Part of Glimpses from the Lives of the Tabi‘un (the Successors) (series completed)
· Lesson 4 of 37
Pictures from the lives of the followers | D. Abdul Rahman Raafat Al-Basha | Episode (4) | Al-Rabee’ bin Khathim, may God have mercy on him
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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The finest of generations in nobility and exemplar,
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Following the Messenger whenever he strove or spoke.
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Mawaddah Association
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Presents:
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Glimpses from the Lives of the Tabi'un
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By Dr. 'Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
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May Allah have mercy on him.
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Al-Rabi' ibn Khuthaym,
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May Allah have mercy on him.
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Hilal ibn Isaf said to his guest, Mundhir al-Thawri:
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"Shall I not take you, O Mundhir, to the Shaykh,
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That we might renew our faith for an hour?"
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Mundhir replied, "Indeed!
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By Allah, nothing brought me to Kufa
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Except the desire to meet your Shaykh,
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Al-Rabi' ibn Khuthaym,
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And the longing to spend an hour absorbing his faith.
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But have you sought permission for us to visit him?
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For I have been told
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That ever since he was afflicted with paralysis,
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He has confined himself to his home,
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Devoted himself entirely to his Lord,
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And turned away from meeting people."
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Hilal said,
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"He has been this way ever since Kufa came to know him.
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His illness has changed nothing about him."
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Mundhir said, "Very well,
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But you know that such men
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Have delicate dispositions.
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Do you think we should initiate conversation with the Shaykh
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And ask him about what we wish,
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Or should we remain silent
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And listen to whatever he wishes to impart?"
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Hilal replied,
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"If you were to sit with Al-Rabi' ibn Khuthaym
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For an entire year,
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He would not speak to you
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Unless you spoke to him first,
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Nor would he initiate speech unless you asked him.
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For he has made his speech remembrance
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And his silence contemplation."
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Mundhir said,
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"Let us proceed to him then, with the blessing of Allah."
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They then went to the Shaykh.
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When they entered his presence, they greeted him with peace and asked,
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"How is the Shaykh feeling this morning?"
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He replied,
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"I have awakened weak and sinful,
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Consuming my provision and awaiting my appointed time."
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Hilal said to him,
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"I could bring you a skilled physician to treat you.
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Do you permit me to call one for you?"
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He replied,
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"O Hilal!
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Indeed, I know that medicine is real.
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But I considered 'Ad, Thamud,
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And the Companions of the Rass,
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“And (the tribes of) A'ad and Thamud, and the dwellers in Ar-Rass, and many generations in between.” (25:38)
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And I looked at their eagerness for worldly life
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And their desire for its pleasures—
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Yet they were far mightier than us in strength
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And possessed greater power.
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Among them were physicians,
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And among them were the sick.
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Yet neither did the healer endure,
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Nor did the healed!"
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Then Al-Rabi' let out a deep sigh
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A deep sigh, and said:
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"If physical illness were the true disease,
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We would have sought its cure."
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Mundhir then asked for clarification, saying:
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"What then is the disease, O noble Shaykh?"
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He replied,
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"The disease is sins."
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Mundhir asked,
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"And what is the cure?"
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He replied,
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"The cure is seeking forgiveness."
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Mundhir asked,
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"And how is the healing attained?"
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He replied,
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"By repenting and never returning to the sin."
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Then he gazed intently at us and said:
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"Beware of the hidden inner states! Beware of the hidden inner states!
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Attend to the secret deeds that are hidden from people,
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Yet are fully manifest to Allah Almighty.
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That is, clearly visible to Him;
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Seek their remedy!"
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Mundhir asked,
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"And what is their remedy?"
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The Shaykh replied,
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"Sincere repentance."
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Then he wept until his tears soaked his beard.
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Mundhir said to him,
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"Do you weep, when you are who you are?"
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He replied,
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"Far from it!
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Why should I not weep,
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When I have known a people compared to whom we are like thieves?"
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—He meant the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them.
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Hilal said:
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"While we were in that state,
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The Shaykh's son entered upon us,
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Greeted us, and said,
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'O my father,
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My mother has prepared a fine sweet halva dish for you,
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And it would gladden her heart if you ate from it.
