安拉创造了人类两类人:祂使顺从祂的人高贵尊荣,使违抗祂的人在今世和后世都卑贱屈辱。祂也使顺从祂的人成为最受尊崇的人,而拒绝祂的命令的人则成为最可耻的人。这一点在阿卜杜拉·本·阿慕尔传述的圣训中得到了体现,先知ﷺ说:"我被派遣时手持利剑,直到末日来临之前,安拉被独一崇拜,不以任何同伴与祂并列。我的给养安排在我长矛的阴影之下,凡违抗我命令的人,必遭羞辱;而模仿某族人行为的人,就是他们中的一员。" 人每犯一次罪,便会被降到更低的层级,并且会不断下降,直到抵达最底层;而每当他行善(遵从安拉的命令,履行其义务)时,便会不断上升,直到达到最高的品级。人在一生中可能经历起伏,其行为的性质(善或恶)也会有所变化,因此他会根据哪一类行为占据主导而被安置在相应的位置。然而,不应误解这一说法,因为有时一个人仅因一次过失,就可能下堕一段比东方与西方之间的距离还要远的深度;因此,即便他上升了一千个品级,也仍不足以弥补。正如圣训所载,先知ﷺ说:"安拉的仆人可能随口说出一句话,未加思量其对错,却因此坠入火狱,其距离相当于东方与西方之间的距离。"在这种情况下,需要怎样的上升呢? 人在生命中跌倒是难以避免的，然而有些人的跌倒源于疏忽的状态，所以一旦他们醒悟过来，便会迅速回到他们原有的高度，甚至回到更高的境界，这取决于他们觉醒的敏锐程度。但也有些人的跌倒是有意为之的，即在犯罪时，无论是小罪还是大罪；因此，这类人需要迅速回归纯正而真诚的悔罪。学者们对于人在悔改罪过之后所处的境界存在分歧：一种观点认为，人会回到犯罪之前所处的境界，因为悔罪抹去了罪的一切痕迹；另一种观点认为，人不会回到先前的境界，因为悔罪的作用在于消除犯罪应受的惩罚，而至于已经失去的那一层境界，则不会直接恢复。学者们打了一个比喻：就像两个人攀登两架无尽的梯子，其中一人下退了一级，然后继续向上攀登，那么一直向上攀登的人必定始终高于另一人。谢赫·伊斯兰（Shaikh Al-Islam）对这两类人作出了一个可以接受的裁断，他说："有些人会回到他先前的品级，而有些人则不会。"我认为：这取决于悔罪的完善程度，以及罪过在犯罪者心中所引发的羞耻感、顺服感和对真主的敬畏。这些影响可能足以使悔悟者达到更高的境界，甚至在悔罪之后，其地位比犯罪前更为优越。这样的人在悔罪之后获益良多，因为罪过使他认识到自己的处境，并促使他以最谦卑的方式在主面前顺服，寻求主的慈悯与赦宥。 无论赐予他/她怎样的恩惠，他/她都会认为那对自己而言太过美好，觉得自己不配得到这样的恩惠；而无论遭遇怎样的不幸，他/她都会觉得自己理应承受那份苦难，因为他/她承认，主并没有给予他/她与其罪过相称的惩罚。事实上，他/她应受的惩罚，即便群山也承受不了，更不必说他/她那软弱的身体了。犯下淫秽或不道德的行为之后去见高尚的人，是极不敬的，并且可能使犯罪者陷入羞耻的境地；那么，要去见至高无上、天地的主宰和主人安拉，又会是怎样的情形呢？若非安拉的慈悯先于祂的愤怒，祂的宽恕先于祂的惩罚，天地早已因祂仆人的罪过而崩裂了。安拉说：（安拉确已扣住天地，使它们不致偏离；如果它们偏离，除祂以外，没有谁能扣住它们。祂确是至宽容的，确是至赦宥的。）安拉以祂的两个属性结束了这节经文：至宽容者和至赦宥者。我们应当明白，如果没有祂的宽容和赦宥，天地就不会留在原位。安拉还告诉我们，祂的一些仆人有忘恩负义和以物配主的行为：（天几乎因此而崩裂，大地几乎因此而裂开，山岳几乎因此而崩塌。）安拉因我们的始祖阿丹和哈瓦（愿安拉喜悦他们）违抗祂所犯的罪，将他们逐出乐园。祂因易卜劣厮（撒旦）不向阿丹叩头所犯的罪，诅咒他，将他逐出天地，并使他远离祂的慈悯。 至于我们这些愚昧的人,我们堆积起罪恶的大山,却仍然希望获得天堂中永恒的恩泽,尽管我们知道,我们的先祖仅仅因为一桩罪过就被逐出了天堂。悔罪的人可以升到比犯罪之前更高的位置;但在某些情况下,罪过可能使他堕落,削弱他的决心,于是悔罪所带来的医治可以增强他的力量,使他得以恢复先前的地位。这只适用于堕入罪过层面的情况;然而,如果这种堕落涉及违背信仰根本的事情,比如怀疑、疑惑或伪善,那么要超越这种状态,就需要更新自己的信仰(伊斯兰)。 罪人会遭受恶魔的各种侵害,因为他的罪恶生活会鼓励恶魔以各种苦难袭击他;恶魔通过欺骗、引诱和以其邪恶的耳语挑唆他,直到他沉迷于自己的罪恶行为。他还会遭受人类中恶魔般之人的更多伤害,这些人会在他面前和背后不断诽谤他,而他社会生活中的每个人都会因他卑劣可耻的生活而轻视他。有人曾说:“当我违抗真主时,我在我的妻子和我的牲畜对待我的态度中看到了这一点。”(即便是牲畜,也会改变对罪人的态度,直到他悔罪!)罪人还会受到统治者的惩罚,如果这位统治者是公正的,他就会给予真主所规定的相应法律制裁。罪人被他那支配性的私欲引导,走向自我毁灭的境地,因为他感到不得不服从私欲的邪恶指令;而顺从真主,才是进入真主安全堡垒的途径。 诚然,通过记念安拉、施舍天课、劝善戒恶,人便能免受任何邪恶的念头侵扰。这就像人体的免疫系统,抵抗任何侵入身体的东西。善功与恶行是两种相反的力量,时刻处于冲突之中,因此当善的一面力量增强时,人的抵抗力也随之增强;因为安拉护卫信道者。而信仰既通过言语表现,也通过行为表现。所以,一个人抵抗力的强弱,取决于其信仰的力量。

Allah~ created mankind two categories: He~ made those people who obey Him highly exalted, and made those who disobey Him lowly degraded both in this world and the Hereafter. He ~ also made those people who obey Him the most honoured people, but those who reject His Commandments the most disgraceful people. This is highlighted in the Hadith reported by Abdullah bin 'Amru ~ in which the Prophet ~ said: "I was sent with a sword, before the Hour, until Allah ~ is worshipped Alone, without associating any partners with Him. My provision was made under the shade of my lance, and disgrace was set up on any people who should oppose my command; and whoever copies the manner of a people, is one of them." Whenever a person commits a sin, he/she is cast to a lower level, and he/she would keep on descending until he/she reached the lowest bottom; but whenever he/she does a good deed ( obeying Allah's Commandments, and fulfilling his obligations), he/she would keep on rising until he/she reached the highest grades. During the course of his/her life, a person might experience ups and downs, with regards to the nature of his/her deeds (good or bad), so he/she would be cast according to the domination of one type over