DEEDS THAT WILL PROTECT US FROM HELLFIRE
IN THE NAME OF ALLAH THE MOST GRACIOUS, THE MOST MERCIFUL
On the Day of Judgment, we will know our fate whether we will be in Paradise or in Hellfire. It is too late for anyone to regret because we have all been granted a lot of time in this life to prepare for the Day of Judgment.
وَجِيءَ يَومَئِذٍ بِجَهَنَّمَ ۚ يَومَئِذٍ يَتَذَكَّرُ الإِنسانُ وَأَنّىٰ لَهُ الذِّكرىٰ
يَقولُ يا لَيتَني قَدَّمتُ لِحَياتي
“And Hell will be brought near that Day. On that Day will man remember, but how will that remembrance (then) avail him?
He will say: “Alas! Would that I had sent forth (good deeds) for (this) my life!” 89: 23-24
Anas ibn Maalik (RA) reported: “The Messenger of Allaah SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: ‘Among the inmates of Hell will be a person who had led a very luxurious life in this world will be brought on the Day of Resurrection and dipped in the Hellfire, he will then be asked: `O son of Aadam! Did you ever experience any comfort? Did you (ever) happen to have any luxury?’ He will reply: `I swear by Allaah, no my Lord.’ Then, another person, who had experienced extreme misery in the life of this world, will be dipped in Paradise. He will then be asked: `O son of Aadam! Did you ever experience any misery? Did you ever encounter difficulty?’ He will reply: ‘I swear by Allaah, no my Lord, I neither experienced misery nor passed through hardship.’” [Muslim]
This means that the dwellers of the Hellfire will completely forget any pleasures they enjoyed in this life, and the dwellers of Paradise will completely forget any type of hardship they faced in this life. When Allah describes the hellfire, it is in the harshest of tones using the most serious language.
رَبَّنا إِنَّكَ مَن تُدخِلِ النّارَ فَقَد أَخزَيتَهُ ۖ وَما لِلظّالِمينَ مِن أَنصارٍ
“Our Lord! Verily, whom You admit to the Fire, indeed, You have disgraced him, and never will the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers) find any helpers.” 3: 192
أَلَم يَعلَموا أَنَّهُ مَن يُحادِدِ اللَّهَ وَرَسولَهُ فَأَنَّ لَهُ نارَ جَهَنَّمَ خالِدًا فيها ۚ ذٰلِكَ الخِزيُ العَظيمُ
Know they not that whoever opposes and shows hostility to Allah (ÚÒ æ Ìá) and His Messenger (SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), certainly for him will be the Fire of Hell to abide therein. That is extreme disgrace. 9: 63
فَاتَّقُوا النّارَ الَّتي وَقودُهَا النّاسُ وَالحِجارَةُ ۖ أُعِدَّت لِلكافِرينَ
“…then fear the Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the disbelievers.” 2: 24
As Muslims, it is part of our faith to believe in the Fire of Hell otherwise known as Jahannam; An abode that God has created as a means of severe punishment for the wrongdoers of Earth, aside from those who were forgiven and admitted into His immense mercy.
“…Fear the Fire, whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the disbelievers.” Quran 2:24 “…Indeed, We have prepared Hell for the disbelievers as a lodging.” Quran 18:102
The Prophet Muhammad SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was always intensely afraid of the Fire and would consistently warn people to ward themselves away from it. The Prophet SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam would also in fact mention certain deeds that would assist the doer to distance themselves from the Fire tremendously.
WHAT ARE THE DEEDS THAT WE HAVE TO DO AND WHAT ARE THE THINGS WHICH WE MUST REFRAIN OURSELVES FROM DOING?
1. Understand Tawheed and Avoid shirk
Allaah forbids setting up rivals with Him and he condemns those who take them (rivals) as gods instead of or besides Allaah in many verses of the Qur’aan. Allaah says
فَلا تَجعَلوا لِلَّهِ أَندادًا وَأَنتُم تَعلَمونَ
“Then do not set up rivals unto Allaah (in worship) while you know (that He Alone has the right to be worshipped)”
[al-Baqarah 2:22]
وَجَعَلوا لِلَّهِ أَندادًا لِيُضِلّوا عَن سَبيلِهِ ۗ قُل تَمَتَّعوا فَإِنَّ مَصيرَكُم إِلَى النّارِ
“And they set up rivals to Allaah, to mislead (men) from His path! Say: ‘Enjoy (your brief life)! But certainly, your destination is the (Hell) Fire!’”
[Ibraaheem 14:30]
In the hadeeth it is narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever dies claiming that Allaah has a rival, will enter Hell.”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4497; Muslim, 92.
Allah has also Promised that He will not Forgive those who die in the state of shirk:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لا يَغفِرُ أَن يُشرَكَ بِهِ وَيَغفِرُ ما دونَ ذٰلِكَ لِمَن يَشاءُ ۚ وَمَن يُشرِك بِاللَّهِ فَقَد ضَلَّ ضَلالًا بَعيدًا
“Verily! Allah forgives not (the sin of) setting up partners in worship with Him, but He forgives whom he pleases sins other than that, and whoever sets up partners in worship with Allah, has indeed strayed far away.” 4: 116
Ruboobiyyah – To believe in Allah’s Lordship, that He is the Creator, The Sustainer, the Giver of Life and the Grantor of Death. So there is only one Rabb, and that is Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
A shirk in Ruboobiyah means:
o To deny completely the Names and Attributes of Allah, while affirming His existence. This goes against Ruboobiyyah, as part of Ruboobiyyah is to believe that Allah is the Khaaliq and the Raaziq. This is what the philosophers of the past did, the Jahmiyyah, and also the Mu’tazilah to a certain extent.
o To substitute a false Rabb in the place of the real Rabb, e.g. Fir’awn said “Ana rabbukumal A’la”.
o To deny the reality of His separate and perfect existence, i.e. pantheism, and wahdatul-wujood, this was held by heretics such as al-Hallaj and ibn Arabi.
o Adding another Rabb besides Allah, such as the Zoroastrians. They believe in two rabbs. This is the only practiced religion that believed in two rabbs, two sustainers, and two creators – the god of evil, and the god of good.
