The Major Sins

“About the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, ‘If you avoid violating that which has been prohibited, your (lesser) sins will be forgiven and you will be admitted into a graceful dwelling,’ (4:31) the Imam said, ‘Major sins are those for which Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has made it necessary that the sinner suffer the torment of the fire.’”

“Once certain individuals of our people and I wrote to abu al- Hassan (a.s.) asking what and how many were the major sins. He wrote back to us about major sins, ‘Whoever avoids the act for which Allah has decided to send one in the fire, his evil deeds are expiated, if he is of the believers. The seven acts that subject one to punishment are to commit murder, a disregard of kindness to parents, collecting unlawful interest in trade, alienating oneself from religion after accepting it, accusing married women of committing indecent acts, consuming the properties of orphans and running away from the enemy during an offensive in battle.’”

“I heard Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) saying, ‘The major sins are seven in number: Murdering a believer intentionally, Accusing a married women of committing indecent act, Running away from the enemy in the battle field during an offensive. Alienating one’s self from religion after accepting it. Consuming the properties of the orphans unjustly. Consuming unlawful interest in trade after knowing it clearly and all such acts that Allah has considered to be the cause for one’s being subjected to suffering in the fire.’”

“I heard Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) saying, ‘Of the major sins are disregard of good relation with parents, despair for the mercy of Allah, feeling safe from the punishment of Allah and it is narrated that the biggest of the major sins is to consider things as partners of Allah.’”

“I heard Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) saying, ‘Whoever commits fornication suffers the loss of his belief, one who drinks wine suffers the loss of belief and one who breaks intentionally the fast in the month of Ramadhan suffers the loss of his belief.’”

“Once I asked Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) ‘Is it true that a fornicator does not fornicate if he is a believer?’ The Imam said, ‘No, it is not as such, however, when he is on her belly, belief is taken away from him and when he moves away, his belief is returned to him, if he repeats it his belief is taken away from him.’ I then asked, ‘Even if he wants to repeat?’ The Imam said, there are many who want to repeat but do not do so.’”

“About the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, ‘Those who stay away from grave sins and indecency (should know that) for their Lamam (certain sins) your Lord’s forgiveness is vast. . . .’ (53:32) the Imam said, ‘Indecency is fornication and theft. Lamam is when a man commits a sin, then regrets and asks forgiveness from Allah.’ I then asked, ‘Is there any difference between straying and disbelief?’ The Imam said, ‘How numerous (an indication of difference between the two) are the rings of belief!”’

“Once I asked Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) about the major sins. The Imam said, ‘They according to the book of Ali (a.s.) are seven:
Disbelief in Allah,
Murdering a soul,
Disregard of good relations with parents,
Consuming unlawful interest from trade with evidence,
Consuming the properties of orphans unjustly,
Running away from the enemy in battlefield during an offensive,
and Alienation from religion after emigration (apostasy).’
I (the narrator) then asked, ‘Are these the biggest sins?’ The Imam said, ‘Yes, they are.’ I then asked, ‘Is consuming one dirham from the property of an orphan unjustly a bigger sin or disregarding the prayer?’ The Imam said, ‘Disregard of the prayer is a bigger sin.’ “I then said, ‘You did not mention disregard of prayer among the major sins.’ The Imam said, ‘What was the first item that I mentioned to you?’ I said, ‘It was disbelief in Allah.’ The Imam said, ‘One who disregards prayer is an unbeliever (that is, he is considered as such for ignoring prayer without reason?)”’

“Amir al-Mu’minin, Ali ibn abu Talib (a.s.) has said, ‘There is no believer without forty shields on him until he commits forty major sins. When he commits forty major sins, the shields are removed. Allah then sends revelations to them (angels), “Cover My servant with your wings,” and the angels cover him with their wings. The Imam then said, ‘He then leaves no evil deeds without committing, praising himself among people for his evil deeds. The angels will say, ‘Lord, Your servant has left no evil deed uncommitted and we feel embarrassed for what he does. Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, will reveal this to them, ‘Move your wings away from him.’ When they do this he then is held responsible for his animosity to us (Ahl al-Bayt). At this point his privacy is disregarded in heaven and on earth and the angels will say, ‘O Lord Your servant is disgraced.’ Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, will reveal this to them: ‘Had Allah any interest in him He would not have commanded you to remove your wings from him.’” Ibn Faddal has narrated a similar Hadith from ibn Muskan.