the other. However, one should not misunderstand this statement, because there are situations when a person might go down a distance larger than that between the east and the west, because of one single misdeed; therefore, even if he rises one thousand grades up, it would not be sufficient for him; as reported in the Hadith, in which the Prophet ~ said: "A Servant of Allah may utter a word, without thinking whether it is right or wrong; he may fall down into the Fire a distance equal to that between the east and west. " 2 What kind of rising is necessary in such a situation? Falling is inevitable in the life of man, yet there are people whose falling is the result of a state of carelessness, so once they come around, they quickly return to their high level, or to an even higher one, according to the sharpness of their wakefulness. But there are also people whose falling is made intentionally, when committing a sin, whether a minor or major one; therefore, such people need a quick return to a pure and truthful repentance. The scholars have differed regarding the level of a person after one repents from his sin; whether one returns to the level in which one was before committing a sin, by virtue of the fact that repentance wipes away all traces of the sin; or that one does not return to one's previous level, by virtue of the fact that the effect of repentance is in cancelling the punishment due for committing the sin; as for the level that one missed, one would not return to it directly. The scholars have said it is like the example of two men climbing up two never-ending ladders. If one goes down one step, and then carried on rising up, surely the one who kept on ascending would always be above the other. Shaikh Al-Islam gave an acceptable judgment regarding the two groups , saying: "Some may return to his previous grade, but others may not." I say: This is according to the degree of perfection of the repentance, and the feeling of disgrace, submission and fear of Allah, which the sin has caused in the mind of the sinner. These effects may influence the repentant enough to allow him/her to reach a higher level, and even be in a better position, after his repentance, than his/her previous position, before committing the sin. Such a person benefits a great deal after repenting from the sin, as it made him/her acknowledge his/her status, and helped him/her to submit before his/her Master, seeking His Mercy and Forgiveness, in the most humble way possible. Whatever blessings were bestowed upon him/her, he/she would then regard it as being too good for him/her (i.e. he /she is not worthily of receiving such a blessing); and whatever misfortune had occurred to him/her, he/she would see him/herself worthily of that affliction, because he/she would admit that his/her Master had not given him/her a punishment equal to his/her crime. In fact , the punishment he/she deserves could not be carried by the mountains, let alone his/her weak body. Meeting noble people after having committed an immoral or obscene act is very disrespectful but could lead the sinner to a state of shame; so what about having to meet Allah, the Supreme, Owner and Lord of the Heavens and earth? If it were not for the fact that Allah ' s Mercy precedes His Anger, and that His Forgiveness precedes His Punishment, the heavens and earth would have been shaken to pieces because of the sins of His Servants. Allah ~ has said: ( Verily, Allah grasps the heavens and the earth lest they should move away from their places, and if they were to move away from their places, there is not one that could grasp them after Him. Truly, He is Most Forbearing, Oft-Forgiving.) 