Sins and the Ability to Repent

By PROFESSOR HUSAYN ANSARIYAN

Mothers do not give birth to sinful children, and children do not come to this world defiled with sins.

When a baby comes to this life for the first time, his mind is empty of any knowledge, intellect, and information. He is completely ignorant of what is around him. When he comes to this world, he does not know anything, besides crying and suckling. At the same time, when he cries or suckles his mother's breast, he is ignorant of that too. Gradually, instincts, feelings, and lusts move into the circle of his physiological being, and these bodily activities enter into the field of his life. Then the baby begins to learn from the external environment and surroundings and from the conduct of the others what is necessary for him to survive in this life.

As for the body of a baby, it is vulnerable to different kinds of diseases and calamities throughout his life. The same is said about his intellect, soul, spirit, and heart. Concerning morals, he is also liable to commit sins and vices. Hence, sins are accidental to man just as diseases that attack his body. Sin is something accidental and not spontaneous.

Bodily diseases can be cured by following the instructions of a doctor, but intellect, spirit, and soul, when diseased, can be cured by following the instructions of the Almighty and obeying His orders.

If a sinner knows his state and notices his wrongdoing, and he knows what he should do and what he should not do, he must get ready to repent, to turn to Allah, and to follow the instructions of the "Spiritual Doctor", and then he will get out of the circle of sin to the circle of Allah's Mercy. Thus, he gets free of sins and becomes pure, as he has been born.

A sinner cannot pretend that he is unable to repent, because he who is able to commit sins is undoubtedly able to repent of those sins too.

Yes, if we who are able to eat, drink, come and go, talk, get married, work, play sports, travel, and associate with other people will curb all these appetites or activities if a doctor asks us to in order to avoid disease, then we should be able to avoid sins and falling into the abyss of corruption and disobedience. If sinners make excuses for not repenting, Allah will not accept their excuses. If sinners and disobeyers refuse to repent now, Allah will not invite them to repent later.

Sinners must accept the fact that they are able to refrain from sin in any case and any condition. The Qur'anic verses show that Allah is kind to His people, and He accepts their repentance and forgives sinners even if their sins are as vast as the sands of deserts. In fact, Allah may recompense sins with good doings.

Sinners must perceive that if they do not hasten to stop committing sin and being disobedient, and they do not purify their inner beings from sin's dregs, then Allah will torture them severely and punish them for their sins and crimes with the worst punishment.

Allah talks about Himself in the Holy Qur'an by saying:

"The Forgiver of the faults and the Acceptor of repentance, Severe to punish..." (40:3)

Imam Ali (peace be upon him) described God Almighty in Du'a Iftitah by saying, "I have ascertained that You are the Most Merciful of the merciful at the time of forgiveness and mercy, and You are the Severest Punisher at the time of punishment and revenge."

Allah declares to His sinful people His saying:

"Say: 'O my servants who have acted extravagantly against their own souls, do not despair of the mercy of Allah; surely Allah forgives the faults altogether; surely He is the Forgiving the Merciful.'" (39:53)

Hence, if we understand the verses of the Qur'an that give us the good news that we have the ability to refrain from sins, and that Allah accepts our repentance and is Forgiving and Merciful, then we have no excuse if we delay repenting and keep on committing sins. Therefore, repenting of sins is a prompt, moral, and rational obligation for all sinners.

If sinners do not hasten to repent, and they refuse to repair what they have committed and to purify themselves from the filth of sin and disobedience, then in the afterlife when they stand before Allah, they will not be excused by appealing to reason, conscience, or wisdom. The Day of Resurrection will come, when sinners will stand with deep regret, calling loudly:

"Were there only a returning for me, I should be of the doers of good." (39:58)

Allah will reply to them:

"Aye! My revelations came to you, but you rejected them, and you were proud, and you were one of the disbelievers." (39:59)

On that day, no excuses will be accepted from sinners. Faith and good deeds alone will save them from torture. Allah emphasizes the inevitable end of such people when saying:

"And had those who are unjust all that is in the earth and the like of it with it, they would certainly offer it as ransom (to be saved) from the evil of the punishment on the Day of Resurrection; and what they never thought of shall become plain to them from Allah." (39:47)

Imam Ali stresses in Du'a Kumayl that there will be no excuse accepted from a sinner when not repenting and turning to Allah, and that Allah has completed His authority over people by saying, "You have the authority over me in all of that, and I have no excuse before Your judgment against me."

