محمد بن أبي عمير

8.Muḥammad ibn Abī ʿUmayr attributed it to Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) that he said, “A servant will be brought on the Day of Judgment having no good deed [in his record], so it will be said to him, ‘Remember and recollect, do you have any good deed?’ So he will [try to] recall and will say, ‘My Lord, I have no good deed except that Your believing servant so-and-so passed by [one day] and asked me for water so that he could perform ablution and pray, so I gave it to him.’ So Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, will say, ‘Admit My servant into Paradise.’”

The Messenger of Allah (s) said: Whoever wants a way (tawassul) to me and wants my hand in his intercession on the Day of Resurrection should connect with my Ahl al-Bayt and bring joy to them.

“I heard Abā Jaʿfar (a) say, ‘Verily the disbelievers and the polytheists will taunt the monotheists in the Fire saying, “We do not see how your belief in one God benefitted you in any way. You and us are indeed the same!” So the Lord, to Whom belong might and majesty, will dislike that for them and will say to the angels, ‘Intercede [for them],’ so they will intercede for whomever Allah wills, and He will say the same to the believers [telling them to also intercede for them] until no one [among them] remains but that the intercession reaches him. Then He, the Blessed and Exalted, will say, ‘I am the Most Merciful of all who show mercy. Come out [from the Fire] by My mercy!’ So they will come out [therefrom] like moths.” Then Abū Jaʿfar (a) said, “Then the columns will be extended over them [closing them off], and it will be, by Allah, [for] eternity.”[1]

Salman al-Farisi (rh) said: One day, I was sitting with the Messenger of Allah (s) when `Ali b. Abi Talib (as) came forward. So, he said to him: O `Ali! Shall I not give you glad tidings? He said: Of course, O Messenger of Allah. He said: My beloved Gabriel informs me from Allah that He has given your lovers and your Shi`a seven characteristics: gentleness at death, harmony in the solitude [of the grave], light in the darkness [of the grave], security at the shock [of the Resurrection], rightly justice at the Scale, a permit on the Path, and entry into Paradise eighty years before the rest of the people of the nations.

The Messenger of Allah (s) said one day to `Ali (as): Shall I not give you glad tidings? So, he said: Of course, may my mother and my father be your sacrifice. Surely, you do not stop giving glad tidings with every good thing. So, he said: Gabriel informed me of something astonishing. So, `Ali (as) said to him: What did he inform you of, O Messenger of Allah? He said: He informed me that, when a man from my Nation blesses me and follows it up with blessing my Ahl al-Bayt, the gates of heaven open for him, and the angels bless him seventy times. If he is an erring sinner, the sins will shed from him just as leaves shed from a tree. Furthermore, Allah says: “I am at your service, My servant”; and Allah says to His angels: “O My angels! You bless him seventy times, and I bless him seven hundred times.” If he blesses me without following it up with blessing my Ahl al-Bayt, there will be seventy veils between him and heaven; and Allah will say: “I am not at your service. O angels! Do not bring up his supplications until he follows the Prophet up with his progeny [in blessing].” So, it will remain suspended until he follows me up with my Ahl al-Bayt.

“I told Abū ʿAbdillāh (a), ‘There is a ḥadīth that people are narrating [and then he mentioned it to him].’ So he said, ‘It is not as they are saying.’ Then he said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, “Verily the last person will then be ordered into the Fire. When it is commanded that he be thrown into the fire, he will turn [and look back]. So Allah, the Almighty, the All-Powerful, will say, ‘Have they been hasty with him? [Bring him to Me].’ So when he is brought, He will ask, ‘My servant, why did You turn to look back?’ So he will say, ‘O Lord, this was not how I had perceived You to be!’ So the Majestic Lord will say, ‘My servant, what was your perception of Me?’ He will reply, ‘O Lord, I had thought that You would forgive my sins and admit me into Your Paradise [to dwell therein]!’ So Allah, the All-Powerful, Majestic and Exalted is He, will say, ‘O My angels, by My might and bounty, by My mastery and majesty, by My loftiness and exalted station, My servant never thought positively of Me even for a moment in his life, for if he had thought positively of Me even for a single moment of his life, I would not have frightened him with the Fire. Yet let his lie stand, and place him in Paradise.’” Then the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, “A servant does not think positively of Allah but that he will find Allah to be as he had thought of Him. And he does not think negatively of Him but that he will find Allah to be as he had thought of Him. That is the [interpretation of] the verse in which He,the Exalted, says: It was the [negative] thoughts you entertained about your Lord that has led to your ruin, so you have become losers (Q41:23).”’”

