Fear of Allah

[Mariam Raza]

What causes the fear of Allah?

I often find scholars mentioning that in order to increase one's fear of Allah, one should attain knowledge, but I think knowledge doesn't always instill the fear of Allah. One might argue that it depends on the type of knowledge, but Iblees disbelieved even after knowing and witnessing the reality of Allah, the Paradise and the Hellfire.

[Abu Yaqoob]

What causes the fear of Allah?

I often find scholars mentioning that in order to increase one's fear of Allah, one should attain knowledge, but I think knowledge doesn't always instill the fear of Allah. One might argue that it depends on the type of knowledge, but Iblees disbelieved even after knowing and witnessing the reality of Allah, the Paradise and the Hellfire.
Wa alaikum assalaam,

I think you should study the verse:

"Verily those who fear Allah amongst His servants, are the Ulema"
- Surah Fadir

[Danya]

asalaamualaykum,

maybe it's more that... for a person to truly be a scholar, he/she is a person w/sooo much taqwa, rather than vice versa, i.e. that gaining knowledge will automatically give you taqwa.

lol was that confusing?

but gaining knowledge with the right intention probably does increase taqwa...

wasalaam

[bintamina]

What causes the fear of Allah?

I often find scholars mentioning that in order to increase one's fear of Allah, one should attain knowledge, but I think knowledge doesn't always instill the fear of Allah. One might argue that it depends on the type of knowledge, but Iblees disbelieved even after knowing and witnessing the reality of Allah, the Paradise and the Hellfire.A Sister's notes, may they prove beneficial, inshaaAllah:



Bismillaah.......

Assalamu 3alaykum wa rahmatu Allaahi wa barakaatu



Inshaa Allaah this is some naseehah that the noble Shaykh Rabee' hafidhullaah gave to the students in the West a few weeks ago on paltalk. May it be of benefit bi ithnillaah.






Shaykh Rabee’ ibn Hadee al-Madhkhalee [hafidhullaah]



Importance of Taqwaa for students of knowledge



Sunday December 18th 2005

Translated: Abu Muhammad al-Maghribee

__________________________________________________ ___________________





In the name of Allaah and the peace and blessings upon the Prophet Muhammad



Indeed it is a pure and blessed opportunity that I will gather and meet with all my brothers and sons, sisters and daughters from the students of knowledge. From amongst those who they have, their taking good care of this deen …Likewise the affairs of the Muslims is important to them and indeed he is talking about those who are keen and zealous to do that which will benefit the Muslims. A pure opportunity especially that the talk is around a great topic, Having Taqwaa while Seeking Knowledge. Rather having taqwaa and having fear of Allaah in all of the affairs of the Muslim.



The Muslim should be the one who constantly remembers that Allaah is watching over him. And the Muslim should always fear Allaah in all his affairs, those who are related to his dunyaa and those related to his religion. In all times and in all places. And he mentioned the hadeeth: “ And fear Allaah wherever you may be and follow an evil deed with a good deed…” [hadeeth is mentioned by Shaykh al-Albaanee and is hadeeth hasan]



I am not going to restrict the talk to only those who carry knowledge, rather taqwaa, piety and fear of Allaah is manifested in different fields and areas …….So therefore I will elaborate on this topic from that which Allaah inspired us with from the text of the Book of Allaah subhanna wa ta’alaa and the Sunnah. So therefore I say, indeed Allaah subhanna wa ta’alaa has given us his command with taqwaa of Him, in many ayaat and verses for its importance. Because taqwaa, fear of Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa, is submitting totally to all the commands of Allaah together and staying away from that which He has forbidden. And Allaah commanded us with the sound and correct belief, actions and manners. Likewise, Allaah forbade the corrupt beliefs which cause the people to be misguided…..Likewise Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa forbade all despised and wicked manners. And the Muslim it is incumbent upon him or her that he should have taqwaa of Allaah, in every belief he believes. And he should have taqwaa in every deed he may act upon to get closer to Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa. Likewise the Muslim should have taqwaa the moment he stays away from what Allaah has forbidden- shirk, major sins, bid’aah and all despised and despicable manners and morals.



