Ḥaywah of holding the doctrine of qadarism.
One day Bilal said in his sermon:
“Many a jubilant person is in fact the loser, and many a loser (1) is altogether unaware. Woe, then, to him upon whom woe is decreed while he does not realize it—eating, drinking, laughing—yet, in Allah’s judgment, numbered among the people of the Fire. Alas for you, O body! Weep, and let the mourners weep over you for endless ages.”
Ibn ʿAsākir has preserved a fine selection of his eloquent exhortations. Among them are the following:
“By Allah, it is sin enough that Allah makes us renounce this world while we still desire it: your ‘ascetic’ is eager for it, your scholar is ignorant, and your diligent worshipper is negligent.
“A brother who, whenever he meets you, reminds you of your standing with Allah and points out a fault in you is dearer to you, and better for you, than a brother who, whenever he meets you, places a dinar in your hand.
“Do not be a friend of Allah in public and His enemy in private; [nor an enemy of Satan, the lower self, and passions in public while their friend in private] (2). Do not be two-faced and two-tongued, displaying to people that you fear Allah so that they may praise you while your heart is corrupt.
“O people, you were not created for annihilation; you were created for permanence. You merely move from one abode to another: from loins to wombs, from wombs to this world, from this world to the graves, from the graves to the Assembly, and from the Assembly to either Paradise or Hell.
“Servants of the All-Merciful, you toil in brief days for very long days, in a passing dwelling for an enduring one, in a house of grief and hardship for a house of bliss and everlasting life. Whoever does not act with certainty should not weary himself. Servants of the All-Merciful, even if your past sins were forgiven, what lies ahead would still keep you occupied; if you practiced what you already know, you would truly be servants of Allah.
“Servants of the All-Merciful, what He has assigned to you you are neglecting, and what Allah has guaranteed for you you are chasing! This is not how Allah describes His servants of true certainty: intelligent about this world, yet simpletons about the Hereafter; blind to what you were created for, yet sharp-sighted regarding worldly affairs!
“Just as you hope for Allah’s mercy because of the obedience you render Him, so fear His punishment because of the sins you commit against Him.
“Servants of the All-Merciful, has anyone come to inform you that any of your deeds has been accepted, or that any of your sins has been forgiven? ‘Did you think that We created you in vain and that to Us you would not be returned?’ (Al-Muʾminūn 23:115)
“By Allah, were the reward hastened for you in this world, you would deem the obligations laid upon you trifling. Do you seek to obey Allah for the sake of hastening a dwelling of worry, yet you have no desire and vie not for a Garden whose fruit is everlasting and whose shade endures, whose breadth is that of the heavens and the earth? ‘Such is the outcome for those who are mindful of Allah, whereas the outcome for the disbelievers is the Fire.’ (Ar-Raʿd 13:35)
“Remembrance (dhikr) is of two kinds: remembering Allah with the tongue is good and beautiful, but remembering Allah with respect to what He has made lawful and unlawful is better. Servants of…"