening toward good works.
Whoever enjoys reading her fragrant biography
will find confirmation of this in many examples from her life.
Indeed, she said at the time of her death, out of the intensity of her fear:
“I wish I were a thing forgotten and out of sight.”
Narrated by ‘Abd al-Razzaq in al-Musannaf.
Studying the life of our mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
increases our love for our Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and our attachment to him and his method of teaching his household.
It also increases our certainty regarding the intensity of the Prophet’s love for ‘A’ishah,
and the intensity of her love for him, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
We love those whom the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, loved.
We love ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, we pray for her, and we name our daughters after her.
We ask Allah to grant us fear of Him in private and in public,
and to make us among those who hasten toward good works and are foremost in them.
We shall continue in a future meeting, if Allah wills, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
Our mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.