Having taqwaa must be constantly with the Muslims in all of his affairs, especially the students of knowledge and especially the scholar. And from the verses that Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa has given that He subhanaahu wa ta’alaa should be feared and that the people should have taqwaa of Allaah: O you who believe! Fear Allâh (by doing all that He has ordered and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden) as He should be feared. [Obey Him, be thankful to Him, and remember Him always], and die not except in a state of Islâm (as Muslims) with complete submission to Allâh. (Aali Imran 3:102)



The Shaykh continued by saying to fear Allaah as He should be feared means that Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa should be obeyed and not be disobeyed. And that Allaah should be remembered and not forgotten. And Allaah should be thanked and we should not turn away from the favours of Allaah and be ungrateful.



This was mentioned by ‘Abdullaah ibn Mas’ood radiallaahu ‘anhu. As for another definition of taqwaa that you worship Allaah upon a light from Allaah hoping for the reward of Allaah. And that you avoid disobeying Allaah upon a light from Allaah, fearing the punishment of Allaah. Likewise from other definitions of taqwaa, taqwaa fear of Allaah is that you avoid all of the evil and bad deeds from shirk, things that take you away from the correct path and innovation.



Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa in ayaah 102, He has given the command that He should be obeyed and that we should have a firm foot upon His obedience until we meet Him. And die not except as Muslims. Whoever was firm upon a deed and continuously acted upon it, that Allaah will cause the person to die upon the deen. And we ask Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa to keep us firm upon Islaam and eemaan and the truth and the guidance until we meet him while He is pleased with us.



Likewise from the commands of Allaah, the statement of Allaah in Soorah Ahzaab : O you who believe! Keep your duty to Allâh and fear Him, and speak (always) the truth. He will direct you to do righteous good deeds and will forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allâh and His Messenger (salAllaahu 3alayhi wa salaam) he has indeed achieved a great achievement (i.e. he will be saved from the Hell-fire and made to enter Paradise). (Al-Ahzab 33:70-71)



Fear Allaah upon comprehensive taqwaa ……and this will never be established except upon knowledge, and to always speak truth upon knowledge. When you fear Allaah by acting upon His command and staying away from that which He has forbidden, you hope for His reward fearing his punishment and you always speak the truth whether in your statements and actions. Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa will make your deeds righteous. Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa will rectify your honour and your heart and He will guide you to all types of good and all your deeds become righteous good deeds , and a glad tiding of Allaah.



And He will forgive your sins, because you fear Him subhanaahu wa ta’alaa and you always speak the truth and you always say that which is upright. And whosoever obeys Allaah and His Messenger salAllaahu 3alayhi wa salaam he has indeed received a great achievement. Whoever fears Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa and follows his commands, indeed he has obeyed Allaah. And this is a person, if he acts upon this, the fruits of this will be a great success with Allaah, which is Paradise. It’s as the heavens and earths were prepared for the mutaqeen.



Qalaa Shaykh hafidhullaah, likewise in the verses which are contained in Soorah al-Hashr, 18: O you who believe! Fear Allâh and keep your duty to Him. And let every person look to what he has sent forth for the morrow, and fear Allâh. Verily, Allâh is All-Aware of what you do. (Al-Hashr 59:18). In one single verse, to show the importance of taqwaa Allaah has given His command that He should be feared and to take account of your soul. What have you prepared for that day? The Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, except him who brings to Allâh a clean heart [clean from Shirk (polytheism) and Nifâq (hypocrisy)]. (Ash-Shu'ara 26:88-89)



As for the statement of Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa “and let every person look to what he has prepared for tomorrow”. It is incumbent upon the Muslim to fear Allaah in his every move that he does…It is also incumbent upon the Muslim to take account of his self. What did he prepare in the way of righteous good deeds? So by checking his own self, if he has any deficiency, he will make it up. So when He meets Allaah on that day, that very dangerous Day, that makes the people tremble, he met Him this day while he prepared this righteous good deeds, this good deeds that will make him eligible to be saved on that Day.



And Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa put emphasis on the statement: And fear Allaah. Verily Allaah is All-Aware of what you do”.



As for the statement of Allaah, Verily Allaah is All-Aware….meaning Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa has full knowledge of all your moves and even when you don’t move. It is upon what Allaah has legislated, and that Allaah knows and has full knowledge of what you have from deeds and actions, if they’re righteous or wicked.



