To the One Who Falls Into Imprisonment : Messages of Advice

Writen by: Abū Usāmah Al-Hazīn

May Allāh preserve him

All praise is due to Allāh, Lord of the Worlds, and may the Blessings and Peace be upon the most noble of Messengers, Sayyidunā Muhammad, صلى الله عليه و سلم, and upon his family and companions in entirety.

To proceed:

Allāh Ta’ālā said:

مَا أَصَابَ مِن مُّصِيبَةٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ وَمَن يُؤْمِن بِاللَّهِ يَهْدِ قَلْبَهُ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ

No calamity befalls, but with the Leave (i.e. Qadar) of Allāh, and whosoever believes in Allāh, He guides his heart, and Allāh is the All-Knower of everything. [1]

And He Said:

مَا أَصَابَ مِن مُّصِيبَةٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِي أَنفُسِكُمْ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مِّن قَبْلِ أَن نَّبْرَأَهَا إِنَّ ذَلِكَ عَلَى اللَّهِ يَسِيرٌ

No calamity befalls on the earth or in yourselves but is inscribed in the Book of Decrees (Al-Lawh Al-Mahfūth), before We bring it into existence. Verily, that is easy for Allāh. [2]

And He Said:

وَمَا أَصَابَكُم مِّن مُّصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ وَيَعْفُو عَن كَثِيرٍ

And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much. [3]

And He Said,

الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُم مُّصِيبَةٌ قَالُواْ إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّـا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ

Those who, when afflicted with calamity, say: “Truly! To Allāh we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.” [4]

I had entered into one of the houses of Allāh and in my possession was the third volume of the book Zād Al-Ma’ād, and in the beginning of the book there were the words of Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allāh have Mercy upon him, on tribulations. And at that hour, I stopped to think about the path of Jihād and the hardship it contains, so here are some things I wrote about the issue of imprisonment, which is considered one of the severest tribulations for the Mujāhid:

Introduction:

Know, my beloved brother, that the path of Jihād is not paved with roses, rather it is a path that is paved with severed limbs and blood, and it is full of fear and danger. And from the dangers of this path is that a person might become imprisoned at the hands of the enemies of Allāh, and this is enough of a hardship. There passed through my head some of the dangers, and I liked to put them down in writing on this page, perhaps Allāh will benefit [others] by it.

The First Message:

Indeed Allāh, Subhānahu Wa Ta’ālā, did not Decree for a slave anything except what is good, so it is upon the believer to have patience with the Judgment of Allāh and His Decree, and that if good times befall him, he thanks [Allāh], and if hardship befalls him, he is patient.

The Second Message:

Know that the prison cell, which can be more or less a meter by a meter in length and width from the inside, and in which you are afflicted with fear and fatigue and pain, know that it is not equal to anything from the darkness of the grave and the [fear and pain] of the questioning by the two Angels.

The Third Message:

Patience is the key to relief, and the path to victory and establishment in the Dunyā, and the path to happiness in the Ākhirah. Allāh Ta’ālā Said:

وَجَعَلْنَا مِنْهُمْ أَئِمَّةً يَهْدُونَ بِأَمْرِنَا لَمَّا صَبَرُوا وَكَانُوا بِآيَاتِنَا يُوقِنُونَ

And We made from among them (Children of Israel), leaders, giving guidance under Our Command, when they were patient and used to believe with certainty in Our Āyāt [5]

And remember that after hardship Allāh will bring ease.

The Fourth Message:

Know that you will not gain establishment (i.e. authority and power) until you are tested. Ash-Shāfi’ī, may Allāh have Mercy upon him, was asked, “Which is better for a man, that he is granted authority or that he is tested?” He said, “He will not gain authority unless he is tested, and Allāh tested the Messengers of Strong Will (Nūh, Ibrāhīm, Mūsā, ‘Īsā, and Muhammad, عليهم السلام), so when they were patient, He established them. So let no one think that he will under any circumstances be free of suffering. But rather, the people of suffering vary in their intellects. Those with the most intellect sell a great, continuous pain for an easy, temporary pain, and the most wretched of them are those who sell the easy, temporary pain for the great, continuous pain.” [6]

The Fifth Message:

Make this message a rule for you in your life. Ibn Al-Qayyim says, “The soul is committed to the love of this world.

