In Sahih Muslim, Jābir ibn Abd Allah, may Allah be pleased with him and his father, reported that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, visited Umm al-Sā’ib—or Umm al-Musayyib, may Allah be pleased with her—and said, “What is the matter with you, Umm al-Sā’ib—or Umm al-Musayyib—that you are shivering (that is, trembling)?” She replied, “It is fever; may Allah not bless it.” He said, “Do not curse fever, for it removes the sins of the children of Adam just as a forge removes dross from iron.”1

Al-Bukhārī narrated in al-Adab al-Mufrad from Sa‘īd ibn Wahb, who said: “I was with Salmān when he visited a sick man in Kinda. When he entered upon him, he said: ‘Rejoice, for Allah makes the believer’s illness an expiation for him and an opportunity to repent. The illness of an evildoer, however, is like a camel whose owners tether it and then release it, while it knows neither why it was tethered nor why it was released.’”2

Thus, he gave him glad tidings and reminded him that all the afflictions that befall a believer’s body expiate his sins. It is related in the two Sahih collections from Abū Hurayra, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “No weariness, illness, anxiety, sorrow, harm, or distress befalls a Muslim—not even a thorn that pricks him—without Allah expiating some of his sins thereby.”3

His words, “and an opportunity to repent,” mean that during his illness he is able to recall his sins and recognize his errors and shortcomings in a way that is not possible while he enjoys health and well-being. His illness then becomes a cause for him to reproach himself for his shortcomings and an impetus to turn away from wrongdoing and seek Allah’s pleasure. This applies to the believer. As for the evildoer, when he falls ill, his condition is like that of a camel whose owners tethered it with a hobble and then released it: it knows neither why it was tethered nor why it was released. Thus he is