First of all, have you ever been alone and checked and weighed what you have said or done previously? Have you ever tried to list your bad deeds in the same way as you think of your good deeds? Have you ever thought how you will be held accountable before Allah The Almighty while you are carrying such a heavy load of sins?
How can you yield yourself to a state that is far too dangerous for you to handle?
Allah The Almighty Says (what means):
{O you who have believed, fear Allah. And let every soul look to what it has put forth for tomorrow - and fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Acquainted with what you do. And be not like those who forgot Allah, so He made them forget themselves.}[Quran 59:18-19]
{And return [in repentance] to your Lord and submit to Him before the punishment comes upon you; then you will not be helped...} [Quran 39:54]
‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab, said, “Call yourselves to account before you are called to account, and weigh yourselves before you are weighed, as calling yourselves to account today will make it easier for you when you are called to account tomorrow, and be adorned for the great appearance: that Day shall you be brought to Judgment, and not a secret of you will be hidden.”
Quotes about Self-Reckoning
1. ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab wrote to one of his appointed governors saying, “Call yourself to account when you are in bliss before the reckoning of that severe Day, for whoever calls himself to account when he is in bliss will win the pleasure of Allah and achieve happiness, and whoever allows his life and desires to occupy all his attention and cause him to be negligent will be a regretful loser.”
2. Al-Hasan said, “The worshiper will be in a safe position as long as he keeps admonishing his own self and continuously calls his soul to account.”
3. Maymoon ibn Mihraan said, “A slave will not be pious until he holds himself to account more severely than a man does with his business partner; that is why it was said that the soul is like the untrustworthy partner whom, if you do not call to account, will flee with your capital.”
4. Imaam Ahmad narrated that Wahb said, “It is written in the wisdom of the family of Daawood (David) that an intelligent person should not be negligent of four times; a time to supplicate his Lord, a time to hold himself to account, a time with his truthful friends who inform him of his shortcomings, and a time when he is alone with himself and its lawful desires, as this time will help him through the other times and will comfort his heart.”
5. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said, “The true believer is a guardian of his own self and continuously calls his soul to account for the sake of Allah. The reckoning of the Day of Resurrection will only be easy for those who continuously call their souls to account in the life of this world. The reckoning of the Day of Resurrection will only be difficult for those who live the life of this world without ever examining their conscience and calling themselves to account.”
6. Ibn Abi Mulaykah said, “I have met thirty companions of the Prophet and each one of them feared that he may be afflicted by hypocrisy and none of them said that his faith is like that of Jibreel or Meekaa’eel.”
7. Imaam Ibn Al-Qayyim said, “Whoever contemplates the circumstances of the Companions of the Prophet would find them doing many good deeds with much fear while we fall short of doing good deeds or rather are negligent about that and at the same time we feel secure (from punishment).” This is what Ibn Al-Qayyim said about himself and the time he lived in, so what should we say about ourselves and the time in which we live!
Categories of Self-reckoning
Self-reckoning is of two kinds and they are as follows:
The first kind: self-examination before starting any action. That is, one should check every idea that comes to his mind and not take any action until he considers which is preferred; carrying it out or leaving it. Al-Hasan said, “May Allah The Almighty Be merciful upon the one who examines every matter well and then (decides that) if it is for the sake of Allah The Almighty he executes it, and if not, he overlooks it.”
The second kind: self-examination after doing any action and it is of three types which are as follows:
1. One should call his soul to account and reproach it for its negligence in the acts of worshiping Allah The Almighty; for not having performed them properly.
2. One should call his soul to account for any action that he did while it would have been better for him not to do it.
3. One should cast a critical look back at whatever permissible act or habitual act that he did and ask himself why he did it. Did he do it for the Sake of Allah The Almighty and the Hereafter? If so, he will be rewarded greatly. Or, did he do it for this world and its trifling gains? If so, he will miss many great rewards.
Call yourself to account before you are called to account - II
(To be continued)