163 — The Eighth ḥadīth: Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “My example and yours is that of a man who kindled a fire. Grasshoppers and moths began to fall into it, and he kept driving them away. I, meanwhile, am seizing you by your waist-bands to keep you from the Fire, but you keep slipping out of my hand.” Muslim related it.

(al-janādhib): insects resembling locusts; and al-farāsh: the familiar moths that plunge into fires. (al-ḥujaz) is the plural of ḥujzah, the fastening point of a waist-wrapper or trousers.

[Explanation]
The author—may Allah have mercy on him—quotes, on the authority of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet ﷺ said, “My likeness and yours is that of a man who kindled a fire….” With this parable the Prophet ﷺ wanted to clarify his relationship with his ummah: it is like a man out in the wilderness who lights a fire, whereupon grasshoppers and moths begin to tumble into it. Al-janādhib are a kind of locust, while al-farāsh are well-known moths. They fall into the flame because such is the habit of moths, grasshoppers, and other small insects—whenever someone lights a fire in the open, they gather around the light. He then said, “and I am seizing you by your waist-bands,” meaning that he is holding on to us to prevent us from falling into the Fire, yet we slip away from his grasp.

This ḥadīth shows the Prophet’s ﷺ intense concern—may Allah reward him abundantly—for protecting his community from the Fire. He grasps their waist-bands and pulls them back so that they do not plunge into it, yet we still wriggle free. We therefore ask Allah to treat us with His pardon. A person must submit to the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ and comply with it, for