All of this will push the believer to be constantly mindful of Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa and be aware of the fact that Allaah sees him and that Allaah is a Watcher over him. This is some of the commands that Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa has commanded His servants to fear Him and they should be aware that Allaah is the Watcher over them. And those commands and those verses that display and show commands are many. And from those verses, there are those that make clear and bring details of the characteristics of the pious.



Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa showed clearly in His Book the characteristics of the pious: if a person took it upon himself to act upon belief or that which has been legislated, indeed Allaah said in His Glorious Book- Baqaarah, 177: It is not Al-Birr (piety, righteousness, and each and every act of obedience to Allâh, etc.) that you turn your faces towards east and (or) west (in prayers); but Al-Birr is (the quality of) the one who believes in Allâh, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, the Prophets and gives his wealth, in spite of love for it, to the kinsfolk, to the orphans, and to Al-Masâkin (the poor), and to the wayfarer, and to those who ask, and to set slaves free, performs As-Salât (Iqâmat-as-Salât), and gives the Zakât, and who fulfill their covenant when they make it, and who are As-Sâbirin (the patient ones, etc.) in extreme poverty and ailment (disease) and at the time of fighting (during the battles). Such are the people of the truth and they are Al­Muttaqûn (Al-Baqarah 2:177). These are the characteristics of al-abraar, the good doers, the pious and the servant.



And this verse is clear in this. So therefore it is incumbent upon us to believe with a sound belief, from that which was mentioned in this verse and the correct and righteous actions that the most important of them…



We ask Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa to make us of the people who act upon this great deen and that He subhanaahu wa ta’alaa make us of His closest slaves and the saliheen. Likewise, from the characteristics of the pious the mentioning of what Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa has prepared for them..and because of that, their taqwaa and fear of Allaah will live on. 133-136, Aali-Imraan: And march forth in the way (which leads to) forgiveness from your Lord, and for Paradise as wide as are the heavens and the earth, prepared for Al-Muttaqûn .Those who spend [in Allâh's Cause - deeds of charity, alms, etc.] in prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men; verily, Allâh loves Al-Muhsinûn (the good­doers). And those who, when they have committed Fahishah (illegal sexual intercourse etc.) or wronged themselves with evil, remember Allâh and ask forgiveness for their sins; - and none can forgive sins but Allâh - And do not persist in what (wrong) they have done, while they know. For such, the reward is Forgiveness from their Lord, and Gardens with rivers flowing underneath (Paradise), wherein they shall abide forever. How excellent is this reward for the doers (who do righteous deeds according to Allâh's Orders). (Aali Imran 3:133-136)



And the pious who compete with one another and march forth in the deen to act upon taqwaa, Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa has prepared for them a garden and a paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth. When they wrong themselves and fall into evil, they don’t persist upon it and rush to repentance while they have a certainty that none forgives the sins except Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa. Along with the many characteristics, so therefore Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa attributes these deeds and actions a great reward. So therefore it is incumbent upon us to know these actions, indeed they are from the actions of taqwaa and of the pious. They are those that Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa has prepared for them Paradise which is as wide as the heavens and the earth. Taqwaa isn’t just by hoping for it, rather it is achieved by actions and a correct belief and righteous good deeds. Taqwaa isn’t by claims.



No one is guided by this Great Book, but that no one can touch him from in front or behind him: Al-Baqaarah 1-6: Alif-Lâm-Mîm. [These letters are one of the miracles of the Qur'ân and none but Allâh (Alone) knows their meanings]. This is the Book (the Qur'ân), whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are Al-Muttaqûn [the pious and righteous persons who fear Allâh much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden) and love Allâh much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained)]. Who believe in the Ghaib and perform As-Salât (Iqâmat-as-Salât), and spend out of what we have provided for them [i.e. give Zakât , spend on themselves, their parents, their children, their wives, etc., and also give charity to the poor and also in Allâh's Cause - Jihâd, etc.]. And who believe in (the Qur'ân and the Sunnah) which has been sent down (revealed) to you (Muhammad Peace be upon him ) and in [the Taurât (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel), etc.] which were sent down before you and they believe with certainty in the Hereafter. (Resurrection, recompense of their good and bad deeds, Paradise and Hell, etc.). They are on (true) guidance from their Lord, and they are the successful. Verily, those who disbelieve, it is the same to them whether you (O Muhammad Peace be upon him ) warn them or do not warn them, they will not believe. (Al-Baqarah 2:1-6)



