The Connection Between Our Sins and Our Circumstances

The Connection Between Our Sins and Our Circumstances

In the name of Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family, his companions, and those who follow him.

As Muslims, an integral part of our creed is belief in the unseen. So commonly when we discuss the main branches of Islamic theology, we discuss those things which pertain to Allah, his divinity, his attributes. And we also discuss prophethood, its characteristics, the purpose behind prophethood. And commonly the third category is referred to as mughayabāt — things which are unseen.

So under this we have belief in hell, belief in paradise, angels, all these things. And Allah mentions belief in the unseen as a defining characteristic of Muslims. Right in the beginning of the Qur'an, when Allah mentions the nature of the book, he says it serves as guidance for those who are God-conscious. And then when he defines muttaqūn — those who are God-conscious — the first characteristic he mentions is الَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْغَيْبِ — those people that believe in the unseen.

So now the same way we find verses of the Qur'an and ahadith of the Prophet ﷺ that talk about Allah and his attributes, that discuss prophethood and the purpose behind it, we also find verses and ahadith that speak about this third category of the unseen. And a common theme, and a common point that Allah emphasizes in the Qur'an from this unseen category, is the connection that our deeds — and actually more specifically, our sins — have with the conditions that we are going through. The situation that we are in.

The Verse of Corruption in the Land and Sea

So for example, when Allah speaks about Shu'ayb (alayhi al-salām)'s people, he says:

That we did not send any prophet to any nation, except that we tested its people with hardship and difficulty. And Ibn Mas'ud (radiyallahu 'anhu), when he commentates on this verse, he clarifies that بَأْسَاء is commonly used for financial difficulty. So in the context of previous nations, it would be that their crops wouldn't grow, they would have less vegetation. And he describes ضَرَّاء to be ailments, diseases, these types of things. And at the end of the verse, Allah says that the reason we did this was in hopes that these people will humble themselves and turn back to Allah.

Now, Allah mentions that there is a connection between your actions and what you're going through. And Allah furthermore rebukes those who fail to understand that connection. Right in the next verse, Allah says:

That first Allah brought hardship upon them, and then afterwards He flipped it. They were prospering, they had many crops, they were happy. And this flipping was also in hopes that they will turn back to Allah. But what did the people say? قَدْ مَسَّ آبَاءَنَا الضَّرَّاءُ وَالسَّرَّاءُ — "You know, our forefathers, the people before us, they also went through hardship. It's no big deal."

And unfortunately, this is a mindset that's very common amongst us as well. People say, "Hey man, hardship is just part of life. These things happen. Life has its ups and downs." There is nothing wrong with someone saying that to console themselves or others. But one should never forget — and through this verse we learned — that Allah shows us that this is not the mindset of a believer. When a believer goes through hardship, he immediately checks himself to see where he went wrong and why he's going through this.

The Individual Effect of Sins

Now, when it comes to the effect that sins have, they can have an individual effect on a person. And sins of the Muslim ummah as a whole can have an effect on the ummah as a whole.

So, for example, there was a very famous tābi'ī — a person who saw the sahaba. His name was Fudayl ibn 'Iyād. And he was actually considered to be very pious, and he was known for the fear he had of Allah. So much so that Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah, who is a teacher of Imam al-Shāfi'ī (rahimahullah), he says about him:

I have never seen anyone who has more fear of Allah than Fudayl and his father.

He used to commonly say:

"I would rather spend my life and die as a dog than have to stand in front of Allah and give reckoning."

Such a pious individual, he says about himself that he sees the effect of his sins in his ride and his family. The day he slips, he sees that he is unable to control his ride. That day there are problems with his family. There are arguments.

And a very similar statement is recorded by Imam Abu Hanifa (rahimahullah). Especially because Ramadan is coming up, we hear the very common narration that he used to finish 60 khatms in Ramadan — which is two khatms a day. And someone so pious, someone so known for his piety, it is said about him:

People used to refer to him as "the peg" because of how much he used to perform salah.

Such an individual — it comes about him:

That whenever he was thinking about an issue in Islamic law and was trying to come to a conclusion, if there was some block and he was unable to understand the issue, he would immediately say: "This is due to a sin I have done. That is why I am unable to understand this issue."

And the story continues — that he would immediately seek forgiveness from Allah, he would perform two raka'at of salah, and then the issue would become clear to him.

The Collective Effect of Sins on the Ummah

So this is an individual effect that our actions can have. Actions of a society, of a nation as a whole, can have an effect on the entire nation. And that is what was referred to in the beginning — the verse that was recited, that Allah says:

Corruption has become apparent in the land and the sea due to what people have done — just to give them a taste of what they have done, in hopes that these people will turn back.

And this idea of everyone going through hardship comes in a hadith of Thawban (radiyallahu 'anhu), in which the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 4297)

That a time will come where nations will call one another and they will band together against Muslims — and he specifically gives the example that the same way when you have a big platter of food and people call each other to join in the eating, that is how people will be calling to fight against Muslims.

