A Simple Means of Attaining the Mercy of Allah

Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr (radiyallahu ‘anhuma) narrates that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said:

“Those who show mercy will be shown mercy by Ar-Rahman. Be merciful to those on earth, and the One [whose mercy engulfs the inhabitants] of the sky will be merciful to you too”
(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith: 4902, Sunan Tirmidhy, Hadith: 1924)

The above is the famous Hadith of Rahmah, commonly known as “Musalsal bil Awwaliyyah”. One who studies the biographies of the Muhaddithun will notice the importance they gave to this Hadith. They would make a point of hearing it from a Shaykh at their very first meeting with him. Likewise, some ‘Ulama would ensure that this was the first Hadith they narrated in a new gathering.

Although we may have heard this Hadith many times, below is an important explanation of its relevance to our practical lives.

Al-‘Allamatul Muhaddith Shaykh Muhammad ‘Awwamah (hafizahullah) explained the importance of this Hadith in the following passage, and highlighted one of the first steps towards putting it into practice:

The Nearest Path to the Mercy of Allah

“Our pious predecessors understood how greatly the Ummah needs the mercy of Allah ‘Azza wa Jalla, in this world even before the Hereafter. They therefore adopted the closest path to attaining His mercy, which was to show mercy to others, just as the compassionate and merciful Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) taught them [in these Hadiths]:

“Be merciful to those on earth, and the One [whose mercy engulfs the inhabitants] of the sky will be merciful to you too”
(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith: 4902, Sunan Tirmidhiy, Hadith: 1924)

“Show mercy, and you will be shown mercy.”
(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith: 6541)

“Whoever does not show mercy will not be shown mercy.”
(Sahih Bukhariy, Hadith: 6013, Sahih Muslim, Hadith: 2318)

And there are other similar Hadiths.

By showing mercy to your Muslim brother, you cause him, in turn, to show mercy to you, and the same takes place between one person and another until this quality spreads throughout the Muslims.

The First Stage of Mercy

One of the first stages of mutual mercy is that a Muslim restrains himself from harming his Muslim brother [whether verbally or physically].

Do Not Justify your Insult to Another Muslim!

Every one of us tries to justify insulting his Muslim brother by saying: “But he says such-and-such, he does such-and-such, or he believes such-and-such.” However, these are often merely excuses arising from the whisperings of Shaytan.
Unless, of course, what he says, does or believes is something that, by consensus, takes him out of the fold of Islam. In that case, yes [certain measures maybe taken], but only to the extent permitted by Islam.

If his situation is otherwise, then on what basis does one regard his honour and sanctity as lawful to violate?!

A wise Muslim should strive to overcome these whisperings.

The Sanctity of Every Muslim

Every Muslim has a degree of sanctity before Allah Ta‘ala, regardless of his condition and however weak his steadfastness may be. It is therefore the duty of every other Muslim to respect this sanctity, for Allah ‘Azza wa Jalla is protective over it and honours the person who possesses it.

One indication of this is that Allah Ta‘ala will not leave such a Muslim eternally in Jahannam. Rather, his eventual destination will be a Jannah that is as vast as the heavens and the earth.

Even if this Muslim was the last of the people to emerge from Jahannam, he would still receive a share in the Jannah of Allah Ta‘ala an amount equal to this world and ten times the like of it.
How then can a person who regards himself as being among the special people of Iman be among the boldest in violating these sanctities!!

Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “A Muslim is one from whose tongue and hand the Muslims are safe.”
(Sahih Bukhariy, Hadith: 10, Sahih Muslim, Hadith: 41)

Mercy Towards All Creation

In the Hadith under discussion: “Show mercy to those on earth”, the word “مَن – those” is general. It includes Muslims and non-Muslims. It also includes animals.

This is how Imam Bukhariy (rahimahullah) also understood such Hadiths. In Sahih Bukhariy, he included a chapter titled “Chapter: Showing Mercy to People and Animals.” He then cited several Hadiths under this chapter [including the Hadith mentioned previously: “Whoever does not show mercy will not be shown mercy.”]”

(Introduction to Majalis fi Tafsiri Qawlillahi Ta’ala: {Laqad Mannallahu ‘alal Mu-minina idh Ba‘atha fihim Rasulan min Anfusihim} of Imam Ibn Nasiriddin (rahimahullah), pgs. 17 and 20-23)