Allah will expiate sins of those who remain patient even in most difficult times (Hadith Prophet Muhammad ﷺ)

In our series of posts on Patience / Sabr, today we share a hadith attributed to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ which assures the believers that if they endure the hardships, which are in fact a test from their Lord, they will be profusely rewarded. In fact Allah even promises to expiate sins of a believer if he endures the hardship and yet remains patient, for he knows such hardship, diseases, grief or loss in business and even the loss of an offspring is from his Lord.

Abu Sa’id and Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Never a believer is stricken with a discomfort, an illness, an anxiety, a grief or mental worry or even the pricking of a thorn but Allah will expiate his sins on account of his patience”. [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. Riyad As Salihin Arabic/English book reference: Book 1, Hadith 37

This Hadith should mean a lot to all of us for we have been promised a special mercy of Allah to the extent of waiving off our sins. It relates how Allah turns the hardships and troubles suffered by a Muslim into a means of expiation for his sins. However, the waiver of sins is conditional - that is one has to exercise extreme patience and never for a moment the Satan or evil forces mislead him and create doubts in one's mind that his sins may not be expiated. 

Therefore, a believer must be sure footed in his belief and faith in Allah that whatever has been Divinely promised WILL be fulfilled. But this is only possible if the believer exercises patience. If  a believer resorts to blame game and laments to Allah for his troubled and difficult time, he not only fails in the test from which he has been undergoing, but this very act of questioning "why me" from Allah may add more sins to his dossier.  Therefore, let us try to restrain our heart and mind and brace the difficulties with the firm belief that we are being tested and we have to clear the test by not acccepting the Divine will.

May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى‎) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door. 

وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ‏ 

(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”

That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.

May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.

Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.

Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.

Please refer to our reference page: Collection of Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ about Sabr / Patience to read more Hadiths on the subject.

For more hadiths on varying subjects, refer to our reference page: Sunnah and Hadith of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to know more about Hadiths and Sunnah of Prophet of Allah. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.

Photo | Source of Hadith

Disclaimer: The material for this post has been collected from the references as given above. If anyone differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors.  If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.

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Posted in: Expiation of sins,Hadith collection - Patience