محمد التميمي السعدي

“The Messenger of Allah has said, ‘Any believing person who prays for the believing people male and female, Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, returns to such person a reward equal to the reward for a likewise prayer with which all believing people, male and female have been praying from the beginning of time and all who will do so in future up to the Day of Judgment. A servant will be ordered and dragged to the fire and the believing people male and female will say, ‘O Lord, this is the one who prayed for us, accept our intercession for him and Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, will accept their intercession about him and he will be saved.’”

The Messenger of Allah (s) said: There is not a believing man nor woman who has passed from the beginning of time till the Day of Resurrection except that they are an intercessor for those they mentioned in their supplication: “O Allah! Forgive the believing men and women.” A believer will be ordered to the Fire on the Day of Resurrection, but the believing men and women will say: “O our Lord! This is one who would pray for us, so accept our intercession for him.” So, Allah will accept their intercession and they will be saved.

A good saying increases one’s wealth, boosts one’s sustenance, prolongs one’s life, makes one beloved to one’s family, and enters one into Paradise.

The Messenger of Allah (sw) said: "I am the master of the prophets and the messengers, and better than the close angels. My successors are the masters of the successors of the prophets and the messengers, and my progeny are the best progeny of the prophets and the messengers, and my companions who follow my path are the best companions of the prophets and the messengers, and my daughter Fatima is the lady of the women of the worlds, and the pure ones from my wives are the mothers of the believers. And my nation is the best nation brought forth for people, and I am the prophet with the most followers on the Day of Resurrection, and I have a pool as wide as the distance between Basra and Sana'a. It contains cups as numerous as the stars in the sky. My successor at the pool that day is my successor in this world." It was asked: "Who is that, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "The leader of the Muslims, the commander of the faithful, and their guardian after me, Ali ibn Abi Talib. He will give drink to his friends and drive away his enemies just as one of you drives away strange camels from the watering place." Then he (sw) said: "Whoever loves Ali and obeys him in this world will come to my pool tomorrow and be with me at my level in Paradise; and whoever hates Ali in this world and disobeys him, I will not see him, nor will he see me on the Day of Resurrection, and he will be driven away from me and taken to the left, to Hell."

I asked my father the master of the worshippers [Sayyid al-`Abidin] (AS): O father! Inform me about when our grandfather the Messenger of Allah (SA) ascended to heaven to meet His Lord, the Mighty and High, and He commanded him to complete fifty daily prayers. Why did he not ask for any relief for his Ummah, until Musa son of `Imran (AS) said to him to go back to his Lord and ask for relief as your Ummah does not have the strength for that? Thus, he (AS) answered, O son! Verily, the Messenger of Allah (SA) was not going to suggest anything to his Lord, the Mighty and High, nor reconsider anything He had commanded him to so. Therefore, when Musa (AS) asked him to do so, he had interceded for his Ummah to the Prophet (SA); it did not suffice for him to reject the intercession of his brother Musa (AS). So he (SA) returned to his Lord, the Mighty and High, and asked him for relief until He lowered the obligation to five daily prayers. He says, I then asked: “O father! Then why did he not return to his Lord, the Mighty and High, and ask Him for relief from five daily prayers?” He (AS) therefore, replied, O son! He (SA) intended to relieve his Ummah by means of the word of Allah, the Mighty and High: “Whoever brings a good deed, he shall have ten like it.” Do you not see that when he (SA) descended to the Earth, Jibra`il (AS) revealed to him: “O Muhammad! Verily, your Lord sends you His Greetings, and says: They are five for fifty, My word shall not be changed, nor am I in the least unjust to the servants.” He says: then I asked, “O father! Did Allah, the Exalted, not mention that He cannot be described in terms of space?” So he (AS) responded, “Of course, exalted is Allah from that.” Therefore, I asked, “Then what is the meaning of the word of Musa(AS) to the Messenger of Allah (SA): `Go back to your Lord?’” Thus, he (AS) replied, The meaning of this is the same as the Word of Ibrahim (AS): Surely I fly to my Lord; He will guide me, and the word of Musa (AS): And I hastened on to Thee, my Lord, that Thou might be pleased, and His Word, the Mighty and High: Therefore fly to Allah. This means pilgrimage to the House of Allah. O son! Verily, the Ka`bah is House of Allah; therefore, whoever makes pilgrimage to the House of Allah ahs endeavored to reach Allah. The mosque are House of Allah; therefore, whoever proceeds to them has proceeded to Allah, and endeavored to visit Him. The praying person, so long as he is prayer, is standing before Allah, Lofty be His Majesty. The people staying in the planes of `Arafat are standing before Allah, the Mighty and High. Verily, for Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, are places in His Heavens, whoever is ascended to them is ascended to Him. Do you not hear Allah, the Mighty and High, that To Him ascend the angels and the Spirit, and He, the Mighty and High, says: To Him do ascend the good words: and the good deeds, lift them up.

I asked my father, the Master of Worshipers (as), and I said to him: O father! Inform me about my grandfather, the Messenger of Allah (s): When he ascended to heaven, and his Lord commanded him to do fifty prayers, why did he not ask Him to lighten the load on his Nation until Musa b. `Imran (as) told him: "Return to your Lord and ask him to lighten the load, for surely, your Nation cannot fulfill this"? So, he said: O my son! Surely, the Messenger of Allah (s) would not make suggestions to his Lord, nor would he return to Him with regards to something He had commanded him. So, when Musa (as) asked him, he became the intercessor of his Nation through him, and [thus] he was unable to reject the intercession of his brother Musa (as) (i.e. Musa interceded on behalf of the Muslim Nation, and the Prophet was unable to reject the plea of Musa). So, he returned to his Lord to ask him to lighten the burden, until it became five prayers. He said: So, I said to him: O father! Then why did he not return to his Lord to lighten it to less than five prayers, for Musa (as) told him to return to his Lord [again] to ask him to lighten it [further]? So, he said: O my son! He (s) wanted to lighten the burden on his Nation through the reward of fifty prayers, as Allah says, "He who comes with a good deed will have ten like it." (6:160) When he (s) descended to the Earth, Gabriel (as) came down to him and said: "O Muhammad! Surely, your Lord recites the salaam to you, and says: 'Surely, they are five [prayers worth] fifty. My words have not been exchanged, and I am not oppressive to the worshipers.'" He said: So, I said to him: O father! Isn't it the case that Allah is not described with a place? So, he said: Of course. May Allah be exalted above that. So, he said: So, what is the meaning of the saying of Musa (as) to the Messenger of Allah (s): "Return to your Lord"? So, he said: Its meaning is the [same] meaning as the saying of Ibrahim (as): "Surely, I am going to my Lord for guidance" (37:99), and the meaning of the saying of Musa (as): "I hasten to You, my Lord, so that You may be pleased." (20:84), and His saying, "So, hasten to Allah" (50:51) - meaning, make pilgrimage to the House of Allah. O my son! The Ka`ba is the House of Allah. Whoever makes pilgrimage to the House of Allah has made his intention toward Allah. The mosques are the houses of Allah, so whoever goes to them has gone to Allah and made his intention toward Him. The one who prays stands before Allah for the duration of his prayer. Those who stand at `Arafa stand before Allah. Surely, for Allah there are places in His heavens; whoever ascends to a place of His therein has ascended to Him. Have you not heard the saying of Allah, "The angels and the Spirit ascend to Him" (70:4)? He says in the story of `Isa (as), "Rather, Allah raised him to Himself" (4:158), and He says, "Goodly words ascend to Him and righteous deeds are raised up by Him" (35:10).