Allah (swt) has blessed this Ummah and made it an Ummah of guidance and leadership. Allah (swt) sent to it the best of His messengers, and sent down to it the greatest of His Books. He promised to support it if it supports His religion, and He promised it dignity and honour if it adheres to the Book of Allah (swt) and the Sunnah of His Prophet (sa).
This Ummah had the honour of leading the world for many centuries. Then its position of leadership was taken from it, and its enemies called one another to attack it. Calamities, disasters, and turmoil came one after another. The deterioration of the Ummah has become a concern for those who care among the Muslims, those who are looking forward to a bright future and a better tomorrow for the Ummah, Insha’Allah.
The question is: what happened to us Muslims? What befell our Ummah, so that it sank to this level of humiliation? What factors caused it to reach rock bottom after it had been at the highest peak? The answer, on which no two people disagree, is that the cause of this decline is falling into sins and disobeying Allah (swt).
Allah (swt) has natural laws in this universe that do not change. These laws pertain to the universe and creation, and they never alter; these laws govern the lives of individuals, nations, and people, and they never change. The Ummah which adheres to the laws of Allah (swt) and follows the example of the Messenger of Allah (sa) will reach its goals and attain its aspirations.
Allah (swt), by His grace and favour, guides it, supports it, and looks after it. However, there is no bond of kinship or the like between Allah (swt) and any of His creation. If the Ummah forsakes the command of its Lord and goes against the Sunnah of its Messenger (sa), Allah (swt) will lead it to the way of misery and hardship, until it comes back to its religion.
How insignificant the creation is before Allah (swt), if they neglect His commands, openly commit sin, and fall short in following the rulings of His religion? Was any nation, past or present, ever punished except because of its sins?
“Allah will not change the good condition of a people as long as they do not change their state of goodness themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allah).” (Ar-Rad 13:11)
“And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much.” (Ash-Shoora 42:30)
It was narrated by Abu Hurairah (rtam) that the Prophet (sa) said: “Allah has a sense of protective jealousy, and the protective jealousy of Allah is provoked when the believer does something that is forbidden to him.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
Sins have a far-reaching effect, both physically and spiritually, and they lead to evil consequences in the lives of nations and people.
The great scholar Imam Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyah summed this up when he said: “One of the matters that should be known is that sins cause harm; there is no doubt that their harmful effect on spiritual wellbeing is like the effect of poison on physical wellbeing. Is there any problem or disease in this world or the hereafter except because of sins?”
Lessons from History
What brought our parents out of Paradise? What caused Iblees to be expelled and cursed, and deformed him both physically and spiritually? What replaced his closeness to Allah (swt) with being cast far away? What replaced mercy with curses, beauty with ugliness, and the garden of Paradise with the raging fire of Hell?
What caused all the people of earth to be drowned, until water covered the mountain tops? What caused the barren wind to be sent against the people of Ad, until it threw them dead on the face of the earth, as if they were hollow trunks of date palms, and destroyed everything they had – houses, farmland, crops, and livestock – until they became a lesson for all nations, until the Day of Resurrection?
What sent the mighty blast upon Thamood, which cut their hearts inside their bodies and they all died, to the last man?
What lifted the cities of Loot (as) and then turned them upside down, until they were all destroyed, followed by stones of baked clay raining down on them, and they are not even far from the Zalimoon (wrongdoers)? What caused the clouds of punishment to be sent upon the people of Shuaib (as) like canopies, and when they appeared above their heads, blazing fire rained down upon them?
What caused the Pharaoh and his people to be drowned in the sea and then their souls to be transferred to Hell, so their bodies were drowned and their souls were burned? What caused Qaroon to be swallowed up by the earth along with his house and wealth and his family? What destroyed the generations who came after Noah (as), with various kinds of punishments and ruin?
