Narrate to them exactly the tale of the two sons of Adam. When each of them offered a sacrifice (to God), that of one was accepted, and that of the other was not. Said (the one): "I will murder you," and the other replied: "God only accepts from those who are upright and preserve themselves from evil.
And recite to them the true tale of the two sons of Adam; when both of them offered a sacrifice each – hence the sacrifice of one was accepted and not accepted from the other; he (the other) said, “I swear I will kill you”; he answered, “Allah accepts only from the pious.”
And recite thou to them the story of the two sons of Adam truthfully, when they offered a sacrifice, and it was accepted of one of them, and not accepted of the other. 'I will surely slay thee,' said one. 'God accepts only of the godfearing,' said the other.
AND CONVEY unto them, setting forth the truth, the story of the two sons of Adam -how each offered a sacrifice, and it was accepted from one of them whereas it was not accepted from the other. [And Cain] said: "I will surely slay thee!" [Abel] replied: "Behold, God accepts only from those who are conscious of Him.
And rehearse thou unto them with truth the tale of the two sons of Adam, when the twain offered an offering, and it was accepted from one of them, and was not accepted from the other; he said: surely I will slay thee. Said the other: Allah accepteth only from the God- fearing.
And (O Muhammad SAW) recite to them (the Jews) the story of the two sons of Adam [Habil (Abel) and Qabil (Cain)] in truth; when each offered a sacrifice (to Allah), it was accepted from the one but not from the other. The latter said to the former: "I will surely kill you." The former said: "Verily, Allah accepts only from those who are Al-Muttaqun (the pious - see V. 2:2)."
And relate to them the true story of Adam's two sons: when they offered an offering, and it was accepted from one of them, but it was not accepted from the other. He Said, “I will kill you.” He Said, “God accepts only from the righteous.”
Narrate to them in all truth the story of the two sons of Adam. When they made an offering and it was accepted from one of them and was not accepted from the other, the latter said: 'I will surely kill you.' Thereupon the former said: 'Allah accepts offerings only from the God-fearing.
And recite to them the story of the two sons of Adam in truth; when each offered a sacrifice, it was accepted from the one but not from the other. The latter said to the former: "I will surely, kill you." The former said: "Verily, Allah accepts only from those who have Taqwa.
But recite unto them with truth the tale of the two sons of Adam, how they offered each a sacrifice, and it was accepted from the one of them and it was not accepted from the other. (The one) said: I will surely kill thee. (The other) answered: Allah accepteth only from those who ward off (evil).
Relate to them truly the account of Adam’s two sons. When the two of them offered an offering, it was accepted from one of them and not accepted from the other. [One of them] said, ‘Surely I will kill you.’ [The other one] said, ‘Allah accepts only from the Godwary.
Recite to them in all truth the news of Adam's two sons; how they each made an offering, and how the offering of the one was accepted while that of the other was not. He said: 'I will surely kill you' (The other) said: 'Allah accepts only from the righteous.
And recite to them the story of Adam's two sons, in truth, when they both offered a sacrifice [to Allah], and it was accepted from one of them but was not accepted from the other. Said [the latter], "I will surely kill you." Said [the former], "Indeed, Allah only accepts from the righteous [who fear Him].
(Muhammad) tell them the true story of the two sons of Adam (Abel and Cain). Each one of them offered a sacrifice. God accepted the sacrifice of one of them (Abel) but not that of the other (Cain) who then said to his brother, "I shall certainly kill you." (Abel) replied, "God only accepts the offerings of the pious ones.
And relate to them the story of the two sons of Adam with truth when they both offered an offering, but it was accepted from one of them and was not accepted from the other. He said: I will most certainly slay you. (The other) said: Allah only accepts from those who guard (against evil).