Allāh Ta’ālā Said:

كَلاَّ بَلْ تُحِبُّونَ العَاجِلَةَ وَتَذَرُونَ الآخِرَةَ

Nay, but [you men] love the present life of this world, And leave (neglect) the Hereafter. [7]

And He Said:

إِنَّ هَؤُلاءِ يُحِبُّونَ العَاجِلَةَ وَيَذَرُونَ وَرَاءَهُمْ يَوْماً ثَقِيلا

Verily! These (disbelievers) love the present life of this world, and put behind them a heavy Day. [8]

And this afflicts everyone, for the human is urban by nature, and he must live with people. And people have desires and conceptions. So they will ask him to agree with them about them, so if he does not agree with them, they will harm him and torture him. And if he agrees with them, harm and torture will befall him, sometimes from them, and sometimes from others. Like one who has religion and piety who settles among oppressive, immoral people, they will not be capable [of carrying out] their evil and their oppression except with his agreement with them, or his silence towards them. So if he agrees with them or is silent towards them, he is safe from their evil in the beginning, then they will overpower him with humiliation and harm, multiples of what he feared in the beginning if he opposes them or renounces them. And if he is unharmed by them, then he must be humiliated and tortured at the hands of someone else.

So [be completely] resolute in acting with what ‘Ā’ishah, the Mother of the Believers, said to Mu’āwiyah, may Allāh be pleased with him: [9] ‘Whoever pleases Allāh [at the expense of] the displeasure of the people, Allāh will suffice him from needing the people. And whoever pleases the people [at the expense] the displeasure of Allāh, they will avail him nothing with Allāh.’” [10]

The Sixth Message:

If you stay steadfast upon the truth and remain patient during trials, the pain will disappear, and the fatigue will go, and there will remain for you the reward In Shā’ Allāh. Ibn Al-Qayyim says, “And because there is no escape from the pain in full, Allāh Subhānahu comforts whoever chooses the easy, temporary pain over the great, continuous pain with His Statement:

مَنْ كَانَ يَرْجُو لِقَاءَ اللهِ فَإِنَّ أَجَلَ اللهِ لَآتٍ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ

Whoever hopes for the Meeting with Allāh, then Allāh’s Term is surely coming. and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower. [11]

So He made an ending for the period of suffering, and this ending must come, and it is the Day of His meeting, where the slave will then savor the greatest delight over the pain he endured for His Sake and for His pleasure, and his delight and happiness and jubilation will be in accordance with the suffering he endured for Allāh. And He affirmed this consolation and diversion with the hope of His meeting, so that the slave would carry his longing for the meeting with his Lord and Protector over bearing the hardship of the brief pain. Rather, perhaps the longing for His meeting prevents [the slave] from witnessing the pain or feeling it [12].

And because of this, the Prophet صلى الله عليه و سلم asked His Lord for the longing for His meeting, so he said in the supplication that Ahmad and Ibn Hibbān narrated, “Allāhumma, I ask you by you knowledge of the unseen, and your Power over the creation, cause me to live so long life is better for me, and cause me to die if death is better for me, and I ask You [to grant me] the fear of you in private and in the public, and I ask You for the word of Truth during [times of] anger and during [times of] contentment, and I ask You for moderation during poverty and wealth, and I ask you for comfort that does not cease, and I ask You for a delight of the eyes that does not end, and I ask You for pleasure after [Your] Decree, and I ask You for a good life after death, and I ask You for the delight of gazing upon Your Face, and I ask you for the longing for Your meeting, without any harmful tribulation or misleading trial. Allāhumma, adorn us with the adornment of Faith, and make us guides who are upon [the correct] guidance.” [13]

The Seventh Message:

Remember that this is the path of the Prophets and Messengers, and they were exposed to the trials related to us in the Qur’ān. So whoever wants to traverse their path will be exposed to trials. And ponder over these Āyāt. Allāh Ta’ālā said:

