in the airplane should be beside a group of carefree youngmen whose
loud laughter and voices were too much, and the air was filled with
cloudsof smoke from their cigarettes. By the wisdom of Allaah, the
plane was completely full and I could not change my seat.
I tried to escape from the problem by sleeping,but it was impossible�
When I got fed up of their noise, I took out my Mus-haf (copy of the
Qur�aan), and started to read what I could of the Qur�aan in a soft
voice. Soon after that these young men started to quieten down. Some
of them started to read newspapers, and some of them fell asleep.
Suddenly one of them said in a loud voice, even though he was sitting
right next to me, �Enough! Enough!�
I thought that I had disturbed him because my voice was too loud, so I
apologized to him and carried on reading in a whisper that only I
could hear. I saw him holding his head in his hands, then fidgeting in
his seat, moving a lot. Then he raised his head and said to me
angrily, �Please, stop it, I can�t stand it!!�
Then he got up from his seat and went away for a while, then he came
back, greeted me with salaams, and apologized.He fell silent, and I
did not know what was going on. But after a while he turned to me with
his eyes full of tearsand said to me in a whisper, �For three years or
more I have not put my forehead on the ground, and I have not read
even one aayah!
For a whole month I have been on this trip, and there is no evil
action that I did not indulge in. Then I saw you reading Qur�aan, and
my world turned black and my heart was filled with despair. I felt as
if someone was strangling me� I felt every aayah that you read coming
down on my body like a whip .
I said to myself, for how long will this negligence go on? Where will
this path lead you? What willhappen after all this foolish play? Then
I wentto the washroom, do you know why?
I had the strong urge to weep, and I could not find anywhere else to
hide from the people�s sight!�
I spoke to him in generalterms about tawbah (repentance) and turning
back to Allaah, then he fell silent.
When the plane landed, he stopped me, and it seemed that he wanted to
keep away from his companions. He asked me, with a serious expression
on his face, �Do you think that Allaahwill accept my repentance?� I
said, �If you are sincere and serious in your repentance, then Allaah
will forgive all your sins.�
He said, �But I have doneterrible things, very terrible.�
I said, �Have you not heard what Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
�Say: O �Ibaadi (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves
(by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of
Allaah, verily, Allaah forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft Forgiving,
Most Merciful�[al-Zumar 39:53]?�
I saw him smiling with joy, with his eyes filled with tears, then he
bade me farewell and left. Subhaan Allaah al-�Azeem!
No matter how great a man's evil and sin, in his heart there is a seed
of goodness. If only we canreach it and make it grow, it will bear
fruit, in sha Allaah.
This seed of goodness is always fighting in man's heart, even when it
is covered by layers of whims and desires. When Allaah wills good for
His slave, He causes the light of guidance to shine in his heart and
guides him to the path of those who are guided. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
�And whomsoever Allaahwills to guide, He opens his breast to Islam;
and whomsoever He wills to send astray, He makes his breast closed and
constricted, as if he is climbing up to the sky� [al-An�aam 6:125]
Ahmad ibn �Abd al-Rahmaan al-Swiyaan
From al-Bayaan magazine, issue # 152, Rabee� al-Aakhir 1421, pp. 66-67
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