1321 - عَفوُ اللَّهِ‏

1321. ALLAH’S PARDON

(إنَّ اللَّهَ كانَ عَفُوَّاً غَفُوراً) .¹

“Indeed Allah is all-excusing, all-forgiving.”²

4336.رسولُ اللَّهِ صلى اللَّه عليه وآله - لَمّا سَألَتهُ عائشَةُ عَنِ الدُّعاءِ في لَيلَةِ القَدرِ - : تَقولينَ : اللَّهُمَّ إنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ العَفوَ ، فَاعفُ عَنّي .³

4336. The Prophet (SAWA), when A’isha asked him about what to supplicate on the grand Night of Ordainment (laylat al-qadr), replied, ‘You should say: O Allah verily you are all-pardoning and You love to pardon, so pardon me.’⁴

4337.تنبيه الخواطر : قالَ أعرابيٌّ : يا رَسولَ اللَّهِ، مَن يُحاسِبُ الخَلقَ يَومَ القِيامَةِ ؟ قالَ : اللَّهُ عزَّوجلَّ ، قالَ : نَجَونا ورَبِّ الكَعبَةِ ! قالَ : وكَيفَ ذاكَ يا أعرابِيُّ ؟ ! قالَ : لأِنَّ الكَريمَ إذا قَدَرَ عَفا .⁵

4337. It is narrated in Tanbih al-Khawatir that a bedouin once asked the Prophet, ‘O Prophet of Allah, who will hold creation to account on the Day of Resurrection?’ to which he replied, ‘Allah, Mighty and Exalted.’ He said, ‘By the Lord of the Ka’ba, we will be saved indeed!’ The Prophet asked, ‘And how is that O bedouin friend?’ He replied, ‘Because the generous one pardons when he has the power.’⁶

4338.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : إنَّ اللَّهَ تَعالى‏ يُسائلُكُم مَعشَرَ عِبادِهِ عَنِ الصَّغيرَةِ مِن أعمالِكُم وَالكَبيرَةِ ، والظّاهِرَةِ والمَستورَةِ ، فإن يُعَذِّبْ فأنتُم أظلَمُ ، وإن يَعفُ فهُوَ أكرَمُ .⁷

4338.Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘Verily Allah, most High, will certainly interrogate you, O community of His servants, about your actions, be they small or big, and be they open or secret. If He punishes you, then it because you have wronged yourselves, and if He pardons, then it is because He is too generous.’⁸

4339.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام - في المُناجاةِ - : إلهي اُفَكِّرُ في عَفوِكَ فتَهونُ عَلَيَّ خَطيئَتي ، ثُمَّ أذكُرُ العَظيمَ مِن أخذِكَ فتَعظُمُ عَلَيّ بَلِيَّتي .⁹

4339.Imam Ali (AS) said in his intimate supplication, ‘My Lord I think about Your pardon and my mistakes seem insignificant to me, then I remember the awesomeness of Your chastisement and my tribulation seems great indeed.’¹⁰

4340.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : اَللَّهُمَّ احَمِلني عَلى‏ عَفوِكَ ولا تَحمِلْني عَلى‏ عَدِلكَ .¹¹

4340.Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘O Allah expose me to Your pardon but do not expose me to Your justice.’¹²

4341.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : مَن تَنَزَّهَ عَن حُرُماتِ اللَّهِ سارَعَ إلَيهِ عَفوُ اللَّهِ .¹³

4341.Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘He who keeps himself aloof from Allah’s prohibitions is quickly embraced by Allah’s pardon.’¹⁴

4342.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : ولكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَختَبِرُ عِبادَهُ بِأنواعِ الشَّدائدِ ، ويَتَعَبَّدُهُم بِأنواعِ المَجاهِدِ ، ويَبتَليهِم بِضُروبِ المَكارِهِ ؛ إخراجاً لِلتَّكَبُّرِ مِن قُلوبِهِم ، وإسكاناً لِلتَّذَلُّلِ في نُفوسِهِم ، ولِيَجعَلَ ذلكَ أبواباً فُتُحاً إلى‏ فَضلِهِ ، وأسباباً ذُلُلاً لِعَفوِهِ .¹⁵

4342.Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘But Allah tries His servants with various tribulations, renders them to worship Him through struggles, tests them with various types of distresses, all in order to extract pride out from their hearts, and to settle humbleness in their souls, and in order to make all these open doors to His grace an easy means to His pardon.’¹⁶

4343.الإمامُ الصّادقُ عليه السلام - كانَ يَقولُ - : اللَّهُمَّ إنَّكَ بِما أنتَ لَهُ أهلٌ مِنَ العَفوِ ، أولى‏ مِنّي بِما أنا لَهُ أهلٌ مِنَ العُقوبَةِ .¹⁷

4343. Imam al-Sadiq (AS) used to say, ‘O Allah, verily Your worthiness of pardoning is more than my worthiness of punishment.’¹⁸

(اُنظر) الرّحمة : باب 808 .

(See also: MERCY: section 808)

1320 - ما لا يَنبَغي مِنَ العَفوِ

1320. THAT WHICH MUST NOT BE PARDONED

4334.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : العَفوُ يُفسِدُ مِنَ اللَّئيمِ بِقَدرِ إصلاحِهِ مِنَ الكَريمِ .¹

4334.Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘Pardon spoils a sinful man just as much as it can reform a decent man.’²

4335.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : جازِ بِالحَسَنَةِ وتَجاوَزْ عَنِ السَّيِّئَةِ ما لَم يَكُن ثَلماً في الدِّينِ أو وَهناً في سُلطانِ الإسلامِ .³

4335.Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘Reward the good deed and condone the misdeed as long as it is not a breach of religion or does not weaken the authority of Islam.’⁴