آلم أَحَسِبَ النَّاسُ أَنْ يُتْرَكُوا أَن يَقُولُوا آمَنَّا وَهُمْ لا يُفْتَنُونَ وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ، فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُواْ وَليَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَّاذِبِينَ أمْ حَسِبَ الَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السَّيِّئاتِ أَن يَسْبِقُونَا، سَاءَ مَا يَحْكُمُونَ مَنْ كَانَ يَرْجُواْ لِقَاءَ اللهِ فَإنَّ أَجَلَ اللهِ لآتٍ، وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ العَلِيمُ وَمَنْ جَاهَدَ فَإنَّمَا يُجَاهِدُ لِنَفْسِهِ، إِنَّ اللهَ لَغَنِىٌ عَنِ العَالَمِينَ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَنُكَفِّرَنَّ عَنْهُمْ سَيِّئاتِهِمْ وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَحْسَنَ الَّذِى كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ وَوَصَّيْنَا الإنسَانَ بِوَالِدَيْهِ حُسْناً، وَإن جَاهَدَاكَ لِتُشْرِكَ بِى مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ فَلا تُطِعْهُمَا، إِلَىَّ مَرْجِعُكُمْ فَأُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَنُدْخِلَنَّهُمْ فِى الصَّالِحِينَ وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ آمَنَّا بِاللِّهِ فَإذَا أُوذِىَ فِى اللهِ، جَعَلَ فِتْنَةَ النَّاسِ كَعَذَابِ اللهِ وَلئِنْ جَاءَ نَصْرٌ مِّن رَبِّكَ لَيَقُولُنَّ إِنَّا كُنَّا مَعَكُمْ، أَوَ لَيْسَ اللهُ بِأَعْلَمَ بِمَا فِى صُدُورِ العَالَمِينَ

Alif Lām Mīm. Do people think that they will be left alone because they say: “We believe,” and will not be tested. And We indeed tested those who were before them. And Allāh will certainly make [it] known [the truth of] those who are true, and will certainly make [it] known [the falsehood of] those who are liars, (although Allāh knows all that before putting them to test). Or do those who do evil deeds think that they can outstrip Us (i.e. escape Our Punishment)? Evil is that which they judge! Whoever hopes for the Meeting with Allāh, then Allāh’s Term is surely coming. And He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower. And whosoever strives, he strives only for himself. Verily, Allāh is free of all wants from the ‘Ālamīn. Those who believe, and do righteous good deeds, surely, We shall remit from them their evil deeds and shall reward them according to the best of that which they used to do. And We have enjoined on man to be good and dutiful to his parents, but if they strive to make you join with Me [in worship] anything (as a partner) of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not. Unto Me is your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do. And for those who believe and do righteous good deeds, surely, We shall make them enter in [the entrance of] the righteous (i.e. in Paradise). Of mankind are some who say: “We believe in Allāh,” but if they are made to suffer for the sake of Allāh, they consider the trial of mankind as Allāh’s punishment, and if victory comes from your Lord, [the hypocrites] will say: “Verily! We were with you.” Is not Allāh Best Aware of what is in the breast of the ‘Ālamīn. 14

Ibn Al-Qayyim says in explaining these Āyāt, “So let the slave ponder over the context of these verses, and what they contain of signs and treasures of wisdom. So if the Messengers were sent to the people, [the people] were upon two ways, either that one of them says, ‘We believe,’ or that he does not say that and instead continues upon evil deeds and disbelief. So whoever said, ‘We believe,’ his Lord tested him and put him through trial and Fitnah. And Fitnah is trial and examination so that the truthful person is distinguished from the liar. And whoever does not say “We believe,” then he should not think that he outstrips Allāh and that he gets ahead of Him or slips by Him, for indeed the end of the periods [of time] is in His Hand, and how can a person flee from Him with his sin if the stages come to an end in His Hand? So whoever believed in the Messengers and obeyed them, they oppose him and take him as enemies and harm him, so he is tested with what pains him. And if he does not believe in them and does not obey them, he is punished in the Dunyā and the Ākhirah, and there occurs to him what would cause him to suffer, and this pain is greater and more continuous than the pain of the followers of the Messengers. So there must occur pain to every person who believes or desires faith, but pain occurs to the believer in the beginning, then the final success is for him in the Dunyā and the Ākhirah, and the one who turns away from belief will experience delight in the beginning then will go on to the eternal suffering.” [15]