“I heard Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) saying, ‘Of the major sins is to despair from the mercy of Allah and losing hope of receiving happiness from Allah, to feel secure of the punishment of Allah, murdering a soul that Allah has made unlawful to murder, keeping good relations with parents on hold and disregarded, consuming the property of orphans unjustly, consuming unlawful interest in trade despite evidence, alienation from religion after accepting the same, accusing married women of committing indecent acts and running away from the enemy in the battlefield during an offensive.’
The Imam then was asked, ‘A person who commits a major sin and dies, does he lose his belief? And if he will be punished, will he be punished like a pagan? Or will his punishment be discontinued?’ The Imam said, ‘He will lose his Islam if he would think that such acts are lawful, and for this reason he will face the most intense torment. However, if he would acknowledge that they are major sins and it is unlawful for him to commit them and that he will be punished for them and that they are unlawful, then he will be punished but not as intensely as the one mentioned before. It causes him to lose belief, but not Islam.’”

“Once I asked abu Ja’far (a.s.) about the words of the Messenger of Allah, ‘When a person commits fornication the spirit of belief departs him,’ the Imam said, ‘It is mentioned in His (Allah) words, ‘He has supported them with a spirit from Him,’ that is the spirit that departs him.’”

“The spirit of belief is moved away from him as long as he is on her belly and when he comes down the spirit returns.’ The narrator has said that he then asked, ‘What if one intends to commit fornication?’ The Imam said, ‘No, consider, if one intends to steal, will his hand be cut?”’

“Once I was in the presence of Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) and Muhammad ibn ‘Abdahu said, ‘A fornicator fornicates. Is he still a believer?’ The Imam said, ‘As long as he is on her belly he is not a believer and when he stands up, belief is returned to him.’ I then asked, ‘What if one intends to repeat?’ The Imam said, ‘How many are they who intend but do not repeat!”’

“I heard Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) saying, ‘The major sins are seven: One of them is murdering a soul intentionally, considering things as a partner of Allah the Most Great, accusing a married women of committing an indecent act, consuming unlawful interest in trade with evidence, mnning away from the battlefield during an offensive against the enemy, alienation from religion after accepting it, disregarding to maintain good relations with parents and consuming the property of orphans unjustly.’ The Imam said, ‘Alienation and paganism are the same.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘A son who condemns his father when he calls him and the father who beats up his son who responds to the father’s call are the same.’”