What caused people to be sent against the Children of Israel? “…We sent against you slaves of Ours given to terrible warfare. They entered the very innermost parts of your homes. And it was a promise (completely) fulfilled.” (Al-Isra 17:5) They killed the men, enslaved the women and children, burned the houses, and plundered the wealth! Then what caused them to be sent against them a second time to destroy whatever they were able to? “… and to destroy with utter destruction all that fell in their hands.” (Al-Isra 17:7)
What caused various kinds of torment and punishment to overwhelm them, sometimes by killing, enslaving and destroying their land, and sometimes by the persecution of kings, and sometimes by transformation into monkeys and pigs? Allah (swt) promised them further punishment when He said: “And (remember) when your Lord declared that He would certainly keep on sending against them (i.e. the Jews), till the Day of Resurrection, those who would afflict them with a humiliating torment.” (Al-Araf 7:167)
Consequences of Sin
One of the punishments of sin is being deprived of knowledge and provision, alienation, hardship, confusion, being in a bad state both spiritually and physically, being deprived of doing acts of worship, the loss of Barakah (blessing), and becoming insignificant before Allah (swt).
“And whomsoever Allah disgraces, none can honour him. Verily! Allah does what He wills.” (Al-Hajj 22:18)
Other punishments include being unable to think properly, low resolve, sealing of the heart, apathy, loss of shame, loss of blessings, going through troubles, fear, panic, anxiety, loss of intuition, withholding of rain, and bringing about different kinds of punishments, calamities, vengeance, and misery in this world, in the grave and on the Day of Resurrection.
To sum up, if anything goes wrong in water and in the air and if anything affects grains, crops, buildings, people, countries, land and air and sea, in this world and in the Hereafter, the root cause is sin and disobedience.
The Book of Allah (swt) confirms this law of cause and effect, especially when it tells the stories of the disbelievers among previous nations, to serve as a lesson and a reminder.
“Verily, therein is indeed a reminder for him who has a heart or gives ear while he is heedful.” (Qaf 50:37)
“So We punished each (of them) for his sins, of them were some on whom We sent Hasiban
(a violent wind with shower of stones) (as the people of Lout (Loot)), and of them were some who were overtaken by As-Saihah (torment awful cry, etc. (as Thamood or Shuaib’s people)), and of them were some whom We caused the earth to swallow (as Qaroon (Korah)), and of them were some whom We drowned (as the people of Nooh (Noah), or Firaun (Pharaoh) and his people). It was not Allah Who wronged them, but they wronged themselves.” (Al-Ankaboot 29:40)
Eliminate Sins and Strive for Good Deeds
If you are enjoying some blessing, take care of them, for sins take away blessings. Persist in thanking Allah (swt) for them, for thanking Him (swt) takes away hardships.
Ibn Abbas (rtam) said: “Good deeds bring brightness to the face, light to the heart, abundance in provision, physical strength, and love in people’s hearts. Bad deeds bring gloom to the face, darkness in the grave and in the heart, physical weakness, shortage of provision, and resentment in people’s hearts.”
(Al-Jawab Al-Kafi, p. 78) Al-Hasan Al-Basri said, speaking of those who commit sin: “No matter how much pride and honour they think they have and no matter how much they prance like fancy horses, the humiliation of sin does not depart from their hearts; Allah insists that those who disobey Him should be humiliated.” (Al-Jawab Al-Kafi, p. 84, 229)
Hasn’t the time come for the Muslim Ummah to realize that what has befallen it in these times – of weakness, disputes, division, and the prevailing of its enemies over it – has only come about because of its people’s falling into sin and disobeying Allah (swt)? Isn’t it more befitting for the Ummah – when it is going through all kinds of suffering in both spiritual and worldly terms, tangibly and intangibly, that is caused by indulging in Haram things – to reconcile with its true religion? It is time to realize that the chaotic situation the world is going through in all aspects of life, and what many regions are suffering from – such as crushing wars that wreck utter destruction, fatal diseases, horrific famines, destructive floods, earthquakes, volcanoes, and other terrifying events – is only because of people’s sins and turning away from their Lord.