“God will only make the infidels, the unbelievers, the misguided people, and the atheists reside in Hell forever. And any believer who avoids committing a major sin will be questioned by God regarding his minor sins. God the Almighty said: “If ye (but) eschew the most heinous of the things which ye are forbidden to do, We shall expel out of you all evil in you, and admit you to a Gate of great honor.” [The Holy Quran: Nisaa 4:31] Then they asked him: “Who then does intercession apply to?” Imam Kazim (a.s) said: “My father quoted on the authority of his grandfather who had quoted on the authority of Imam Ali (a.s): “I heard God's Prophet (a.s) say: “My intercession applies to those of my people who have committed major sins, but good people do not need any intercession.” Muhammad ibn Abi Ommer asked Imam Kazim (a.s): “O' Grandson of the Prophet! How does intercession apply to those who have committed major sins even though the Almighty God said: “And they offer no intercession except for those who are acceptable and they stand in awe and reverence of His (glory).”[The Holy Quran: Anbiyaa 21:28] and whoever commits a major sin is not acceptable?” Imam Kazim (a.s) said: “O' Abu Ahmad! Any believer who commits a sin will become sorry, and God's Prophet (a.s) said being sorry itself is a form of repentance. He also said: “Whoever is pleased with his good deeds and is unhappy with his bad deeds is a believer. Whoever is not sorry about his sins is not a believer. There will be no intercession for him since he is an oppressor. God the Almighty said: “No intimate friend nor intercessor will the wrong-doers have, who could be listened to.”[The Holy Quran: Mu-min 40:18] Then he asked: “O' grandson of the Prophet! How can someone who does not repent for committing a sin be not considered a believer?” Imam Kazim (a.s) said: “O' Abu Ahmad! There is no one that knows if he commits a major crime he will be punished, and does not feel sorry when he commits it. Once he feels sorry, this is considered to be repentance, and thus he deserves intercession. But if he does not become sorry, he is considered to be one who insists on committing sins. Such a person will never be forgiven since as a result of the sins that he has committed, he is no longer a believer. If he believed in the punishment he would have repented. God's Prophet (a.s) said: “Major sins are eliminated by repentance, and minor sins turn into major sins by insisting on committing sins.” God the Almighty said: “And they offer no intercession except for those who are acceptable.”[The Holy Quran: Anbyaa 21:28] They will not intercede on behalf of those whose religion is not accepted by God. Religion consists of confessing to recompense for good and bad deeds. Whoever has a religion that is accepted by God will be sorry for committing sins since he is aware of the punishment in the Hereafter.”

Allah will not make the Hell eternal for anyone except for those who disbelieved and denied, and those who went astray and rejected monotheism. Believers who refrained from major sins will not be asked about the minor sins they may have committed. Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says: If you shun the great sins which you are forbidden, We will do away with your small sins and cause you to enter an honorable place of entering. The reporter says: I asked him, “O son of the messenger of Allah (SA)! To which sinners does intercession [shafa`at] apply?” He (AS) replied, “My father (AS) related to me, on the authority of his forefathers (AS) the authority of `Ali (AS) that: The Messenger of Allah (SA) said: “Verily, my intercession applies to the members of my Ummah who committed major sins. As for the good-doers, they should not be concerned.” Ibn Abu `Umayr says: I asked him, O son of the Messenger of Allah! How can intercession apply to those who commit major sins, when Allah, exalted be His Remembrance, says: And they do not intercede except for him whom He approves and for fear of Him they tremble; and whoever commits major sins cannot be the approved one, Thus, he (AS) responded, O Abu Ahmad! There is not a believer who commits a sin but that it grieves him, and he regrets it. The Prophet (SA) has said: “Regret is sufficient for repentance.” He (AS) has also said: Whoever is pleased by his good deeds and grieved by his bad deeds is a believer.” Therefore, he who commits a sin, and does not regret it, is not a believer, and intercession will not apply to him because he is unjust. Allah, exalted be His Remembrance, says: The unjust shall not have nay compassionate friend nor any intercessor who should be obeyed. I asked him, “O son of the Messenger of Allah! Why is a person an unbeliever is he does not feel any remorse for his sins?” He (AS) replied, O Abu Ahmad! If someone knows that he has committed a major sin, and knows that he will be punished for it, he will surely regret his action. If feels remorse, he has repented, and deserves intercession. If he does not regret his action, he will persist in his sin. Persistent, habitual sinners are not forgiven, because they do not believe that they will be punished for their actions. If they believed in the punishment then surely they would regret their action. The Prophet (SA) said: No major sin remains after repentance. And no sin remains minor if one engages in it habitually. As for the Word of Allah, the Mighty and High: And they do not intercede except for him whom He approves; then he will not receive intercession unless Allah approves his belief. Belief is the confirmation of reward for good deeds and punishment over bad deeds. If Allah accepts a person’s faith as sincere, it is because the person regrets the sins he has committed, and fears their punishment on the Day of Judgment.