EPISODE 7 Servants of

The Sins They

Are Capable Of The Most Merciful
“And those who do not invoke with Allah another deity or kill the soul which
Allah has forbidden [to be killed], except by right, and do not commit unlawful
‫ْﺲ اﻟﱠ ِﺘﻲ‬ َ ‫َواﻟ ِﱠﺬﻳ َﻦ َﻻ ﻳَﺪْ ُﻋﻮنَ َﻣ َﻊ اﻟﻠﱠ ِﻪ إِﻟَٰ ًﻬﺎ آ َﺧ َﺮ َو َﻻ ﻳَ ْﻘ ُﺘﻠُﻮنَ اﻟ ﱠﻨﻔ‬
sexual intercourse. And whoever should do that will meet a penalty.” (25:68)
‫َﺣ ﱠﺮ َم اﻟﻠﱠ ُﻪ إِ ﱠﻻ ﺑِﺎﻟْ َﺤ ﱢﻖ َو َﻻ َﻳ ْﺰﻧُﻮنَ َو َﻣﻦ ﻳَ ْﻔ َﻌ ْﻞ َٰذﻟِ َﻚ ﻳَﻠ َْﻖ أَﺛ َﺎ ًﻣﺎ‬

1 What does this verse introduce about the 3 How did the Pious Predecessors view sins?
‘Ibad ar-Rahman? “There is no such thing as a small sin when you insist upon it, and
no such thing as a major sin when you seek forgiveness from it.”
• Indicates that these are people that don’t live a life of hypocrisy. ~Ibn Abbas
• Earlier verses described what the ‘Ibad ar-Rahman do—treat others • Indicates that these are people that don’t live a life of hypocrisy.
well, give generously, pray throughout the night, etc.
• This verse describes specifically what they DON'T do—shirk, Abu Hurairah always sought refuge from thievery and adultery. He
murder, and zina. reminded his students that Iblis thought he was safe from sin too.
• They did not mock those who sinned, but made du’a for protection for
themselves and others, fearing that they may make the same mistakes.
Abdullah Ibn Masud (ra) said, “No one feels safe from hypocrisy except for a hypocrite.”
Why are these the sins
2 they avoid most? • They didn’t belittle sins. They viewed minor sins like the most destructive major
sins, since continuous engagement in the same sin may harden your heart.

“Abdullah ibn Mas’ud said: “I asked, ‘Which sin is worst in the sight of Allah?’ • They had a healthy balance of hope in Allah’s mercy and fear of His punishment.
He said, ‘To make any rival to Allah, when He has created you.’ I asked, ‘Then
what?’ He said, ‘To kill your child for fear that he will eat with you.’ I asked,
‘Then what?’ He said, ‘To commit zina with the wife of your neighbour.”
How do we become ‘Ibad ar-Rahman who
(Bukhari, 8/492)
4 avoid these transgressions?
• These sins corrupt the soul. They’re the worst among all sins. “Belittling sins is like dripping water on a stone in the same place
over and over, until it wears away.” ~Imam Al-Ghazali
• Every believer will fall into minor sins, but they do their best to repent • If you’re experiencing a loss of faith, do whatever you can to maintain it.
and avoid major sins.
• In a society of ‘Ibad ar-Rahman, there is rahmah towards • If you feel you’re losing control of your anger, take steps to remedy it immediately.
society—no dependence on false objects of worship, no
victimization of the children of zina, no senseless death. • If you’re going on a path of infidelity, completely cut off whatever source is
tempting you.
• Develop a connection with Allah that helps you hold yourself to a higher standard.
• Opposite of the Islamic goal of Preservation of Religion • Don’t accept minor sins as necessary parts of your life or personality.
Shirk
“(There will be a period). . .a man would be a Muslim in the • Sins between you and Allah:
(associating partners
with Allah) morning and an unbeliever in the evening, or a believer in the Oh Allah forgive me
evening and an unbeliever in the morning...” (Sahih Muslim 118) With Allah, only repentance is required for His forgiveness.
• The pathway to shirk is emptiness—a loss of the sweetness • Sins that have caused harm to people:
of faith. Require a return of rights to the people and your utmost effort
People who are empty seek to fill their emptiness with other to be forgiven by them.
than Allah, through dependence on something or someone
else, or through outright shirk.
• Mindless, widespread shirk destroys society and is one of
the biggest of the minor signs of the Day of Judgement
5 How do we safeguard ourselves from all types of sins?
“Oh Turner of Hearts, keep my heart firm on your religion.” (Du’a of the Prophet )
• Ask Allah to let faith settle in your heart and keep you on the straight path
until death.
Murder • Opposite of the Islamic goal of Preservation of Life • Re-forge yourself into an ‘Ibad ar-Rahman through deep, honest self-reflection.
“There will come a time when the person who is killing and the • Understand that you are capable of sin and put a barrier between you
person being killed don’t know why they are being killed.” and the sin.
(Sahih Muslim 2908) • Avoid the footsteps of Shaytan: don’t even approach situations that could
• The pathway to murder is anger. lead to sin.
A failure to learn to control your temper can lead to violence.
• Mindless, widespread murder destroys society and is one of How do we avoid the actions that are
the biggest of the minor signs of the Day of Judgement. 6 not of the ‘Ibad ar-Rahman?
“Verily Allah created Mercy. The day He created it, He made it into one hundred parts. He
withheld with Him ninety-nine parts, and sent its one part to all His creatures. Had the
non-believer known of all the Mercy which is in the Hands of Allah, he would not lose hope
Zina • Opposite of the Islamic goal of Preservation of Honor of entering Paradise, and had the believer known of all the punishment which is present
(adultery and other
• In Qurayshi society, wife swapping, incest, and similar practices with Allah, he would not consider himself safe from the Hell-Fire.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6469)
unlawful sexual
intercourse) were common, and are becoming common once again.
THINK What have I normalized in my life REFLECT This isn’t a deen of perfect people. It’s
• The pathway to zina is lust, emptiness, and seeking validation. without feeling any disturbance in my soul? a deen of imperfect people who will be rewarded so
What sins manifest most often in my life? long as they make their best effort. Am I making
It can start off with just flirting, but catches fire at some point. my best effort to strive for perfection?
Allah  warned us to not even go “near” zina REMEMBER The mercy of a mother to her child,
a prophet to his people, a shepherd to his flock, ACT Don’t let your tragedy in life be your faith.
• Mindless, widespread zina destroys society and is one of the and a kind soul to the entire world is a fraction of Develop systems of accountability for yourself.
biggest of the minor signs of the Day of Judgement. Allah’s mercy for those who avoid major sins. His Recognize your triggers. Ask Allah to keep you
mercy overcomes His wrath. steadfast in faith.

Adapted from Episode 7 of the series:

Servants of the Most Merciful at yaqeeninstitute.org