“Once a man came to Amir al-Mu’minin, Ali ibn abu Talib (a.s.) and said, ‘O Amir al- Mu’minin, certain people think a servant of Allah, who is a believer, does not fornicate, commit theft, drink wine, consume unlawful interest in trade, and does not spill blood that is not lawful to spill. This has become heavy on me and my chest feels constrained when 1 think that this servant (of Allah) prays the way I do, pleads to Allah the way I do, marries from us and agrees we marry from them, he can inherit us and I can inherit him but is out of belief just because of a few sins. ’ Amir al- Mu’minin, Ali ibn abu Talib (a.s.) said, ‘You spoke the truth. I heard the Messenger of Allah saying, and evidence to it is the book of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, ‘People are of three categories and of three stages as mentioned in the book of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy: people of the right, people of the left and the foremost people. The foremost people are the Messenger prophets and non-Messenger prophets. In these people Allah has placed five spirits: The Holy Spirit, the spirit of belief, the spirit of power, the spirit of desire and the spirit of the body. With the Holy Spirit they were raised as the prophets who were Messengers and non-Messengers and with this they received the knowledge about things. With the spirit of belief they worshipped Allah and did not consider anything as His partners. With the spirit of power they performed Jihad (hard work in the way of Allah) and managed their living. With the spirit of desire they enjoyed food, lawful carnal relations with young women. With the spirit of the body they were able to move and walk around. These people are forgiven and no sin is recorded against them. Then he (the Messenger of Allah) said, ‘Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘We gave certain ones of Our Messengers preference over others. There are those to whom Allah spoke and He raised the rank of certain others. We gave authoritative proof to Jesus, son of Mary, and supported him by means of the Holy Spirit. . . .’ (2:253) Then about one group He has said, ‘He has supported them with a spirit from Him.’ He (Allah) says that He has given them honor with it and has granted excellence over the others. These are forgiven and no sins are recorded against them.’ “He (the Messenger of Allah) then mentioned the people of the right hand and they are the believers in truth, in reality. Allah has placed four spirits in them: The spirit of belief, the spirit of power, the spirit of desire and the spirit of the body. A servant continues to perfect these four spirits and goes through conditions.’ The man then asked, ‘O Amir al-Mu’minin, what are these conditions?’ The Imam said, ‘The first condition is as Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘Certain individuals among you will grow to an extremely old age and lose their memory. . . .’ (16:70) All the spirits in him reduce and it is not a case wherein he is out of the religion of Allah. It is because the agent has returned him to the weakest point of life. He does not recognize the time for prayer, he is not able to perform Tahajjud (prayer at night) nor is he able to stand up in line with people. It is a reduction in the spirit of belief but it does not harm him. In certain ones of them the spirit of power is reduced; thus, they are not able to fight the enemy or make a living. In others the spirit of desire is reduced and a time comes when the daughters of Adam show no passion for him; he does not stand up. The spirit of the body remains with him. He moves and walks around until the angel of death comes. This condition is good because Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, is the power behind it. He faces other conditions when he is strong and young. He thinks of committing sins and the spirit of power encourages him, the spirit of desire makes it attractive to him and the spirit of the body leads him until he falls in sin. If he faces weakness in belief and it moves away from him it (belief) will not return to him before repentance. If he then repents, Allah turns to him (with forgiveness) but if he repeats the sin, Allah sends him to fire.’ “The people of the left are the Jews and the Christians as Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘Those to whom We have given the Book (Bible) know you (Muhammad) just as good as they know their sons.’ They know Muhammad and al- Walayah (the status of people who possess Divine Authority) from the Torah and the Gospel just as they know their sons in their homes. ‘ ... It is clear that certain individuals among them deliberately hide the truth. (2:146) Never doubt that the essence of truth (that you are the Messenger of Allah to them) comes from your Lord.’ (2:147) When they rejected what they knew Allah placed them under the trial. He removed the spirit of belief from them and allowed the three spirits to remain in them: The spirit of power, the spirit of desire and the spirit of the body. Thereafter He added them to the animals saying, ‘They are like cattle or even more, straying and confused.’ (25:44) The animals carry loads because of the spirit of power, feed themselves because of the spirit of desire and move around because of the spirit of the body.’ The man who had asked the question then said, ‘You brought life to my heart by the permission of Allah, O Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s.).’”

“Once I asked Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) about the words of the Messenger of Allah, ‘When a man fornicates, the spirit of belief departs him. ’ The narrator has said that the Imam said, ‘It is like the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, [“. . . do not even think of spending for the cause of Allah worthless things that you yourselves would be reluctant to accept. . . .” (2:267) The narrator has said that the Imam then said, ‘Another verse is more clear than this. It is the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy,] “ . . . and supported them by means of a spirit from Him, . . .” (58:22) that is the spirit that departs him.’”

“The Imam said that Allah has said, ‘Allah does not forgive the sin of considering others equal to Him, however. He may grant exceptions in other forms of sins that He may choose to forgive, . . .’ (4:48) It is a reference to the major sins and the lesser sins.” I (the narrator) asked the Imam, ‘Does the above exception apply to any of one’s major sins?’ The Imam said, ‘Yes, it does apply to the major sins.’”

“Once I asked Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) ‘Does the exception apply to the major sins and Allah may chose to forgive (whichever He may so choose)?’ The Imam said, ‘Yes, it does apply.’”

“I heard Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) saying about, ‘Whoever is given wisdom, certainly, has received much good. . . .,’ (2:269) it (such wisdom) means (having the ability to) recognize the Imam and avoid committing major sins for which Allah has made it necessary to send the perpetrators to fire.’”

“I asked abu al-Hassan (a.s.) ‘Does committing a major sin remove one away from belief?’ The Imam said, ‘Yes, even less than major sins do. The Messenger of Allah has said, “A fornicator does not commit such a thing while he is a believer and a thief does not steal while he is a believer.’””

“Once ibn Qays al-Masir and ‘Amr ibn Dharr - 1 think also abu Hanifah - came to see abu Ja’far (a.s.). Ibn Qays al-Masir spoke and said, ‘We do not expel people of our own mission and people of our own nation from belief just because of disobedience and sin.’ Abu Ja’far (a.s.) said, ‘O ibn Qays, the Messenger of Allah has said, ‘One does not fornicate while he is a believer, and one does not steal while he is a believer.’ You and your people may go wherever you wish.’”