The Shaykh continued: Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa mentioned in his Great Book but none will benefit from it except the pious. That is why Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa said this Book is guidance for the mutaqoon. And then Allaah has mentioned the great characteristics that comprise the correct belief and sound actions. This is a glimpse of taqwaa and the commands which came to us from Allaah subhanaahu wa ta’alaa to the pious believers, so they can act upon it……..And the Messenger of Allaah. We ask Allaah for piety and guidance and that we won’t be in need of anyone except Allaah. ……



The Prophet salAllaahu 3alayhi wa salaam said: “Fear Allaah, fast your month, pay your zakaah and obey your rulers, you will enter the Paradise of your Lord”



Shaykh Rabee’ continued: the Prophet commanded us to have fear of Allaah, which includes all righteous good deeds and all authentic and sound beliefs. And then he added to it other chapters of at-taqwaa, from at-taqwaa is establishing the salaah in its fixed times, upon the way that Allaah has legislated. That the person has to have good behaviour, humble himself and be aware Allaah is watching him/her. From taqwaa, fasting in the month of Ramadhaan which the Qu’raan was revealed. Because this is from the pillars of eemaan.



As for prayers and fasting, their acts of worship done for Allaah; zakaah is an action of worship but at the same time you are doing good to others and Allaah loves the good doers. Likewise in this hadeeth, is obeying the rulers of the Muslims. Because by obeying the rulers, blood of people is sacred, honour is protected. Likewise the borders of the Muslim countries are protected from many other things, that from the responsibility of the Muslims.



[The Shaykh continued on, this is not the end of the lecture ]



wasalaamu 3alaykum wa rahmatu Allaahi wa barakaatu

[Mariam Raza]

A Sister's notes, may they prove beneficial, inshaaAllah:



Bismillaah.......

Assalamu 3alaykum wa rahmatu Allaahi wa barakaatu



Inshaa Allaah this is some naseehah that the noble Shaykh Rabee' hafidhullaah gave to the students in the West a few weeks ago on paltalk. May it be of benefit bi ithnillaah.

.......... (message continued)




Jazaakillahu Khairen for the beneficial article.

[bintamina]

Wa iyaaki ukhtee.

[Safyah]

What causes the fear of Allah?

I often find scholars mentioning that in order to increase one's fear of Allah, one should attain knowledge, but I think knowledge doesn't always instill the fear of Allah. One might argue that it depends on the type of knowledge, but Iblees disbelieved even after knowing and witnessing the reality of Allah, the Paradise and the Hellfire.
did iblees disbelieve or become arrogant?

[Amatullah]

According to the Qur'an, he is both:

And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves before Adam.". And they prostrated except iblees, he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allah).
Surah AlBaqarah ayah 34

(Allah) said: "(O iblees) get down from this (Paradise), it is not for you to be arrogant here. Get out, for you are of those humiliated and disgraced."
Surah AlA'raf ayah 13

He knows that Allah is His Rabb but He is too arrogant to worship and obey Him ta'ala. In Du'aa: Weapon of a Believer, Ustadh Qadhi mentions that iblees even made du'aa to Allah azza wa jal (which confirms that iblees knows that Allah is His Lord and Sustainer):
(iblees) said: "Allow me respite till the Day they are raised up (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)." Surah AlA'raf ayah 14

(iblees) said: "O my Lord! Because you misled me, I shall indeed adorn the path of error for them (mankind) on the earth, and I shall mislead them all. Surah AlHijr ayah 39

Also, in Surah Hashr it mentions how iblees will say to a person, "disbelieve in Allah" but then when the person disbelieves he says, "I am free of you, I fear ar-Rabbul Alameen" SubhanAllah... (Their allies deceived them) like Shaitan (Satan), when he says to man: "Disbelieve in Allah." But when (man) disbelieves in Allah, Shaitan (Satan) says: "I am free of you, I fear Allah, the Lord of the alameen!"

wa Allahu ta'ala 'alam. May Allah protect us from him. ameen