Reports on the breadth of the mercy of Allah the Exalted

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When Allah Almighty created all of creation, He wrote with His hand concerning Himself: 'My mercy prevails over My wrath.'"

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "If you people do not sin, Allah Almighty will bring another creation who will sin, and Allah Almighty will forgive them."

Sayyiduna Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: If Allah, Mighty and Majestic, had no creation who sin, Allah Almighty would create a new creation who would sin, and then they would be forgiven on the Day of Resurrection.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "If you people do not sin, Allah Almighty will bring a people who will sin, and then Allah will forgive them."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Salman (may Allah be pleased with him) that when Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was shown the hidden wonders of the earth and the heavens, he saw a man committing adultery with a woman. He prayed against him, and he perished. Then he saw another, and prayed against him, and he too perished. Then he saw a third, and prayed against him, and he too perished. Allah Almighty said: "Take My servant down, so that My servants are not destroyed."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the believers have no need of intercession; intercession is only for the sinners.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah Almighty has spread out both His hands for the sinner of the night, that he may repent during the day, and for the sinner of the day, that he may repent during the night. The door of repentance remains open until the sun rises from the west."

It is narrated from Abu Wa'il that Allah will call His servant on the Day of Resurrection and conceal him with His hand. Then He will ask him: "Do you know what this is?" He will say: "Yes, O Lord!" Allah Almighty will say: "Be witness that I have forgiven you."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Salman (may Allah be pleased with him) that Allah Almighty created one hundred mercies. Then He distributed one of them among the creation. Each mercy is greater than all that is in the heavens and the earth. It is from this mercy that a mother loves and shows compassion to her child, and because of it birds and wild beasts drink water. When the Day of Resurrection comes, Allah Almighty will withdraw this mercy from the creation, and He will assign this mercy and the other ninety-nine mercies to the God-fearing. Concerning this is the saying of Allah: "My mercy encompasses all things, so I will decree it for those who are God-fearing" [Al-A'raf: 156].

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "On the day that Allah created the earth and the heavens, He created one hundred mercies. He placed one of them on the earth. Because of it a mother shows mercy to her children, and some animals show mercy to others. He held back ninety-nine until the Day of Resurrection. When the Day of Resurrection comes, Allah Almighty will complete the one hundred mercies with this mercy."

It is narrated from Mughith that among the earlier nations there was a man who used to commit sins. Then one day he remembered and said: "O Allah! Forgive me, for You are the Forgiving." So he was forgiven.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that there was a sinful man named al-Kifl. He was attracted to a woman, so he gave her fifty dinars. When he was about to commit the wrong act with her, the woman began to tremble. Al-Kifl asked: "What is the matter with you?" The woman said: "This is a deed I have never done before." Al-Kifl said: "You are frightened of this sin, while I have been doing it for such and such a time! By Allah, I will never sin again after today." Then he died that same night. When morning came, the people of Banu Isra'il began to say: "Who will pray the funeral prayer over so-and-so?" Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: It was found written on his door: "Allah Almighty has forgiven al-Kifl."

It is narrated from Mughith that there was a man who had been worshipping in his hermitage for sixty years. One day there was heavy rain. He looked out from his hermitage and saw pools of water, greenery and herbs. He said: "If I were to go down, I would walk and look around." So he did so. In the meantime he met a woman and began talking with her. The woman kept talking with him until he committed the wrong act. Then he put down his bag, in which there was a loaf, and went down into the water to bathe. Then his appointed time arrived. A beggar passed by, and he pointed to the loaf, and the beggar took it. And this man died. His deeds of sixty years were weighed, and the pan of his sins went down. Then that loaf was placed in the other pan, and it became heavier, so he was forgiven.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that a monk worshipped Allah in his hermitage for sixty years. A woman came and settled beside him, and the monk committed fornication with her for six nights. Then he was stricken with regret, and he fled to a mosque and took refuge there. Three days passed without his eating anything. A loaf was brought to him. He broke it into two parts, giving half of the loaf to the man on his right and half to the man on his left. Allah Almighty sent the Angel of Death, who took his soul. His sixty years of deeds were placed in one pan of the scale, and his sin in the other pan, and the pan of sin went down. Then that loaf was placed, and that pan became heavier than the pan of sin.

It is narrated from Abu Burdah that when the time of death drew near for Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him), he said: "O my sons, remember the man of the loaf. There was a man who worshipped in his hermitage for seventy years. Then one day he came down, and Satan appeared before his eyes in the likeness of a woman, and he committed fornication with her for seven days and seven nights. Then his error became clear to him, and he set out to repent. Whenever he took a step he would pray and prostrate. At night he took shelter in a shop in which there were twelve poor men. He was utterly exhausted, and he threw himself down between two of them. There was a monk there who used to send them loaves every night, giving each person one loaf. The man with the loaves came and gave each person a loaf, and he also passed by the man who had come out of the hermitage to repent. He thought that he too was a poor man, and gave him a loaf as well. One of them, who had been left out, said to the man with the loaves: 'What is the matter, that you did not give me my loaf?' He said: 'Do you think I am withholding it from you? Ask: have I given any of you two loaves?' They said: 'No.' He said: 'I will withhold from you; by Allah, I will give you nothing tonight.' The man who was repenting went to the loaf that had been given to him and gave it to the man who had been left out. In the morning the repenting man was found dead. His seventy years of good deeds were weighed against the sin of those seven nights, and they did not weigh enough. Then that loaf was weighed against those seven nights, and the pan with the loaf went down." Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O my sons, remember the man of the loaf."

Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) passed by a preacher who was speaking of Hell. Sayyiduna Abdullah said: "O you who remind, do not make the people despair. The saying of Allah is: 'O My servants who have transgressed against themselves, do not despair of the mercy of Allah' [Az-Zumar: 53]."

It is narrated from Ka'b that when the angels saw the sins of human beings, they said: "O Allah! They commit sins." Allah Almighty said: "If you were like them, you would do what they do. So choose two angels from among yourselves." They chose Harut and Marut. Allah Almighty said to these two angels: "Between Me and the people there is a messenger, but between Me and you two there is no one. Do not associate anyone with Me, do not steal, and do not commit adultery." Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Ka'b said: "They had not completed that day before they fell into what had been forbidden to them."

A man came to Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) with a complaint about his sins and asked him about it. Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud paid him no attention and turned to the people, speaking with them. Then Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) glanced at him and saw that he was weeping. Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: "The time has now come for the purpose for which you came. Paradise has seven gates, every one of which closes and opens, except the gate of repentance. An angel is appointed over it. So keep doing good deeds and do not despair."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "All human beings are sinners, and the best of sinners are those who repent."

It is narrated from Abu Qilabah that when Allah cursed Iblis, he asked Allah for respite, and Allah Almighty granted him respite until the Day of Judgment. Satan said: "By Your might, I will not leave the belly (or the heart) of the son of Adam as long as there is a soul in him." Allah Almighty said: "By My might, I will not veil repentance from him as long as there is a soul in him."

It is narrated from Malik that it was written in the Zabur: "I am Allah; there is no god but Me. I am the King of all kings. The hearts of all kings are in My grasp. So for the people who do good deeds I appoint kind kings over them, and for the people who disobey Me I make the kings a punishment upon them. Do not occupy yourselves with reviling the kings, and do not turn to them. Turn to Me and repent to Me, and I will make them kind towards you."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that among the nation before you there was a man who lived among a people of disbelievers, and among them there were also some righteous people. This man said: "Long have I been in this disbelief of mine; I will surely go to this righteous town so that I may become one of the righteous." He set out to go to that town, and death overtook him. The angel and Satan disputed about him. One said: "I have the greater right to him," and the other said: "I have the greater right." Allah Almighty decided between them through some of His troops. He said to them: "Measure the distance between the two towns; whichever town he is nearer to, he will be counted among its people." They measured the distance and found him nearer to the town of the righteous, so he became one of them.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I will tell you only what I heard from the mouth of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him); my ears heard it and my heart retained it. He said: "A man killed ninety-nine people. Then the thought of repentance came to him. He asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was told of a scholar. He came to that scholar and said: 'I have killed ninety-nine people. Can I repent?' The scholar said: 'Repentance even after ninety-nine killings?' The man drew his sword and killed him as well, completing the number one hundred. Then the thought of repentance came to him. He asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was told of a scholar. He came to that scholar and said: 'I have killed one hundred people. Can I repent?' The scholar said to him: 'Who can stand between you and repentance? Leave this wicked town in which you live and go to a town of righteous people, such and such a town, and worship your Lord there.' The man set out to go to that town. On the way, the time of his death came. The angels of mercy and the angels of punishment disputed about him. Iblis said: 'I have the greater right to him, for he never disobeyed me for even a moment.' The angels of mercy said: 'He set out with the intention of repentance.'"

Abu Rafi' said: Allah sent an angel to them, and they took their dispute to him. Then he returned to the narration of Qatadah and said: "See which of the two towns was nearer to him, and join him to it."

He said: Al-Hasan narrated to me; he said: When he realized that he was dying, he dragged himself forward. So Allah brought the righteous town near to him and moved the wicked town away from him, and He joined him to the people of the righteous town.

Safwan said: I was holding the hand of Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both). A man came to him and asked: "What did you hear from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) about the private conversation (najwa)?" Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Allah Almighty will bring the believer near on the Day of Resurrection until He places His shelter (kanaf) over him, concealing him from the people. Then Allah Almighty will say: 'O My servant! Do you know such and such sins?' He will say: 'Yes, my Lord.' Allah Almighty will say the same again and the servant will admit it, until, when he has admitted his sins and is certain that he is now ruined, Allah Almighty will say: 'I concealed them for you in the world, and today I have forgiven them for you.' Then he will be given the record of his good deeds. As for the disbelievers and the hypocrites, the witnesses will say concerning them: 'These are the ones who lied against their Lord. Behold, the curse of Allah is upon the wrongdoers' [Hud: 18]."

Awn said: He informs him of the pardon before the sin: "May Allah pardon you; why did you give them permission?" [At-Tawbah: 43].

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man set out from his town to visit his brother in another town. Allah seated an angel for him on the road. The angel asked him: 'Where do you intend to go?' The man said: 'I have a brother whom I am going to meet in this town, for the sake of Allah.' The angel said: 'Has he done you some favour that you are looking after?' The man said: 'No, but I love him for the sake of Allah Almighty.' The angel said: 'Then listen: I am Allah's angel and messenger, sent to you. Indeed Allah loves you because of the love you have for your brother for His sake.'"

It is narrated from Urwah bin Asim that a man's sins will be displayed to him. He will pass by a sin and will say: "I used to fear you." Then Allah will forgive him.

Ata bin Yasar said: On the Day of Resurrection those who make people despair will be held back, and the people will trample their necks as they pass.

Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said, in explanation of the Qur'anic verse "So divorce them at their prescribed period": Divorce them while they are in a state of purity, during a period of purity in which you have not had intercourse with them.