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Shall I bring it to you?'
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He said, 'Bring it.'
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When his son went out to fetch it,
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A beggar knocked at the door.
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The Shaykh said, 'Let him in.'
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When the beggar reached the courtyard of the house,
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I looked at him,
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And he was an elderly man
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In tattered clothes,
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With drool running down his chin,
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And his facial features clearly showed he was mentally impaired.
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Hardly had I raised my eyes from him
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When the Shaykh's son returned
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Carrying the dish of halva.
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The father gestured to him
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To place it before the beggar.
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So he placed it before him,
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And the man set upon it,
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Devouring its contents voraciously
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While his saliva dripped over it.
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He kept eating
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Until he had finished everything on the dish.
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His son then said to him,
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'May Allah have mercy on you, father!
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My mother went to great trouble to make this sweet dish for you,
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And we longed for you to eat from it,
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Yet you fed it to this man
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Who does not even know what he ate!'
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The Shaykh replied, 'O my son,
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Even if he does not know,
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Allah knows.'
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He then recited the words of the Exalted and Almighty:
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﴿You will never attain righteousness
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Until you spend from that which you love.
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And whatever you spend,
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Allah is fully Aware of it.﴾
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While he was in that state,
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A man from among his relatives entered upon him
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And said, 'O Abu Yazid,
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Al-Husayn ibn Fatima has been killed—peace be upon him
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And upon his mother!'
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He said, 'Indeed, to Allah we belong,
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And to Him we shall return.'
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Then he recited the words of the Exalted:
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“Say: O Allah! Creator of the heavens and the earth! Knower of the Invisible and the Visible! Thou wilt judge between Thy slaves concerning that wherein they used to differ.” (39:46)
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“Say: O Allah! Creator of the heavens and the earth! Knower of the Invisible and the Visible! Thou wilt judge between Thy slaves concerning that wherein they used to differ.” (39:46)
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﴿O Knower of the unseen and the witnessed,
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You will judge between Your servants
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Concerning that over which they used to differ.﴾
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But the man was not satisfied with his words,
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So he asked him,
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'What do you say regarding his killing?'
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He replied, 'I say: to Allah is their return,
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And with Allah is their reckoning.'
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Hilal said:
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"Then, seeing that the time for the noon prayer was approaching,
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I said to the Shaykh,
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'Exhort me.'
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He said,
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'O Hilal, let not
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The abundance of people's praise delude you,
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For people know nothing of you
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Except your outward appearance.
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Know that you are bound for your deeds,
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And that every deed not intended for
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The Countenance of Allah comes to naught.'
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Mundhir then said to him,
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'And exhort me as well, may you be rewarded with good.'
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He said,
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'O Mundhir,
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Fear Allah regarding what you know;
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And as for that whose knowledge has been kept from you,
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Entrust it to the One who knows it.
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O Mundhir,
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Let no one among you say,
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"O Allah, I repent to You,"
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And then fail to repent,
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For that would be a lie.
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Rather, let him say,
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"O Allah, accept my repentance,"
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For that is a supplication.
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And know, O Mundhir,
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That there is no good in speech
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Except in proclaiming Allah's oneness,
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Praising Allah,
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Declaring Allah's greatness, glorifying Allah,
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Asking Him for good,
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Seeking His refuge from evil,
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Enjoining good,
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Forbidding evil,
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And reciting the Qur'an.'
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Mundhir then said to him,
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'We have sat with you
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"Yet we have never heard you recite poetry,
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though we have seen some of your companions
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recite it."
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He replied:
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"There is nothing you utter here
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but that it is recorded and will be read out
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against you there;
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and I would hate to find in my record
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a line of verse
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being read out against me on the Day the Account
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is established."
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Then he turned to all of us
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and said: "Constantly remember
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death,
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for it is your awaited, absent visitor.
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And when an absent one's absence has lasted long,
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his return is imminent,
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and his kin eagerly await him."