The Eighth Message:

You have concluded the transaction with Allāh Subhānahu Wa Ta’ālā. Ash-Shaykh Al-Imām ‘Umar Abdir-Rahmān, may Allāh free him, says, “You have sold your souls to Allāh Ta’ālā and you have become pleased with Jannah as a price for it, and He Subhānahu is the One who decides in what way He wants to deposit the merchandise that He bought, and there is nothing for you to do except submit and be satisfied, because by selling it, it leaves your ownership. So if He wishes, He will test you with imprisonment, and if He wills, He will bestow martyrdom on you. And it is not for you to place conditions and say ‘We want martyrdom and we do not want imprisonment’” End quote.

The Ninth Message:

Do not make the tribulation (Fitnah) of mankind like the punishment of Allāh. Ibn Al-Qayyim says, “Then He informs [us] of the state of the one who enters into Faith without any insight, and that if he is tested for the sake of Allāh, he makes the Fitnah of the people to him like the punishment of Allāh, and [the Fitnah] is their injuring him, and their harming him with what is hated, and the suffering that the Messengers and their followers after them must endure from those who oppose them. He allows this [Fitnah] to cause him to flee from them and abandon the reason that brought him this (i.e. his faith), and [he equates their punishment with] the punishment of Allāh that the believers flee from by way of their faith. So the believers, due to the perfection of their insight, fled from the pain of Allāh’s torment towards Faith, and they endured the temporary pain that comes with it which will pass soon.

[But] this other one, due to the weakness of his insight, fled from the pain of the punishment of the enemies of the Messengers towards agreeing with the enemies and following them. So he fled from the pain of their punishment towards the pain of Allāh’s punishment, and he made the pain of the people’s Fitnah at the status of the pain of Allāh’s torment, and he flees from it. And he harms himself with tremendous detriment if he seeks refuge from the scorching heat with the Fire, and if he fled from the pain of one hour to the eternal pain. And if Allāh gives victory to his soldiers and his Awliyā’ he will say, ‘I was with you!’ but Allāh is knowledgeable of the hypocrisy concealed in his chest.” [16]

The Tenth Message:

لِيَمِيزَ اللّهُ الْخَبِيثَ مِنَ الطَّيِّبِ وَيَجْعَلَ الْخَبِيثَ بَعْضَهُ عَلَىَ بَعْضٍ فَيَرْكُمَهُ جَمِيعاً فَيَجْعَلَهُ فِي جَهَنَّمَ أُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ

In order that Allāh may distinguish the wicked from the good, and put the wicked one on another, heap them together and cast them into Hell. Those! it is they who are the losers. [17]

Ibn Al-Qayyim says, “Allāh Subhānahu’s Wisdom necessitated that He test the souls and put them through hardship, so with the test, the good souls are made apparent from the bad, and those who are deserving of His Alliance and His Blessings [are made apparent from] those who are not deserving. And the souls that are fit are put to the test, and are purified with a [cleansing] test. Just as gold does not get purified and is not refined from its adulterants except through a test (that ensures only pure gold is present), the soul is naturally ignorant and oppressive, and because of the ignorance and oppression scum formed in the soul that needs to be expelled by molding and refinement, so [either] it is expelled in this abode, otherwise [it is expelled] in the bellows of Jahannam. So when the slave is cleansed and is purified, then he is given permission to enter Jannah.”

The Eleventh Message:

The soul must be prepared for this trial and hardship which befalls to the slave, and [this preparation] is by plentiful remembrance of Allāh Subhānahu Wa Ta’ālā, and plentiful righteous actions. Allāh Ta’ālā Said:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ إِذَا لَقِيتُمْ فِئَةً فَاثْبُتُواْ وَاذْكُرُواْ اللّهَ كَثِيراً لَّعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلَحُونَ

O you who believe! When you meet (an enemy) force, take a firm stand against them and remember the Name of Allāh much (both with tongue and mind), so that you may be successful. [18]

The Twelfth Message:

A grave warning from Allāh Subhānahu Wa Ta’ālā:

وَإِن تَتَوَلَّوْا يَسْتَبْدِلْ قَوْماً غَيْرَكُمْ ثُمَّ لَا يَكُونُوا أَمْثَالَكُمْ