Do You Want to Stay away from Sins?

A man came to Imam Hussain (a.s.) and said, "I frequently disobey Allah and cannot prevent myself from sins; therefore, please,give me an advice O son of the Prophet so that I may keep away from sins."
Imam: "Do five things and then commit sinsas much as you want."
Sinner: "Please tell me what those five things are."
Imam: "(1) Do not eat from the provisions of Allah, and then do whatever you like."
Sinner: "Then what will I be able to eat because whatever there is in his universe isfrom Allah!"
Imam: "(2) Then leave the earth of Allah, and then do whatever you like."
Sinner: "O Imam, this is even more difficult than the first! If I leave the earth, then where would I live-all belongs to Allah."
Imam: "(3) Then find a place where Allah cannot see you, and then do whatever you like."
Sinner: "But, O Imam, nothing is hidden from Allah."
Imam: (4) Then do one thing, when the angel of death comes to you, keep him away from yourself, and then do whatever you like. And if you cannot do that, then lastly,
(5) do not enter the Hell when God sends you into it. If you can do that, then go and commit whatever sins you like."
Sinner: "That's it, O son of the Prophet! Fromtoday, Allah will not find me in a situation which He dislikes."

PROPHET MUSA (AS), PROPHET DAWOOD (AS), PROPHET SULAYMAN(AS) AND PROPHET YUSUF (AS)

Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh): O Allah (SWT) hide my sins..!
It was narrated that in the days that Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) wandered with Bani Israel (Children of Israel) in the desert, an intense drought befell them. Together, they raised their hands towards the heavens praying for the blessed rain to come. Then, to the astonishment of Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) and all those watching, the few scattered clouds that were in the sky vanished, the heat poured down, and the drought intensified.
It was revealed to Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) that there was a sinner amongst thetribe of Bani Israel (Children of Israel) who had disobeyed Allah (SWT) for more than forty years of his life.
"Let him separate himself from the congregation," Allah (SWT) told Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh). "Only then shall I shower you all with rain."
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) then called outto the throngs of humanity, "There is a person amongst us who has disobeyed Allah (SWT) for forty years. Let him separate himself from the congregation and only then shall we be rescued from the drought."
That man waited, looking left and right, hoping that someone else would step forward, but no one did. Sweat poured forthfrom his brow and he knew that he was theone. The man knew that if he stayed amongst the congregation all would die of thirst and that if he stepped forward he would be humiliated for all eternity.
He raised his hands with a sincerity he had never known before, with humility he had never tasted, and as tears poured down on both cheeks he said, "O Allah, have mercy on me! O Allah, hide my sins! O Allah, forgiveme!"
As Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) and the people of Bani Israel (Children of Israel) waited for the sinner to step forward, the clouds hugged the sky and the rain poured. Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) asked Allah (SWT), "O Allah, you blessed us with rain even though the sinner did not come forward."
And Allah (SWT) replied, "O Musa, it is for therepentance of that very person that I blessed all of Bani Israel (Children of Israel) with water."
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh), wanting to know who this blessed man was, asked,"Show him to me O Allah!"
Allah (SWT) replied, "O Musa, I hid his sins for forty years, do you think that after his repentance I shall expose him?"
The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said: "My entire nation is safe, except al-Mujahirin (those who boast of their sins). Among the Mujaharah is that a man commits an (evil) act, and wakes up in the morning while Allah has kept his (sin) a secret, he says: 'O Fulan! Last night I did this and that.' He goes to sleep while Allah has kept his (sin) a secret but he wakes up in the morning and uncovers what Allah has kept a secret!" [Saheeh al-Bukhari]

Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh): Value of one tumbler of water
One day Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) was passing through a barren hill. He noticed a pious person busy in prayer sitting in a caveof the hill. Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) felt the urge to meet and talk to the pious person. Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) went near and greeted him. The pious person asked disinterestedly, "Who are you?" Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) said, "I am Musa!"
The pious person asked,"Are you the Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh)?"
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) said, "Yes!"
The pious person said, "Then ask Allah (SWT) to Grant my wish!"
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) asked, "What is it that you want?"
The pious person said, "Since the last one hundred years I am sitting here praying to Allah (SWT). I don't do anything other than the Prayer. Ask Allah (SWT), what He will give me for my efforts?"
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) said, "I shall find about it immediately." He immediatelyclimbed up the hill and called aloud, "O Sustainer Allah! This person wants to know about the reward for his prayers! Tell me, what shall I inform him?"
He heard the sound, "O Musa! Tell him, we shall inform him about his reward tomorrow."
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) went to the pious person and conveyed the message to him. The pious person said, "Its fine! Tomorrow is not much of a time!"
The pious person was in the habit of going to a nearby canal early every morning for bathing and fetching some water for his use. Therefore, the next morning too he started for the canal but he lost his way andreached somewhere else. Because of the sun's heat he became very thirsty and tired. He sat on a lonely boulder and startedthinking about his death. At that time he found another person coming from the other direction. He waved to the person to come to him. When the person came nigh, he asked him to help him with some water.
The visiting person said, "Where is any water in this wilderness? Whatever little I have is only for me."
The pious person started crying. The other person said, "Fine! What will you give me if I give you a tumbler of water?"
The pious person said, "I don't have anything. I have been busy in the cave praying for the last one hundred years."
The other person said, "If you agree to transfer to me the Rewards for your prayers of one hundred years, I shall give you a tumbler of water."
The pious person thought, if he lived, he could pray for a further period to get the Reward from Allah (SWT). He said, "I am ready to transfer to you my reward for the hundred years' of my prayers.
The other person gave him a tumbler full of water and the pious person returned to his cave.
In the morning Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh)got a revelation that the pious person transferred his hundred years of prayer to another person in exchange for a tumbler of water. Ask the man to settle the value of the tumblers of water that he had been drinking during the last hundred years!
Therefore, Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) went to the cave and told to the person that he had a message for him from Allah (SWT).
The pious person said, "O Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh)! I have already sold my hundred years of penance!"
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) said, "Yes! I know. But Allah (SWT) has said that when the value of one hundred years of prayer is one tumbler of water, then he must settle the value of the water he had been drinkingover the last hundred years."
When the pious person heard this, he was shocked and shouted, "O Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh)! Recommend to Allah (SWT) toforgive my sins! Allah (SWT) is Beneficent and Merciful!"
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) got the Revelation, "tell the pious person! Your penitence of this moment pleased us more than your prayers of a hundred years and we have given to you rewards for a thousand years of prayers!"
Which then of the bounties of your Lord will you deny? Noble Qur'an (55:13)
Imam Ali (as) says: "The sin that makes you sad and repentant is more liked by Allah (SWT) than the good deed which turns you arrogant."


Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh): Benefit of Namaz e Janaza
In the times of Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) there was a person whowas very pious who used to spend his money lavishly in good causes. Prophet Dawood/ David (pbuh) was very much attached to him. In the mean while Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) got a revelation from Allah (SWT) through which Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) came to know that all the money spent by that person was only for show and there was no real charity for the sake of Allah (SWT). When this man died, people expected Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) to attend the funeral but instead of himself attending the funeral Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) sent a representative to attend.
There were fifty witnesses at the time of Ghusl (washing) and all of them whispered among themselves that they had not seen anything except good from the person. The same fifty declared and made the same statement while offering Funeral Prayer (Namaz e Janaza / Namaz e Maiyyat) and also at burial and all of them bore witness saying that they found that man excellent in his ways. After the burial was over, Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) got a revelation from Allah (SWT) and was asked why he did not attend. Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh) pleaded that because he was doing charity only for show and not for Allah (SWT), hence he did not like to attend the funeral of such a person.
Revelation came from Allah (SWT) saying,"Oh Dawood! When I heard the statement of the people that he was good, I accepted their witnesses and gave preference to their statement over my own knowledge and gave the man all the rewards that he deserved because of the public opinion."
Imam Ali (as) Says: "Live amongst people in such a manner that if you die they weep over you and if you are alive they crave for your company."