Wa<b>o</b>tlu AAalayhim nabaa ibnay <u>a</u>dama bi<b>a</b>l<u>h</u>aqqi i<u>th</u> qarrab<u>a</u> qurb<u>a</u>nan fatuqubbila min a<u>h</u>adihim<u>a</u> walam yutaqabbal mina al<u>a</u>khari q<u>a</u>la laaqtulannaka q<u>a</u>la innam<u>a</u> yataqabbalu All<u>a</u>hu mina almuttaqeen<b>a</b>
Relate to them, the true story of the two sons of Adam. When they both presented an offering, it was accepted from one of them and not from the other. The latter said, "I shall kill you!" The former said, "God accepts [things] only from the righteous.
Recite to them the truth of the story of the two sons of Adam. Behold! they each presented a sacrifice (to Allah): It was accepted from one, but not from the other. Said the latter: "Be sure I will slay thee." "Surely," said the former, "Allah doth accept of the sacrifice of those who are righteous.
وَٱتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ٱبْنَىْ ءَادَمَ بِٱلْحَقِّ إِذْ قَرَّبَا قُرْبَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ ٱلْءَاخَرِ قَالَ لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ قَالَ إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ ٱللَّهُ مِنَ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ
Relate with the truth O Messenger, to these Jews who are jealous and who do wrong, the incident of the two sons of Adam, Cain and Abel, When they both offered a sacrifice to gain closeness to Allah, Allah accepted the sacrifice offered by Abel because he was mindful of Him and did not accept the offering of Cain because he was not mindful of Allah. Cain was unhappy about the fact that Abel’s sacrifice was accepted and jealously said, ‘I will kill you, O Abel!’ Abel replied, ‘Allah only accepts the offering of the one who is mindful of Him by fulfilling His instructions and avoiding His prohibitions’.
Relate with the truth O Messenger, to these Jews who are jealous and who do wrong, the incident of the two sons of Adam, Cain and Abel, When they both offered a sacrifice to gain closeness to Allah, Allah accepted the sacrifice offered by Abel because he was mindful of Him and did not accept the offering of Cain because he was not mindful of Allah. Cain was unhappy about the fact that Abel’s sacrifice was accepted and jealously said, ‘I will kill you, O Abel!’ Abel replied, ‘Allah only accepts the offering of the one who is mindful of Him by fulfilling His instructions and avoiding His prohibitions’.
<p>Commentary</p><p>The Story of Habil (Abel) and Qabil (Cain)</p><p>In these verses, Allah Ta` a1a has instructed the Holy Prophet ﷺ that he should relate the story of the two sons of Adam truthfully to the people of the Book, or to the whole Ummah.</p><p>People who are blessed with insight into the Holy Qur'an know that it is no book of folklore, fiction or history where the purpose is to relate an event from the beginning to the end. But, events of the past and accounts of earlier peoples carry many lessons and wise counsels within their fold. That is the real essence of history. Then, in them, there are such conditions and circumstances as form the basis of different religious injunctions. In view of these very beneficial considerations, the Qur'an employs a methodology of its own throughout the text. It would, when the occasion warrants, narrate an event. Most of-ten, it would not narrate the whole event in one sequence and at one place. In fact, preference is given to narrating a particular segment from it which bears some element of purpose and is relevant at the given place.</p><p>This story of the two sons of Adam (علیہ السلام) is being narrated here in the same style. It has many lessons and good counsels for the present and future generations; and under them, mention has been made of many religious injunctions.</p><p>We shall proceed by explaining the words used in the text of the Qur'an following which you will have an idea of the main story, and after that we shall be talking about injunctions and rulings contained therein.</p><p>In the previous verses, mentioned there was the command of Jihad given to the Bani Isra'il and how cowardly and evasive they turned out to be in response. Set in contrast, the present story condemns unjust killing and the destruction it brings in its wake. The purpose is to bring the people to adhere to moderation and balance in this matter, for the way it is an error to cringe and back out from fighting and killing to uphold the truth and put an end to falsehood, similarly, starting to kill and fight unjustly amounts to a stock destruction of one's material and spiritual life both in the present world and in the Hereafter.