Authentic hadith articleHasten to deeds before being overtaken by tribulations that are like patches of the darkest night;
AuthenticNarrated by MuslimHadeethEnc #3138
Arabic hadith textعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رضي الله عنه أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ:
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رضي الله عنه أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: «بَادِرُوا بِالْأَعْمَالِ فِتَنًا كَقِطَعِ اللَّيْلِ الْمُظْلِمِ، يُصْبِحُ الرَّجُلُ مُؤْمِنًا وَيُمْسِي كَافِرًا، أَوْ يُمْسِي مُؤْمِنًا وَيُصْبِحُ كَافِرًا، يَبِيعُ دِينَهُ بِعَرَضٍ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا».
English translationAbu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Hasten to deeds before being overtaken by tribulations that are like patches of the darkest night; a man would be a believer in the morning and become a disbeliever in the evening, or he would be a believer in the evening and become a disbeliever in the morning. He sells his religion for a worldly gain."
ExplanationExplanation of the hadith
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) is urging the believer to hasten to good deeds and perform them frequently before they become difficult and he gets preoccupied with tribulations and suspicious matters that would prevent him and turn him away from offering good deeds. During such tribulations, which are as dark as the night, the truth and falsehood are mixed up, and it becomes hard for people to distinguish between them. Their severity causes one to wander blindly to the extent that he would be a believer in the morning and become a disbeliever in the evening, or he would be a believer in the evening and become a disbeliever in the morning, abandoning his religion for the sake of a transient worldly gain.