Prophet Dawood / David (pbuh): Excellence of Prayer
Prophet Dawood / David(pbuh) once decided to perform prayers and read Zabur (Book of Psalms) with the excellence that nobody would have done. He entered the Mehrab and prayed.
After he finished to his satisfaction he found a frog appear before him and told him, "Oh Dawood! Is it true that you feel that you have prayed too well? Every night I am habituated to pray 1,000 Tasbih (glorifications) and from every Tasbih threethousand Hamds are expressed.
Sometimes when I am at the bottom of a pond and I hear the voice of any bird above,thinking that it might be hungry, I come to the surface of the water so that the hungry bird may get its food by eating me. This is the part of the duty that I perform towards Allah (SWT)."



Prophet Sulayman /Solomon (pbuh): Do not Transgress
Prophet Sulayman / Solomon (pbuh) in response to his special prayer to Allah (SWT) was granted Kingdom and was given power over the forces of nature, over the men, Jinn, devil and other living creatures. He was also endowed with knowledge of their language and could easily communicate with them.
Prophet Sulayman / Solomon (pbuh) once was sitting on the bank of a lake deeply engrossed in the beauties of nature around and appreciating the various forms of Allah's (SWT) creation on earth.
Suddenly Prophet Sulayman's / Solomon (pbuh) attention was drawn towards an Antcreeping forward with a grain of wheat in its mouth. As it reached near the water, a Tortoise came out, opened its mouth and the ant crept into it. The Tortoise closing its mouth disappeared under the water. After a while, the Tortoise again sprung out of the water and standing on the bank openedits mouth and the Ant came out. But this time it had no grain of wheat in its mouth.
Prophet Sulayman / Solomon (pbuh) became anxious to know what had been happening under water. On inquiring, the Ant explained that at the bottom of the lake, was a stone and underneath it lived a blind Ant. Allah (SWT) had created it there and because of blindness, it could not move about. The Ant further said that I have beenappointed by Allah (SWT) to provide its daily sustenance with the assistance of the Tortoise and hence, I do perform this duty everyday.
Let us ponder over one thing. If a tiny creature like an Ant living under a stone at the bottom of a sea is not denied its sustenance, why should man the noblest of all creatures (Ashraf ul Makhluqat) ever suspect loss of his sustenance from Almighty Allah (SWT)? Isn't it foolishness to dirty one's hand in prohibited transactions for earning one's livelihood? Such persons do not get more, than what is destined and earn Allah's (SWT) Wrath and Punishment inthis world and Hereafter.
Moral: Allah (SWT) is Ar Razzaq. He is our Provider we should always have faith in Him and trust Him in all our Affairs.

Prophet Yusuf / Joseph (pbuh): Impatience
Prophet Yusuf / Joseph (pbuh) was jailed under the orders of the Aziz of Egypt. When his companion in the jail was being released Prophet Yusuf / Joseph (pbuh) requested him to recommend his matter to the Aziz so that he too be released. At this angel Gabriel / Jibreel (pbuh) appeared in the jail and made him look at the floor of the jail. When Prophet Yusuf / Joseph (pbuh) did so he could see the bottoms of the earth and sea. Prophet Yusuf / Joseph (pbuh) also saw in the bottom of the earth an Ant with a particle of grain in its mouth. Angel Gabriel / Jibreel (pbuh) said, "Do you think that your Allah (SWT) who does not forget even this Ant at the bottom of the earth and feeds it, would let you go out of His mind?"
"Now for this impatience of yours you are ordered to remain in jail for seven more years."