So when the sahaba heard this, one sahabi got up in a jolt and said:

"Is that because we will be so few in number? Is that why people will mistreat us?" So the Prophet ﷺ said:

"Rather, you will be many in number on that day. However, your example will be like the foam that accumulates on top of water in a flood — it is something that you can just blow away."

And then the Prophet ﷺ continues:

Allah will remove your awe from the hearts of your enemies — they will have no fear, no respect, no veneration of Muslims. And Allah will place wahn in your hearts. So the sahaba asked:

"What is this wahn that will enter us?" So the Prophet ﷺ answered:

(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 4297)

"It is the love of this world and the distaste for death." Now in this narration, the Prophet ﷺ at a summarized level mentions the root cause of why Muslims will be mistreated — which is simply that they will have the love of the world.

Specific Sins and Their Societal Effects

However, in another narration — which is actually a statement of Ibn 'Abbas (radiyallahu 'anhuma) — he actually mentions specific sins and the effects these sins have on society as a whole. He says:

That whenever ghulūl — ghulūl classically is defined as taking from the spoils of war, but the idea behind it is taking from public wealth for one's own personal gain — whenever this becomes common, Allah will place fear and awe in the hearts of Muslims; they will always be scared, they will always be in fear.

And when adultery and these types of sins become common, then death will also become common. And this is something that we can see very clearly — the diseases and untreatable ailments that pass on because of this action lead to a lot of deaths.

And the hadith continues: when people start being dishonest in their transactions, when people engage in exploitative practices, then Allah will cut off their provisions. And when people start breaking the treaties and promises that they make to other nations or between themselves, then Allah will make the enemies of Islam have power over the Muslims.

This Is Not a Reason for Despair — It Is a Call to Return

Now, if someone hears all this, this isn't a reason to become despondent — that "Oh look, now we're in hardship, now we're going through difficulty, that's it, it's over." No.

If we step back and we look at every single verse that was mentioned, the reason for Allah mentioning this is very clear. The first verse — regarding Shu'ayb (alayhi al-salām)'s people — what was the point? It was in hopes that they turn back to Allah. The ayah of ظَهَرَ الْفَسَادُ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ — how does it end? لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ — in hopes that these people will turn back to Allah.

In another place Allah says:

"Why is it not that when they go through hardship and difficulties come upon them, why don't they turn back to Allah? Why don't they humble themselves in front of Allah?"

So what is the point of mentioning all this? The point is that it is never too late. Allah is always ready to welcome someone back — whether it be an individual or whether it be the Muslim ummah as a whole. And a person going through hardship or being trialed — that should not be the only case where a person turns back to Allah. The same way that we normally hear in all aspects of life: we should avoid being reactive and try to be proactive. So a person going through hardship and then turning to Allah — that is still a good sign, but that is reactive. Being proactive is where a person from the get-go tries to build a connection with Allah, fosters this very special connection that a slave has with his master, that a servant has with his creator.

And obviously we are all aware of what is coming in a week or two — the month of Ramadan is upon us. And this is the best time for a person to work on his connection with Allah. We are all aware of the famous hadith which says that during Ramadan all the devils are locked up. And sure there is a range of different commentaries and explanations of what it means when the devils are locked up. But one thing that every single one of us can agree on is that in Ramadan it is easier — it is easier to come to the masjid, it is easier to read more Qur'an, it is easier to make longer du'as, it is easier to pray more nawafil, Tarawih is a bit easier, fasting is easier. Why? Because the entire environment is conducive.

The Story of Khawla bint Tha'laba: The Fruits of a Personal Connection with Allah

And if we take advantage of this time and we use it to the best of our ability to establish a connection with Allah, I would just like to end off with a story of a sahabiyyah (radiyallahu 'anha) which illustrates the fruits of a person who has a personal connection with Allah.

So regarding the female companions, a lot of times the only thing that is in our minds is the time they spent with the Prophet ﷺ — which of course, even a moment in the company of the Prophet ﷺ, nothing in this world can compare to it. However, if we look into their lives we will see just how involved they were in their own personal worship as well.

So the story I am referring to is the story of Khawla bint Tha'laba (radiyallahu 'anha), regarding whom the initial verses of Surah al-Mujādilah were revealed. Her story is somewhat long, but the gist of it is that her husband said some words to her which they used to believe in pre-Islamic Arabia would make one's wife perpetually impermissible for the husband. So he said these words, and they were both regretful — they wanted to get back together. But at that time, Islam did not have a ruling on this matter. So the matter and the ruling was the same as it was in the time of ignorance, which is that it was impossible for them to get back together.

She comes to the Prophet ﷺ and it is a very sad story. She mentions her entire situation. She says:

"We spent our entire lives together. We have grown old together. We have had children together. And now we are being forced to separate." So at that time the Prophet ﷺ told her that right now no ruling has come — the ruling is the same as it was in the time of ignorance, which is that she is unable to get back with her husband.

Now the beautiful thing about Islam is that a person does not have to go through somebody to speak to Allah, to communicate with Allah, to cry out to Allah. Rather, each person can personally call upon Allah. And that is exactly what this old woman did. She made du'a to Allah — such a du'a that Allah revealed verses about her. Allah says in the beginning of Surah al-Mujādilah:

"Verily Allah has heard the cry of the woman who argues with the Prophet ﷺ with regards to her husband and she complains to Allah."

And this incident of hers became so famous — one elderly woman's connection with Allah was so amazing that Allah revealed verses in her favor in the Qur'an — that it comes about Umar (radiyallahu 'anhu) that this was after he became the leader of the believers and the caliph: he was once traveling with his entire caravan, and this same woman, Khawla bint Tha'laba (radiyallahu 'anha), was approaching. She stopped Umar (radiyallahu 'anhu) and she started giving him advice — very nice advice about his state before and his state now. And she kept going on and on. So immediately one of the people in his caravan pushed her back and said:

"You don't know who this is? This is the leader of the believers — you are speaking too much to him. You should back off." And then they asked Umar (radiyallahu 'anhu):

"Are you going to stand here and listen to this old lady?" So Umar (radiyallahu 'anhu) said something incredible:

"By Allah, if this woman kept me here from the beginning of the day till the end of the night, I would only step away for the obligatory prayers." And then he asked them:

"Do you know who this lady is? Allah has heard her call above the seven heavens. Is it such that the Lord of the worlds will listen to her and Umar will not?"

So we should really think — who is this individual saying this? This is the individual about whom the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Hadith 3686)

"If there was a prophet after me it would be Umar." This is the individual about whom the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih al-Bukhārī, Hadith 3469)

"In the nations before there were such people who were divinely inspired by Allah. Had anyone in my Ummah been such an individual, it would have been Umar (radiyallahu 'anhu)." The Prophet ﷺ would grab his hand and Abu Bakr (radiyallahu 'anhu)'s hand and say:

"This is how we will be raised on the Day of Judgment." This individual is saying what he said about this woman — why? Because of the connection she had with Allah.

Conclusion: Take Advantage of Ramadan to Foster Your Connection with Allah

So the point here is that because of the environment that insha'Allah will be upon us in Ramadan, we should take maximum benefit from this time and foster a connection with Allah. I pray that Allah gives us all the opportunity and He gives us the tawfīq to act upon what has been said.

Announcements

Please pass the donation boxes from left to right and donate generously. Sadaqah wards off calamities and draws the mercy of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ says charity given on the day of Jumu'ah is greater in reward than any other day.

Also, please note that there is no curb parking. Do not park on the curbs behind the seminary building or the Swift Highway. We have additional parking spaces in the used car lot. Please do not park in the condo's parking lot.

With regards to some of the upcoming programs:

• Guide to Healthy and Balanced Breakfast with Mawlana Asifuddin — tonight, March 1st, after 'Isha Salah.
• Fiqh of Ramadan with Mufti Minhajuddin Ahmed — Friday, March 8th, after 'Isha Salah.
• Sisters Ramadan Volunteer Orientation — Saturday, March 2nd, 12–1 p.m., followed by snacks and Dhuhr in the Sisters Prayer Hall. Darul Islam Sisters Ramadan Team is looking for volunteers. Join this Saturday to learn more about available volunteer roles and sign up to join the amazing Sisters Ramadan Team.
• Sisters Monthly Dars — Fiqh of Fasting, Sisters Edition with Mufti Minhajuddin Ahmed — Sunday, March 3rd, 12–2:30 p.m. in the Sisters Prayer Hall. Lunch will be served after Dhuhr.

Please sign up to sponsor iftar and dinner or one of the many expenses incurred in Ramadan. If you want to gain the reward of a fasting person, insha'Allah your reward will be multiplied many times over. Please visit the office for more details.

Additionally, join us for our weekly programs:

• Team Fajr continues tomorrow, Saturday. Fajr al-Qamah is at 5:45 a.m.
• Tuesday Tafseer continues this coming Tuesday after 'Isha Salah at 7:30. We will continue Surah al-Tahrīm, insha'Allah.
• Weekly Salawat and Khatirah every Thursday after 'Isha Salah.
• Sisters Program — online weekly Tafseer in Urdu, Thursdays 12–1 p.m. You can register at masjidds.org/rsvp.

Dates are available for sale. Please contact the food stall outside the archway entrance.

For further du'a requests, please make du'a for the Muslims in Palestine. Also, there is a du'a request for brother Rafi Ahmad for good health, as well as for brother Irshad Imtiaz who passed away in Pakistan from cancer. We pray that Allah gives shifa to those who are sick and He forgives those who have left this world. Ameen.