1 Allah ~ concluded this Verse by mentioning two of His Attributes: The Most Forbearing, and Oft-Forgiving; and we should understand that without His Forbearance and Forgiveness, the heavens and the earth would not have remained in their places. Allah ~ has informed us about the ungrateful and polytheistic ways of some of His Servants: ( Whereby the heavens are almost torn, and the earth is split asunder, and the mountains fall in ruins)2 Allah ~ removed our forbears (Adam and Eve ~ \) from Paradise because of the sin they had committed, in disobeying Him. He ~ cursed Iblis (Satan) and expelled him from the heavens and the earth, and from His Mercy, because of the sin he committed (in not prostrating to Adam). As for us, foolish people, we build up a mountain of sins, and still hope to benefit from the eternal blessings in Paradise, despite being aware of the fact that our forbears were removed from Paradise for a single sin. A repentant person could ascend to a better position than when he/she was before he/she had committed a sin; but in some cases, his/her sin could degrade him/her and weaken his/her determination, and so the healing from his repentance could strengthen him/her enough to regain his previous position. This only applies to the case where there is a descent to a sinful level; however, if this descent is to a matter which violates the basics of his faith, such as suspicion, doubt or hypocrisy, then, in order to rise above this, a renewal of one's faith (Islam) is required. A sinner is subject to all kinds of evil from devils because if his/her sinful life Demons are encouraged to assault a sinner with different kinds of suffering; by deceiving, tempting, and provoking him/her with their devilish whispering, until he/she becomes devoted to his/her sinful activities. He/she would also be subjected to more harm from the devils of mankind, who would keep on slandering him/her in his/her presence and absence, and everyone in his/her social life would look down upon him/her, because of his/her despicable and shameful life. One man once said: "When I disobey Allah, I see it in the conduct of my wife and my animal towards me." (Even animals change their conduct towards a sinner, until he/she repents!) A sinner would also be subjected to the punishment of the ruler, who if he were just, would give the appropriate legal punishment, ordained by Allah ~. A sinner is guided by his/her domineering self to reach a state of self-destruction, because he/she feels compelled to obey its evil instructions; whereas obeying Allah ~ is the way to enter into His Safe Fortress. Indeed, by remembering Allah ~ ' giving Sadaqah, enjoining good and forbidding evil one would be shielded from any evil inspiration. It is like the immune system, resisting any invading the body. Good deeds and misdeeds are two opposites in constant conflict, so whenever the good side increases in power, one's resistance becomes stronger; for Allah ~ defends those who believe; and belief (faith) is expressed in both words and actions. Therefore, the degree of one's resistance is given according to the power of one's faith.