that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) wrote to Heraclius: “But if you turn away, you will bear the sin of the arīsiyyīn.”

He thus explained that, since Heraclius was the leader whom they followed in their religion, he would bear the sin of the arīsiyyīn—that is, his followers. Although it has been said that this word originally denoted farmers and tillers, like the term tā’ in Turkish, its meaning is extended beyond that. It is well known that if he turned away from following the Messenger, he would bear sins equivalent to theirs, without their sins being diminished in the least, as the other texts of the Quran and Sunnah indicate. Another example is the saying of Allah Most High:

“Your God is One God. As for those who do not believe in the Hereafter, their hearts are in denial, and they are arrogant. Without doubt, Allah knows what they conceal and what they reveal. He certainly does not love the arrogant. When they are asked, ‘What has your Lord sent down?’ they say, ‘Tales of the ancients.’ Thus they will bear their burdens in full on the Day of Resurrection, and some of the burdens of those whom they mislead without knowledge.”

His words, “and some of the burdens of those whom they mislead,” refer to the burdens arising from the followers’ misguidance. These arise both from the one giving the command and from the one who obeys it: the powers of both contribute to bringing about that misguidance. Thus each bears a share of it. Yet each of these two shares is equivalent to the full burden of sin borne by one who commits the deed, as the other texts indicate, such as his saying: