Hoping For Intercession But Do Nothing for it in Terms Of Conduct and Morality is Foolishness

Hope: Hope (Raja’) is the state of the heart’s tranquility that develops as a result of one’s yearning for the desirable objects Of Divine Grace (Fadl), forgiveness (Maghfira), bounty (Ni’ma), and Paradise, while devising ways and means for their attainment.

Thus, one who remains in expectation of mercy and Paradise but does not adopt the means of their acquisition – righteous deeds, repentance, and so forth, will not attain the goal of hope. He remains, on the contrary, in deception. He is like the one who, in spite of not sowing the seeds, expects to reap the crop. He dwells in empty desire.

The manner of acquiring hope is to reflect on the vastness of Allah’s mercy and His munificence.

Have hope and fear, for these are the two of the most noble fruits of faith, and Allâh has attributed to the Foremost among His servants. The basis of hope is the heart’s knowledge of the immensity of Allâh’s mercy and generosity, the magnitude of His favours and kindness, and His gracious promise to those who obey him. This knowledge generates a state of joyous relief which is termed ‘hope’, the intended result of which is that one hastens to acts of goodness and is careful in performance of one’s acts of obedience, for obedience is the road to Allâh’s Good Pleasure (Ridwan), and His Garden.

The basis of fear is the heart’s knowledge of the majesty of Allâh. His invincible might, His independence of any of His creatures, and the severe punishments and painful torments with which He has threatened those who disobey Him and contravene His commands. This knowledge generates a state of apprehension which is termed ‘fear’, the intended result of which is that one abandons sins and thoroughly guards oneself against them, for sin is the road leading to Allâh’s wrath and His place of punishment.

To hope for the hereafter but do nothing for it in terms of conduct, and morality is false hope. A perennial teaching of revealed religion since the creation of Adam (عليه السلام) is that entry into Paradise is a matter of Allâh’s mercy and that this mercy is attained by combining faith and sincere deeds for the sake of Allâh. Unfortunately, on the Day of Judgment, many Muslims may find themselves in hell because of false hopes. All they have to show for their religiosity is the mere declaration of faith, a testimony unconfirmed by deeds, especially the rites of worship and charitable acts towards others.

The Qur’an, states that there are people who desire to continue in their wrongdoing throughout the entirety of their lives. The scholars have said that although people may be aware of ultimate accountability, they put off repentance as if they are guaranteed a long life. This is an ethic exemplified by the saying, “Sow your wild oats,” which advocates getting all the lewdness and sin out of life when one is young, and then later calming down and getting serious about religion.

Besides being simply wrong, another terrible flaw in this ethic is that people die at all ages and never get the chance to repent and make amends. Moreover, what kind of repentance is this when people intentionally indulge in sin banking on the possibility that later on in life – after all the energy and drive diminishes – they will turn in penitence to Allâh?

We know that Allâh loves those who spend their youth obedient to Him and His commandments.

Any hope or fear that does not lead to adherence to obedience and renunciation of transgressions is considered by the people of inward vision to be useless illusion and folly, for the one who (really) hopes for something seeks it and the one who (really) fears something flees from it invariably.

Beware of either despairing of Allâh’s mercy or feeling secure from His deception for both are among the major sins. They only despair of the mercy of their Lord who are astray, and they only feel secure from the deception of Allâh who are the people of perdition.

‘Despair’ is to be so overwhelmed by fear as to leave absolutely no room for hope, while ‘security’ is to have so much hope as to leave absolutely no room for fear. The man who has either of the two is ignorant of Allâh, and will inevitably neglect His obedience and transgress. For the one who despairs forsakes obedience because he feels it will be of no avail to him, while the one who is secure commits sins thinking that they will not harm him. We seek Allâh’s protection against damnation and against evil destiny.

There is yet another kind of hope called umniyya, which is blameworthy in Islam. Essentially, it is having hope but neglecting the means to achieve what one hopes for, which is what we refer to as an “empty wish.” To hope for the Hereafter but do nothing for it in terms of conduct and morality is also false hope.

Entry into paradise is a matter of Allâh’s mercy, and this mercy is attained by combining faith and sincere deeds for the sake of Allâh.

O’ Allâh help us do the righteous deeds in accordance with the Sharia according to the Qur’an and Sunnah with the utmost sincerity – 《~~آمين~~》.

Among saving things are hope in Allâh and fear of Him. Both are noble stations, which Allâh has attributed to His Prophets, Messengers, and those among the virtuous believers who followed them with excellence. Hope and fear are like the wings of the bird or the pans of the scales. Fear is a rebuke that restrains people from sins and contraventions, while hope is a leader that leads the servant to acts of obedience and conformity. He who is not rebuked by his fear from disobeying Allâh nor led by his hope to obey Him, both his hope and fear are but ineffective ruminations of the soul that are of no consequence, for they have failed to lead to their intended goal and benefit. Let the believer beware of both extremes – feeling secure from Allâh’s ruses on the one hand or despairing of His mercy on the other. For a person to feel secure from Allâh’s ruse is to have so much hope and so little fear of Him as to think it highly unlikely that He will chastise and torment him. As for the despair, it is to have so much fear and so little hope in Allah as to feel it highly unlikely to be shown mercy and forgiven. Both are major sins, so beware of them. Remain between fear and hope. Do not deceive yourself concerning your Lord and do not be too bold with Him, for your Lord is swift in chastisement, but He is also forgiving and compassionate.

Quest of Paradise without good deeds, hope for intercession without following the Sunnah, and hope for Divine blessing after disobedience (without sincere repentance) is foolishness.