The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“Dust encountered in Allah’s cause and the smoke of Hell will never come together on a servant’s face.”

He also said:

“Whoever’s feet become dusty in Allah’s cause, Allah will forbid the Fire to touch them.”

This concerns merely the dust that reaches one’s face and feet. What, then, of greater hardships, such as snow, cold, and mud? For this reason, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, condemned the hypocrites who make excuses on account of obstacles such as heat and cold. He, Glorified and Exalted, said:

“Those who were left behind rejoiced at staying behind the Messenger of Allah. They were unwilling to strive with their wealth and their lives in Allah’s cause, and said, ‘Do not go forth in the heat.’ Say, ‘The Fire of Hell is fiercer in heat’—if only they understood.”

Likewise, those who say, “Do not go forth in the cold,” should be told, “The Fire of Hell is more intensely cold.” For al-Bukhārī and Muslim both narrated in their Sahīh collections that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“The Fire complained to its Lord, saying, ‘My Lord, parts of me have consumed other parts.’ So He permitted it two breaths: one in winter and one in summer. Thus, the most intense heat and cold you experience comes from the bitter cold of Hell.”

By patiently enduring heat and cold in Allah’s cause, the believer wards off the heat and cold of Hell. The hypocrite, however, flees the heat and cold of this world, only to fall into the heat and bitter cold of Hell.

Know—may Allah set you right—that victory belongs to the believers, that the final outcome belongs to the God-fearing, and that Allah is with those who fear Him and those who do good. These people are subdued and crushed. Allah, Glorified and Exalted, supports us against them and takes vengeance on them for us. There is no power and no strength except through Allah, the Most High, the Almighty. So rejoice in Allah Most High’s help and in the good