[Explanation]

The author—may Allah have mercy on him—then includes, among the narrations that promise glad tidings and congratulation for goodness, the hadith of ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ—may Allah be pleased with him—and the momentous account it contains. Some of his companions visited him while he lay in the throes of death; he wept profusely and turned his face toward the wall, aware that he was about to depart this world. His son said to him, “Father, why do you weep when the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, has already given you the good news of Paradise?”

He replied, “My son, I have passed through three stages.” The word aṭbāq (stages) refers to conditions or states; Allah the Exalted says, “You will surely progress from stage to stage” (Qur’an 84:19), meaning one state after another. ʿAmr then explained those three stages: First, he used to detest the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, with an intense hatred; there was no one on earth he despised more, and he would have wished for nothing more than to gain power over him so he could kill him. That, he said, was the height of unbelief. Then Allah placed Islam in his heart. He went to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and said, “Messenger of Allah, extend your hand so that I may pledge allegiance to you upon Islam.” The Prophet—whose character was the finest—extended his hand, but ʿAmr withdrew his own, not out of arrogance but to confirm something he wished to stipulate. The Prophet asked, “What is the matter?” He replied, “Messenger of Allah, I wish to make a condition regarding my acceptance of Islam.” The Prophet said, “What condition?” He answered, “That I be forgiven.”