Chapter 54: Excellence of Weeping out of Fear from Allah (swt)

allah, the exalted, says:

"and they fall down on their faces weeping and it increases their humility.'' (17:109)

"do you then wonder at this recitation (the qur'an)? and you laugh at it and weep not". (53:59-60)

446. ibn mas`ud (may allah be pleased with him) reported: the prophet (pbuh) said to me: "recite the qur'an to me". i said, "o messenger of allah! shall i recite the qur'an to you, when it has been revealed to you?'' he (pbuh) replied, "i love to hear it recited by others". so i recited to him a portion from surat an-nisa'. when i reached the ayah:

"how (will it be) then, when we bring from each nation a witness and we bring you (o muhammad (pbuh)) as a witness against these people?". (4:41)

he (pbuh) said, "enough for now". when i looked at him i saw his eyes were shedding tears.
[al-bukhari and muslim].

commentary:  this hadith tells us that besides the recitation of the noble qur'an, a muslim should also listen to it from others so that he can contemplate further on it. it also makes one weep when one listens to the noble qur'an.

447. anas bin malik (may allah be pleased with him) reported: messenger of allah (pbuh) delivered a khutbah to us the like of which i had never heard from him before. in the course of the khutbah, he said: "if you knew what i know, you would laugh little and weep much". thereupon those present covered their faces and began to sob.
[al-bukhari and muslim].

commentary:  this hadith has been mentioned in this chapter for the reason that it furnishes positive proof of the fact that the companions of the prophet (pbuh) used to weep out of fear of allah when they heard sermons and preachings. it induces us to follow them.

448. abu hurairah (may allah be pleased with him) reported: messenger of allah (pbuh) said, "one who weeps out of fear of allah, will not enter the hell till milk returns back in the udder; and the dust raised on account of fighting in the path of allah and the smoke of hell will never exist together".
[at-tirmidhi].

commentary:
1. a person who has such a fear of allah that he weeps on account of it, cannot be disobedient to allah. obviously, his life will generally be spent in obedience of allah and strict abstinence from sins. it is very true to say that it is as impossible for such a person to go to hell as the return of milk to the udders.

2. similarly, jihad is a highly meritorious act for a muslim. a mujahid, who fights for the sake of allah, is perfectly safe from hell because the dust that falls on this way on him, cannot mix with the smoke of hell.

449. abu hurairah (may allah be pleased with him) reported: messenger of allah (pbuh) said, "seven people allah will give them his shade on the day when there would be no shade but the shade of his throne (i.e., on the day of  resurrection): and they are: a just ruler; a youth who grew up with the worship of allah; a person whose heart is attached to the mosques, two men who love and meet each other and depart from each other for the sake of allah; a man whom an extremely beautiful woman seduces (for illicit relation), but he (rejects this offer and) says: `i fear allah' a man who gives in charity and conceals it (to such an extent) that the left hand does not know what the right has given; and a man who remembers allah in solitude and his eyes become tearful".
[al-bukhari and muslim].

commentary:  this hadith has been included in this chapter for the reason that it highlights the merits of weeping for fear of allah. the fear of allah keeps one away from disobedience of allah, the reward of which in the hereafter is jannah - a world which abounds in the bounties and pleasure of allah.

450. `abdullah bin ash-shikhkhir (may allah be pleased with him) reported: i came to messenger of allah (pbuh) when he was performing prayers. he was sobbing and his chest sounded like a boiling kettle.
[abu dawud and at-tirmidhi].

commentary:  this hadith tells us how the prophet (pbuh) used to weep in prayer out of fear of allah. to weep in the course of supplication and at the thought of one's appearance before allah reflects piety.

451. anas (may allah be pleased with him) reported: messenger of allah (pbuh) said to ubayy bin ka`b (may allah be pleased with him), "allah (swt) has ordered me to recite to you surat-al-baiyyinah (98): `those who disbelieve ..."

ubayy (may allah be pleased with him) asked, "did he name me?'' messenger of allah (pbuh) replied in the affirmative. whereupon ubayy (may allah be pleased with him) began to weep.
[al-bukhari and muslim].

commentary:  this hadith highlights the following:

1. the permissibility of crying out of joy when a certain bounty has been bestowed upon one, and out of fear that one fails to show gratefulness to the bestower of the bounty (i.e., allah).

2. the superiority of ubayy bin ka`b (may allah be pleased with him) and the high position he occupies with regard to his recitation and memorization of the qur'an.

452. anas bin malik (may allah be pleased with him) reported: after the death of messenger of allah (pbuh), abu bakr said to `umar (may allah be pleased with them): "let us visit umm aiman (may allah be pleased with him) as messenger of allah (pbuh) used to visit her.'' as we came to her, she wept. they (abu bakr and `umar (may allah be pleased with them) said to her, "what makes you weep? do you not know that what allah has in store for his messenger (pbuh) is better than (this worldly life)?'' she said, "i weep not because i am ignorant of the fact that what is in store for messenger of allah (pbuh) (in the hereafter) is better than this world, but i weep because the revelation has ceased to come.'' this reply moved both of them to tears and they began to weep along with her.
[muslim].

commentary:  here, this hadith has been reproduced to furnish justification for weeping on the departure of virtuous people because their presence is a source of many blessings. with their departure from this world, people are deprived of many graces. pious people are certainly very much grieved on their death.

453. ibn `umar (may allah be pleased with them) reported: when the illness of messenger of allah (pbuh) became serious, he was asked about the leading of salat  and he said, "ask abu bakr to lead salat.'' whereupon, `aishah (may allah be pleased with her) said; "abu bakr is very tender hearted. he is bound to be overcome by weeping when he recites the qur'an.'' messenger of allah (pbuh) repeated, "ask him (abu bakr) to lead salat".

in another narration: `aishah (may allah be pleased with her) said: "when abu bakr stands in your place, he will not be able to recite the noble qur'an to the people on account of weeping.''
[al-bukhari and muslim].

commentary:
1. this hadith brings into prominence the distinction of abu bakr as-siddiq (may allah be pleased with him). it was because of this distinction that the companions of the prophet (pbuh) selected him as khalifah (caliph) after the death of the prophet (pbuh). on this occasion, `umar (may allah be pleased with him) said, "should we not like him for our (worldly life) political leadership when the prophet (pbuh) had chosen him for our deen".

2. the justification for weeping at the time of the recitation of the noble qur'an. this was a special virtue of abu bakr as-siddiq (may allah be pleased with him) which was a mark of his perfect faith.

454. ibrahim bin `abdur-rahman bin `auf  reported: food was brought to `abdur-rahman bin `auf (may allah be pleased with him) when he was observing saum (fast) and he said: "mus`ab bin `umair (may allah be pleased with him) was martyred and he was better than me, but only one sheet was available to shroud him. it was so small that when his head was covered; his feet remained uncovered and if his feet were covered, his head remained uncovered. then the bounties of this world have been bestowed upon us generously. i am afraid that the reward of our good deeds have been awarded to us in this world.'' on this he began to sob and left the food untouched.
[al-bukhari].

commentary:  this hadith tells us about the hospitality of the companions of the prophet (pbuh) and the respect they had for each other.

abdur-rahman bin `auf (may allah be pleased with him) was one of the figures of `al-ashratul-mubash-sharun  bil jannah (the ten companions of the prophet (pbuh) who were given the glad tidings of entering jannah during their lifetime). for this reason, he is superior to mus`ab bin `umair (may allah be pleased with him), but he acknowledged him superior on the consideration of his martyrdom and poverty through which he had passed. he holds mus`ab bin `umair (may allah be pleased with him) better on the grounds that he had confronted the infidels in extremely difficult circumstances and sacrificed his life for the sake of allah.

the second point which this hadith brings out is the fear which abdur-rahman bin `auf (may allah be pleased with him) felt at the abundance of wealth and property, although he used to spend his wealth and riches in the way of allah and jihad. today, the only purpose of our wealth is that we waste it either on foolish customs and ceremonies of marriage or construction of buildings and their decoration. it was this abundance of wealth of which the companions of the prophet (pbuh) were afraid. the prophet (pbuh) had himself expressed great anxiety over it.

455. abu umamah sudaiy bin `ajlan al-bahili (may allah be pleased with him) reported: the prophet (pbuh) said: "nothing is dearer to allah than two drops and two marks: a drop of tears shed out of fear of allah and a drop of blood shed in allah's way. regarding the two marks, they are: marks left in the cause of allah and a mark left in observing one of the obligatory act of worship of allah, the exalted".
[at-tirmidhi].

commentary: this hadith mentions the merits of the following:

1. weeping out of fear of allah.

2. the blood which flows in the way of allah.

3. the marks of injuries which are left on the bodies of those who take part in jihad.

4. the marks of wounds received in the performance of obligations.

the ahadith on the subject are many.

456. al-`irbad bin sariyah (may allah be pleased with him) reported: one day messenger of allah (pbuh) delivered us a very eloquent khutbah on account of which eyes shed tears and hearts became softened.
[abu dawud and at-tirmidhi].

commentary: even in the relevant chapter, the author has only given a reference of this hadith and not its full text. this has, however, been stated in chapter 16, bearing the title "observing the sunnah and the manners of its obedience".