Behold! You are those who are called to spend in the Cause of Allāh, yet among you are some who are niggardly. And whoever is niggardly, it is only at the expense of his ownself. But Allāh is Rich, and you (mankind) are poor. And if you turn away (from Islām and the obedience of Allāh), He will exchange you for some other people, and they will not be your likes. [19]

So beware that, should you enter prison, that you say in the beginning of the matter, “If only I had not traversed the path of Jihād! If only I had not done this or that!” For by Allāh, this is the Shaytān who desires to have control over you, and this is the soul that is inclined towards evil. Rather it may be entering into prison causes you to increase in the remembrance of Allāh and to establish the prayer [more]… And here there comes an important matter, and it is how much of the Book of Allāh you have memorized – so take care of this matter well in the times of ease so that it benefits you in times of hardship.

The Thirteenth Message:

Remember,

سَيَجْعَلُ اللَّهُ بَعْدَ عُسْرٍ يُسْراً

Allāh will grant after hardship, ease [20]

And you do not know my brother,

لَعَلَّ اللَّهَ يُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ أَمْراً

It may be that Allāh will afterward bring some new thing to pass [21]

So perhaps one night or one afternoon you will leave the prison and be with your brothers in the Afghan mountains or the forests of Chechnya or the cities of Iraq. And remember what happened to Shaykh Abū Yahyā Al-Lībī and those with him from the brothers… Allāh delivered them from the prison – and it was from the largest of America’s bases – so they fled from it and Allāh made them a thorn in the throats of the disbelievers. [22] And you have consolation in the release of the imprisoned [brothers] in Cuba, how Allāh bestowed His favors upon them and caused them to be released from the prison.

Lastly:

Always remember His Ta’ālā’s Statement :

إِنَّ الأرْضَ لِلَّهِ يُورِثُهَا مَنْ يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

Verily, the earth is Allāh’s. He gives it as a heritage to whom He will of His slaves, and the (blessed) end is for the pious [23]

Sayyid Qutb says, “The procession of the Da’wāh to Allāh, [is] age-old, it journeys through the mountain paths of time, continuing upon the difficult and perpetual path. Straight in its steps, feet steadfast, its path is attacked by criminals of every sort, [both] the followers of those who are astray and the leaders fight it. Harm may afflict the Du’āt (callers), and blood is spilled, and limbs are torn, but the procession continues on its path, not twisting or turning or retreating or changing course. And the Victory, no longer how long time persists, is for the believers.” [24]

Written by:

Abū Usāmah Al-Hazīn

17-4-2008

The Green Fort

(Al-Hesbah Forum)

—-
[1] At-Taghābun; 11
[2] Al-Hadīd; 22
[3] Ash-Shūrā; 30
[4] Al-Baqarah; 156
[5] As-Sajdah; 24
[6] Zād Al-Ma’ād 13/3; Mādarij as-Sālikīn 2/283
[7] Al-Qiyāmah; 21-22
[8] Al-Insān; 27
[9] Translator’s Note: Sunan At-Tirmithī 4/34, and it is Hasan
[10] Zād Al-Ma’ād 3/13-14
[11] Al-’Ankabūt; 5
[12] Zād Al-Ma’ād 3/14-15
[13] Translator’s Note: An-Nasā’ī 3/54-55; Ahmad 4/364. Sahīh An-Nasā’ī 1/281; Sahīh Al-Jāmi’ #1301
[14] Al-’Ankabūt; 1-10
[15] Zād Al-Ma’ād 3/12-13
[16] Zād Al-Ma’ād 3/6
[17] Al-Anfāl; 37
[18] Al-Anfāl; 45
[19] Muhammad; 38
[20] At-Talāq; 7
[21] At-Talāq; 1
[22] Translator’s Note: For the full story of this miraculous escape, look to the At-Tibyān Publications releases, Escape From Bagram Part 1, and Escape From Bagram Part 2
[23] Al-A’rāf; 128
[24] Taken from Tarīq Ad-Du’āt Fi Thilāl Al-Qur’ān transmitted by Shaykh Muhammad Hassān in Khawātir ‘Alā Tarīq Ad-Da’wah