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Then tears welled in his eyes,
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and he said: "What shall
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we do tomorrow,
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“Nay, but when the earth is ground to atoms, grinding, grinding,” (89:21)
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◁when the earth is leveled, pounded, and crushed,▷
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◁and your Lord comes with the angels,▷
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◁rank upon rank,▷
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◁and brought that Day▷
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◁is Hell?▷"
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Hilal said:
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"Scarcely had al-Rabi' finished speaking
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when the call for the Zuhr prayer was made.
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So he turned to his son and said:
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'Come, let us answer Allah's caller!'
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His son said:
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'Help me
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carry him to the mosque, may you be rewarded
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with good.' So we lifted him up,
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and he rested his right arm on
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his son's shoulder and his left arm on
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my shoulder, and began
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shuffling between us,
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with his feet trailing along the ground,
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dragging."
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Then Mundhir said to him:
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"O Abu Yazid!
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Allah has indeed granted you a dispensation;
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if only you would pray in your house!"
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He replied: "It is
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as you say,
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but I heard the caller cry:
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'Come to success!
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Come to success!'
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So whoever among you hears
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the caller summon him to success,
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let him answer it, even if he must crawl."
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Furthermore,
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who was this al-Rabi'
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ibn Khuthaym?
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He was an eminent figure among the Tabi'un
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and one of the eight
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who represented the pinnacle
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of asceticism in their era.
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He was of pure Arab descent,
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of Mudari lineage—
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meaning his ancestry traces back
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to Mudar—
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and converges with the Messenger of Allah,
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peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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through his ancestors Ilyas and Mudar.
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From the tender days of his youth,
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he grew up in obedience to Allah,
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and from his earliest years,
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he weaned himself upon piety toward Him.
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His mother would sleep at night
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and then awake,
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only to find her young son
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still standing in his prayer niche,
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immersed in his intimate supplication,
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absorbed in his prayer.
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She would call out to him,
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saying: "O my son!
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O Rabi'!
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Will you not sleep?"
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He would reply: "How can one sleep
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when night falls upon him
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while he dreads
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the sudden assault of enemies?"
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Tears would then roll down
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the cheeks of the elderly woman,
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and she would pray for his welfare.
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When al-Rabi' grew into manhood
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and matured,
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his scrupulous piety grew alongside him,
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and with his growth deepened
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his fear of Allah.
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His mother was deeply troubled by the frequency
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of his entreaties
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and the intensity of his weeping in the darkness
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of the night while people slept,
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to the point that she began to suspect the worst.
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She began calling out to him,
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saying: "What is it
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that has afflicted you, my son?
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Have you committed a grave offense?
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Have you killed a soul?"
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He said: "Yes,
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mother, I have killed
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a soul." She said
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anxiously: "And who is this
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slain person, my son,
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so that we may have people go
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to his family in the hope that they might
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pardon you? By Allah,
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if the victim's family knew what you endure
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of weeping
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and what you suffer of sleeplessness,
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they would surely take pity on you!"
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He replied: "Do not speak
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to anyone, for it is only
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my own soul that I have slain;
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I have slain it with sins."
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Al-Rabi' ibn Khuthaym studied
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under 'Abdullah
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ibn Mas'ud, the companion
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of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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and the closest of the Companions
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in guidance and deportment to the Prophet,
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peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
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Al-Rabi' was attached
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to his teacher
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as a newborn clings to its mother,
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and the teacher loved his student
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as a father loves his only child.
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Al-Rabi' used to enter
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upon Ibn Mas'ud without asking permission,
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and whenever he was with him,
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no one else was permitted
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to enter until al-Rabi'
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had departed.
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Ibn Mas'ud saw such
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purity in al-Rabi''s soul,
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sincerity in his heart, and excellence
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in his worship
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that his heart would fill with sorrow over
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his having lived after the time of the Prophet,
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peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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and his being deprived
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of his companionship.
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He used to say to him:
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"O Abu Yazid,
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had the Messenger of Allah,
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peace be upon him, seen you, he would have loved you!"
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He would also say to him:
13:38
"I have never looked at you
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without remembering the humble and devout."