</p><p>As for the expression: ابْنَيْ آدَمَ (ibniy Adama: the two sons of Adam) appearing in the first verse (27), it can be said that, for that matter, every human being, man and woman, is from the progeny of Adam (علیہ السلام) and everyone can be identified as being from among the children of Adam. But, according to the judgment of the majority of authentic scholars of Tafsir, the expression: ابْنَيْ آدَمَ at this place means the two real sons of Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) that is, Habil and Qabil. It was to relate their story that it was said: وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَيْ آدَمَ بِالْحَقِّ (and recite to them the story of the two sons of Adam truthfully).</p><p>While Reporting Historical Accounts, Caution and Truth are Mandatory</p><p>Here, by adding the word: بِالْحَقِّ (bil-haqq: truthfully), stress has been placed on an important principle to be observed while reporting historical narratives. Great caution is mandatory in this matter. These narratives should have nothing false in them, nothing contrary to the truth, nothing dubious or deceptive, nor should there be any change, increase or decrease, of any kind, in the narration of the original event. (Ibn Kathir)</p><p>This is not the only place where the Holy Qur'an has identified this principle. There are other places too where similar instructions appear that it be observed. In Surah 'Al ` Imran, it was said: إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَهُوَ الْقَصَصُ الْحَقُّ (This is indeed the true narration - 3:62). In Surah Al-Kahf, it was said: نَّحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ نَبَأَهُم بِالْحَقِّ (We narrate to you their story with truth - 18:13). An d in Surah Maryam, it was said: ذَٰلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْ‌يَمَ ۚ قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ (That was ` Isa son of Maryam - a Word of Truth ... -19:34). At all these places, by including the key word of Al-Haqq or The Truth with historical narrations, the importance of observing truth in reporting events has been made mandatory. The large number of disorders in this world generated through reporting of events usually issue forth from lack of caution in handling it as it should be handled. A little change of word or mode could distort the reality of the event. The religious codes and laws of past communities were lost through this trap door of negligence and lack of caution leaving their religious books to become collections of stories devoid of reliable authority. So, by adding a single word: بِالْحَقِّ (truthfully) at this place in the verse, a clear signal was given towards this important objective.</p><p>In addition to what has been said above, through this very word, the addressees of the Holy Qur'an are also being chastened and guided to the fact that their noble prophet, on him be the peace and blessing of Allah, who is a total Ummiyy (untaught by any human being), yet he is describing the events which took place thousands of years ago, absolutely true and correct. When so, how else could it be explained but that it was divinely revealed to a Divinely ordained prophet?</p><p>After this introduction, the event relating to these two sons of Adam	was put in the following words by the Holy Qur'an: اِذْ قَرَّ‌بَا قُرْ‌بَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ الْآخَرِ‌ that is, both of them offered their sacrifices for Allah Ta` ala, but it was accepted from one of them and was not accepted from the other.</p><p>The word: قربان (Qurban ), in terms of Arabic lexical usage, refers to whatever is made the medium of nearness to someone; and in Islamic legal terminology, it means the Dhabihah or sacrifice which is offered to seek nearness to Allah Ta` ala.</p><p>The event of offering this sacrifice which has been reported on the basis of sound and strong chains of authorities and which has been declared by Commentator Ibn Kathir as the unanimously agreed upon position of all earlier and later ` Ulama is given below.</p><p>When Sayyidna Adam and Hawwa' (علیہما السلام) came to live in the world and started having children, it so happened that they had twins from every pregnancy, one of the two being a boy, while the other, a girl. That was a time when, among the children of Adam (علیہ السلام) there was no one other than brothers and sisters - and brothers and sisters cannot be married to one another. So, Allah Jalla Sha'nuhu, in terms of the need of the time, had promulgated a special provision in the religious law given to Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) that, as for a boy and girl born out of one pregnancy, they shall be regarded as real brothers and sisters among themselves and marriage between them shall be considered forbidden. But, for a boy born in the second pregnancy, a girl born in the first one shall not be legally taken as a real sister and marriage between them would be permissible.