Uloohiyyah – To believe that all forms of worship should be for Allah alone. Shirk in Uloohiyyah is that you direct an act of worship that is the right of Allah – such as du’a, Salah, divine fear, divine hope, sacrifice, making Tawaf around something or hajj – to other than Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. Shirk in Uloohiyyah exists amongst Mankind in two primary ways.
That they worship Allah, and other than Allah. So sometimes they§ worship Allah, and sometimes they worship other than Allah, e.g. the Christians who believe in trinity.
That they worship other than Allah all the§ time, e.g. some of the extreme sects who always make du’a to other than Allah when they make du’a, and Buddhists.
Asmaa wa Siffaat – To make unique Allah’s Names and Attributes, and follow the principles of the Salaf in this matter. Shirk in Asmaa wa Siffaat can occur in two ways.
Comparing Allah to the creation, like the Jews and the Christians§ – they say Allah ‘forgot’ or became ‘tired’.
Comparing the creation to§ Allah, which is common in some of the extreme sects, e.g. ‘Our Imam controls everything’, ‘Our Saints has ‘Ilmul-Ghayb’, ‘Our Imam hears our du’a anywhere in the world’.
2. Believing in Allah and His Messenger.
Ubada Ibn Samit narrated that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“Whoever witnesses that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger, Allah forbids the Fire from touching him.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
This Hadith shows that a major sin does not cast a Muslim out of the fold of Islam, as is believed by certain deviant sects who have gone astray. Such a person does remain a Muslim and his eligibility for admission into Jannah also remains intact but his admission entirely depends on the pleasure of Allah. He may forgive a sinful Muslim and send him to Jannah even in the initial stage or keep him in Hell for sometime and then send him to Jannah. Thus, when it is said that Muslims are protected against Hell, it means that they will not abide in Hell for ever. It will be a temporary phase varying with his sins. When that punishment comes to an end, or even before it, when Almighty, Allah, wills, he will be removed from Hell to Jannah.
3. Being merciful to others.
Abdullah Ibn Masood Narrated that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“Shall I not inform you of whom the Fire is unlawful and he is unlawful for the Fire? Every person who is near (to people), friendly, and easy (to deal with).”
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2488
Emphasis on good character.
From Abu Hurairah (RA), Rasulullah (SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said:
Innamaa bu’ithtu li’utammima makaarimal akhlaaq
Indeed, I (Rasulullah (SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam)) have been sent to perfect good character
(Narrated by Hakim)
It is clear from this hadeeth, that Rasulullah (SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was sent not just remind everyone about our duties in this life which is to worship Allah alone, and to uphold Islam, but he was also sent to bring mankind to higher levels of good character. Rasulullah (SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) himself displayed good character, and was himself a manifestation of excellent character.
ALLAH REAFFIRMED IN THE QURAN:
Rasulullah (SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was praised by Allah SWT in the Quran:
وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظيمٍ
And you, surely, possess sublime moral excellences. (Surah Al Qalam 68:4)
4. Praying regularly especially sunnah before and after Dhuhr.
Abu Hurairah narrated that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“…The Fire will consume all of the son of Adam except the mark of prostration. Allah has forbidden the Fire to consume the mark of prostration….” (Saheeh Muslim)
Umm Habiba Narrated that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“Whoever prays four Rak’ah before the Zuhr and four afterwards, Allah will forbid him to the Fire.”
(Classed as authentic by Al-Albani in Sahih An-Nasa’i)
5. Weeping out of fear of Allah.
It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah said: “A man who weeps for fear of Allah will not enter Hell until the milk goes back into the udder, and dust produced (when fighting) for the sake of Allah and the smoke of Hell will never coexist.” Narrated by al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasaa’i.
“until the milk goes back into the udder” is a metaphor for it being impossible, as in the verse where Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
وَلا يَدخُلونَ الجَنَّةَ حَتّىٰ يَلِجَ الجَمَلُ في سَمِّ الخِياطِ
“and they will not enter Paradise until the camel goes through the eye of the needle” [7:40]. Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi.
- Voluntary Fasting
Abu Said Al Khudri narrated that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“No servant will fast a day in the cause of Allah, except that Allah distances his face from the Fire (a distance of) seventy years” (Bukhari).
7. Giving in Charity.
Adiyy Ibn Hatim narrated that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“Protect yourselves from the Fire, even with half a date.” Sahih al-Bukhari 1417
8. Seeking Protection from the Fire.
Anas Bin Malik narrated that the Prophet Muhammad SallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said:
“Whoever asks Allah for Paradise three times, Paradise will say, ‘O Allah, admit him to Paradise.’ Whoever seeks protection from the Fire three times, Hell will say, ‘O Allah, protect him from the Fire.’”
[Narrated by at-Tirmidhi, 2572; Ibn Majah, 4340, An-Nasai 5521 & in al-Kubra 6/33, Imam Ahmed 20/408 No.13173, and Al-Hakim 1/535. It was classed as saheeh by al-Shaykh al-Albani (رحمه الله) in Sahih At-Tirmidhi, 2/319, and Sahih An-Nasa’i, 3/1121, Saheeh al-Jami’, 6275)]