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And 'Abdullah
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ibn Mas'ud was not exaggerating in that,
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for al-Rabi'
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ibn Khuthaym attained a level of reverent fear,
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scrupulous piety, and devotion
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seldom matched
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by anyone of his generation.
13:57
Traditions have been transmitted regarding this
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that continue
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to adorn the pages of history.
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Among them is what
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one of his companions narrated, saying:
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"I accompanied al-Rabi'
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ibn Khuthaym for twenty years,
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and I never heard him utter a word
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except that it was one that ascends;"
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and he recited
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the words of Him, the Mighty and Majestic:
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“Whoso desireth power (should know that) all power belongeth to Allah. Unto Him good words ascend, and the pious deed doth He exalt; but those who plot iniquities, theirs will be an awful doom; and the plotting of such (folk) will come to naught.” (35:10)
14:21
◁"and righteous deeds▷
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◁He raises."▷
14:25
And 'Abd al-Rahman
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ibn 'Ajlan reported, saying:
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"I stayed overnight at al-Rabi''s house one night,
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and when he was certain that I had fallen
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asleep, he arose to pray
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and recited the words of Him, the Mighty
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and Majestic:
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“Or do those who commit ill-deeds suppose that We shall make them as those who believe and do good works, the same in life and death? Bad is their judgment!” (45:21)
14:41
◁"that We will make them▷
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◁like those who believed▷
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◁and did righteous deeds,▷
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◁equal in▷
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◁their life▷
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◁and their death?▷
14:53
◁Evil is that which▷
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◁they judge!"▷
14:57
He spent his entire night praying
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with this verse,
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reciting it over and over again
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until the dawn broke upon him,
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while his eyes poured forth
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tears profusely.
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Concerning al-Rabi''s awe of Allah
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and his reverent fear, there are many accounts;
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among them
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is what a group of
15:19
His companions recounted:
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"One day, we set out in the company of 'Abdullah
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Ibn Mas'ud,
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and with us was Al-Rabi' ibn Khuthaym.
15:27
When we reached the banks
15:29
of the Euphrates, we passed
15:31
by a huge kiln whose
15:33
fire had been stoked furiously, sending sparks flying
15:35
everywhere,
15:37
while its tongues of flame leaped upward
15:39
and its roaring crackle could be heard.
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Stones had been cast into the kiln
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to be burned
15:45
until they turned into quicklime.
15:47
When Al-Rabi' saw
15:49
that fire, he froze in his tracks,
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seized by a violent
15:53
trembling, and he recited
15:55
the words of Allah, the Exalted and Majestic:
15:57
'When it sees them
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from a distant place,
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they will hear its
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raging and roaring;
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and when
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they are hurled into a narrow
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place therein, bound in chains,
16:11
they will cry out there for destruction.'
16:13
Then
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he collapsed unconscious.
16:17
We stayed by his side until
16:19
he regained consciousness from his swoon,
16:21
and we carried him back to his home."
16:23
Indeed,
16:27
Al-Rabi'
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ibn Khuthaym spent his entire life
16:31
anticipating death
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and preparing to meet it.
16:35
When death approached him,
16:37
his daughter began to weep,
16:39
so he said to her:
16:41
"What makes you weep, my little daughter,
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when boundless good
16:45
is coming to your father?"
16:47
Then his soul surrendered to its Creator.
16:55
"O Abu Yazid!
16:58
Had the Messenger of Allah,
17:00
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, seen you,
17:02
he surely would have loved you."
17:05
'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud,
17:09
standing as an exemplar and paragon,
17:11
closely followed the Messenger,
17:13
never wavering throughout his days.
17:15
They were once here,
17:17
showering blessings like rain clouds
17:19
upon our lives;
17:21
thus, among us,
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their memory continually soars high.
17:25
They departed,
17:27
leaving behind in our conscience
17:29
a burning question:
17:31
Has any star like them
17:33
ever risen and shone so bright?
17:35
They filled
17:37
this life with glorious deeds
17:39
through their noble actions,
17:41
and through them, the world
17:43
of humanity truly flourished.