</p><p>But, what happened was that the girl born with the first boy, Qabil, was beautiful while the girl born with the second boy, Habil, was ugly. When came the time of marriage, the ugly girl born with Habil fell to the lot of Qabil according to rules. This enraged Qabil. He turned hostile to Habil and started resisting that the girl born with him should be the one given in marriage to him. Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) ، in view of the legal rule of procedure, did not accept the demand. However, to remove the division between Habil and Qabil, he proposed that they should both offer their respective sacrifice for Allah. Whoever. has his sacrifice accepted will be the one to have that girl. The reason is that Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) was certain that the sacrifice to be accepted will be the sacrifice of the one who has the right to marry her, that is, the sacrifice of Habil.</p><p>In those days, an open sign of a sacrifice being accepted was that a fire would come from the sky and eat up the sacrifice; and the sacrifice which was not eaten up by the fire was the sign of its remaining unacceptable.</p><p>Now, the situation was that Habil was the owner of a flock of sheep and goats. He offered the sacrifice of a good spring lamb. Qabil was a farmer. He offered some grains as his sacrifice. As customary with them, a fire did come from the sky and ate up the sacrifice offered by Habil - and the sacrifice offered by Qabil remained lying where it was, untouched. Thereupon, hit by failure and disgrace, Qabil was further enraged. Unable to restrain it, he told his brother openly: لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ (I will kill you).</p><p>Habil did not respond to his angry remark with counter anger on the spot. He rather said something which was peaceful and principled. It even had an element of sympathetic concern for him: لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ (Allah accepts only from the God-fearing) that is, if you had been God-fearing, practicing Taqwa and piety, your sacrifice too would have been accepted. Since you did not do so, the sacrifice was not accepted. Why blame me for it?</p><p>Also mentioned within this statement is the cure for the envy (hasad) of the envier (hasid), that is, when the envier sees that Allah Ta` ala has given someone a particular blessing which has not been given to him, then, he should take his deprivation as a result of his own practical shortcomings and sins and think of repenting from them and correcting his or her behaviour - not that one starts wishing and worrying about ways through which the other person could be made to lose the blessing he has - because this would not bring him any gain, in fact, it will become the cause of some loss to him, for acceptability with Allah depends on Taqwa (fear of Allah). (Mazhari)</p><p>Acceptability of Deeds Depends on Ikhlas (Sincerity) and Taqwa (Fear of Allah)</p><p>There appears in this dialogue between Habil and Qabil a sentence which has the status of an important principle: The acceptability of one's deeds and acts of worship depends on Taqwa. The deed of a person who has no Taqwa in him is not accepted. For this reason, the learned among the righteous elders (salaf) have said that this verse is a shot in the arms of those who are devoted to acts of worship and do deeds in the hope of finding the pleasure of Allah. And this was the reason why Sayyidna ` Amir ibn ` Abdullah was crying at the time of his death. People around him asked: 'As for you, you have been busy doing your ` Ibadat (acts of worship) and good deeds throughout your life, why, then, would you weep?' He said, 'You are saying this and ringing in my ears is this saying of Allah Ta` ala: إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّـهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ (Allah accepts only from the God-fearing). I just do not know if any ` Ibadah of mine will be accepted, or not.'</p><p>Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn Masud ؓ said: 'If I become certain that Allah Ta` ala has accepted some deed of mine, then, I would not surrender this blessing even if the whole world were to turn into solid gold and pass into my possession, in fact, I would take it to be nothing as compared to that blessing.'</p><p>Similarly, said Sayyidna Abu Ad-Darda' 'If it stands settled that one Salah of mine has found acceptance with Allah Ta` ala, then, that is far more than a whole world full of blessings for me.'</p><p>Sayyidna ` Umar ibn ` Abd al-` Aziz, may Allah be pleased with him, gave the following good counsel to a person in a letter he wrote to him.</p><p>"I tell you to hold on to Taqwa without which no deed is accepted; and mercy is not shown to anyone except those who observe Taqwa; and without it there is no Divine reward on anything. There are many who preach it but there are very few who practice it."</p><p>And Sayyidna al-Murtada ؓ said: 'Even the smallest deed done with Taqwa is not small. And how a deed which has been accepted can be called small? (Ibn Kathir)</p>