“And whosoever turns away from the Reminder of his Lord (i.e. this Quran, and practice not its laws and orders), He will cause him to enter in a severe torment (i.e. Hell).” (Al-Jinn 72:17)
“Do then those who devise evil plots feel secure that Allah will not sink them into the earth, or that the torment will not seize them from directions they perceive not? Or that He may catch them in the midst of their going to and fro (in their jobs), so that there be no escape for them (from Allah’s Punishment)? Or that He may catch them with gradual wasting (of their wealth and health). Truly! Your Lord is indeed full of Kindness, Most Merciful?” (Al-Nahl 16:45-47)
Don’t you see the pain and suffering befalling nations and peoples around you? Was it caused by anything but sin and disobedience towards Allah (swt)? Sins destroy and devastate everything. Many societies are drowning in a life of Jahiliyah (pre-Islamic era of Ignorance) that affects their belief and ideas, and the attitude of their boys and girls. Association of others with Allah (swt) has become widespread, as has going against the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (sa) by committing acts of innovation (Bidat). The sacred limits of Allah (swt) are transgressed; major sins that incur the wrath of Allah (swt) are committed; immorality and corruption are widespread in homes, streets, and marketplaces. All this is happening with no objections or attempts to change it.
The fact that these satellite channels spew all kinds of indecency and permissiveness is not hidden to anyone who cares. And Allah (swt) is the One Whose help we seek! Indeed, nowadays some sins have become something to boast about among some people. There is no power and no strength except with Allah (swt). The Muslims of today are living in an era in which Islam is a stranger amidst the callers to Hell – Allah’s (swt) refuge is sought! How great is Allah’s (swt) patience towards His slaves. Are these warnings not sufficient for you? Have you not learned lessons from the past and present?
“Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful (over them).” (Al-Fajr 89:14)
This serious matter should be studied by today’s Muslim leaders, scholars, thinkers, Duat (callers to Islam), and reformers, so as to put a stop to this overwhelming onslaught that is exposing the entire Ummah to the wrath of Allah (swt) in this world before the Hereafter.
Those who care are pinning great hopes on this new Islamic revival, this resurgence of sound faith and this praiseworthy awakening that is spreading throughout the Muslim world – all praise is for Allah (swt) – to bring the Muslims and their youth back to the source of glory and happiness in this world and the Hereafter. “And for Allah that is not hard or difficult.” (Ibraheem 14:20; Fatir 35:17)
May Allah (swt) bless us with the Quran and with the guidance of the best of the messengers. I ask Allah (swt) to forgive all the Muslims – so ask Him for forgiveness, and He will forgive you, and He is the best of those who forgive.
Fear Allah (swt) and know that sins never reach a land but they cause its ruin; they never reach a heart but they make it blind (to the truth) or a body but they cause pain to it. They never reach a nation but they humiliate it; they never reach a soul but they corrupt it; and they never reach a society but they destroy it.
The responsibility of warding off sins and their bad consequences from individuals and societies rests on the shoulders of every Muslim. The Prophet (sa) said: “Each of you is a shepherd and each of you is responsible for his flock.” So each one should strive to correct himself, take care of his family, and raise his children to love good and shun evil. Each one should strive as much as he can to purify his society and environment from sins, for Allah (swt) will ask each shepherd about the flock He put him in charge of: did he fulfill his duty towards it or neglect it? Know that “no calamity befalls anyone except because of sin and it cannot be removed except by repentance”.
Let your tongues utter prayers for forgiveness and constant, sincere repentance, which fulfills the necessary conditions, with all impediments removed, so that Allah (swt) might forgive and accept repentance, for He promised that to His slaves, as He said:
“Say: O Ibadi (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah, verily, Allah forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Az-Zumar 39:53)
Finally, send blessings and peace upon the best shepherds, as your Lord has enjoined you in the verse:
“Allah sends His Salat (Graces, Honours, Blessings, Mercy, etc.) on the Prophet (Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and also His angels too (ask Allah to bless and forgive him). O you who believe! Send your Salat on (ask Allah to bless) him (Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and (you should) greet (salute) him with the Islamic way of greeting (salutation i.e. As-Salamu Alaikum).” (Al-Ahzab 33:56)
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