“Once I asked Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) about a man who commits a major sin and then dies whether it takes him away from Islam and if he will be punished, will it be like that for the pagans or will it finish on a certain time? The Imam said, ‘One who commits any of the major sins considering it to be lawful it will take him away from Islam and he will face the most severe punishment. However, if he affirms that what he has done is a sin and dies, he is taken out of belief but not out of Islam and his punishment will be less severe than the one mentioned before.’”

“Abu Ja’far (a.s.) narrated to me saying, ‘I heard my father saying, “I heard my father, Musa ibn Ja’far (a.s.) saying, ‘Once ‘Amr ibn ‘Ubayd came to see Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) and when he offered the greeting of peace and took his seat he read the following verse of the Holy Quran, “Those who stay away from grave (major) sins and indecency . . .” (53:32) and stopped reading further. Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) asked, ‘What made you stop reading further?’ He said, T like to know the major sins from the book of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy.’ The Imam said, ‘O ‘Amr, the biggest of the major sins is to consider things as partners of Allah. Allah says, ‘Whoever considers things as partners of Allah must know that Allah has forbidden their entering into paradise.’ Thereafter is to despair of the mercy of Allah; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘No one despairs from the mercy of Allah except the unbelievers.’ (12:87) Another of the major sins is to feel safe from the punishment of Allah; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, “No one disregards the punishment of Allah except the losing people.” (7:99) Of the major sins is to disregard maintaining good relations with parents; Allah, the Most Glorious, has considered such a person oppressive and hard-hearted. (19:4) Another of the major sins is murdering, for no good reason, a person that Allah has made unlawful to murder; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘The punishment for one who purposely slays a believer will be to live in hell fire forever.’ (4:93) Accusing a married women of committing indecent acts is a major sin; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘They are condemned in this world and in the next life and for them there is a great punishment.’ (24:23) Consuming the property of the orphans as Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘They eat fire in their belly and they will feel the heat of a blazing fire.’ (4:10) Running away from the enemy in the battlefield; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘. . . whoever would turn back at that time, except for strategic reasons or to join another band (8:15) will incur the wrath of Allah and will dwell in hell, a terrible dwelling.’ (8:16) Consuming unlawful interest in trade is among the major sins; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘Those who take unlawful interest will stand before Allah (on the Day of Judgment) as those who suffer from a mental imbalance because of Satan’s touch.’ (2:275) Another major sin is performing magic: Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘. . . They knew very well that one who engaged in witchcraft will have no reward in the life hereafter. . . .’ (2:102) Fornication is a major sin; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘. . . those who commit fornication have committed a sin (25:68) and on the Day of Judgment their torment will be double. They will suffer forever in disgrace.’ (25:69) False oath for an unlawful purpose is a major sin; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘Those who sell their covenant with Allah and their promises for a small price will have no share in the life hereafter. . . .’ (3:77) Treachery in dealing with property seized from the enemy in battle; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘A treacherous person will be brought before Allah on the Day of Judgment with his treacherous deeds. . . .’ (3:161) Not to pay al-Zakat, obligatory (charity) is a major sin; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘. . . their treasures will be heated by the fire of hell and pressed against their foreheads, sides and backs. . . .’ (9:35) To present false testimony and to hide a testimony is a major sin; Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, says, ‘Do not refuse to testify to what you bore witness. Whoever does so has committed a sin. . . .’ (2:283) Drinking wine is a major sin; Allah, The Most Majestic, the Most High has prohibited it as He has prohibited the worship of idols and disregarding intentionally to perform prayers or anything that Allah has made obligatory; the messenger of Allah has said, ‘Those who disregard, intentionally, the prayer Allah and His Messenger will have no responsibility toward such people. Disregarding one’s promise and covenant and disregard of maintaining good relations with relatives are among the major sins; Allah, The Most Majestic, the Most High says, ‘These . . . will have Allah’s condemnation and will face the most terrible end.’ (13:25) “The narrator has said that ‘Amr left sobbing and saying, ‘Destroyed is one who speaks of his opinion (in religious issues) and opposes you (Imam) in the matters of excellence and knowledge.’”