CommentaryThe Story of Habil (Abel) and Qabil (Cain)In these verses, Allah Ta` a1a has instructed the Holy Prophet ﷺ that he should relate the story of the two sons of Adam truthfully to the people of the Book, or to the whole Ummah.People who are blessed with insight into the Holy Qur'an know that it is no book of folklore, fiction or history where the purpose is to relate an event from the beginning to the end. But, events of the past and accounts of earlier peoples carry many lessons and wise counsels within their fold. That is the real essence of history. Then, in them, there are such conditions and circumstances as form the basis of different religious injunctions. In view of these very beneficial considerations, the Qur'an employs a methodology of its own throughout the text. It would, when the occasion warrants, narrate an event. Most of-ten, it would not narrate the whole event in one sequence and at one place. In fact, preference is given to narrating a particular segment from it which bears some element of purpose and is relevant at the given place.This story of the two sons of Adam (علیہ السلام) is being narrated here in the same style. It has many lessons and good counsels for the present and future generations; and under them, mention has been made of many religious injunctions.We shall proceed by explaining the words used in the text of the Qur'an following which you will have an idea of the main story, and after that we shall be talking about injunctions and rulings contained therein.In the previous verses, mentioned there was the command of Jihad given to the Bani Isra'il and how cowardly and evasive they turned out to be in response. Set in contrast, the present story condemns unjust killing and the destruction it brings in its wake. The purpose is to bring the people to adhere to moderation and balance in this matter, for the way it is an error to cringe and back out from fighting and killing to uphold the truth and put an end to falsehood, similarly, starting to kill and fight unjustly amounts to a stock destruction of one's material and spiritual life both in the present world and in the Hereafter.As for the expression: ابْنَيْ آدَمَ (ibniy Adama: the two sons of Adam) appearing in the first verse (27), it can be said that, for that matter, every human being, man and woman, is from the progeny of Adam (علیہ السلام) and everyone can be identified as being from among the children of Adam. But, according to the judgment of the majority of authentic scholars of Tafsir, the expression: ابْنَيْ آدَمَ at this place means the two real sons of Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) that is, Habil and Qabil. It was to relate their story that it was said: وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَيْ آدَمَ بِالْحَقِّ (and recite to them the story of the two sons of Adam truthfully).While Reporting Historical Accounts, Caution and Truth are MandatoryHere, by adding the word: بِالْحَقِّ (bil-haqq: truthfully), stress has been placed on an important principle to be observed while reporting historical narratives. Great caution is mandatory in this matter. These narratives should have nothing false in them, nothing contrary to the truth, nothing dubious or deceptive, nor should there be any change, increase or decrease, of any kind, in the narration of the original event. (Ibn Kathir)This is not the only place where the Holy Qur'an has identified this principle. There are other places too where similar instructions appear that it be observed. In Surah 'Al ` Imran, it was said: إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَهُوَ الْقَصَصُ الْحَقُّ (This is indeed the true narration - 3:62). In Surah Al-Kahf, it was said: نَّحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ نَبَأَهُم بِالْحَقِّ (We narrate to you their story with truth - 18:13). An d in Surah Maryam, it was said: ذَٰلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْ‌يَمَ ۚ قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ (That was ` Isa son of Maryam - a Word of Truth ... -19:34). At all these places, by including the key word of Al-Haqq or The Truth with historical narrations, the importance of observing truth in reporting events has been made mandatory. The large number of disorders in this world generated through reporting of events usually issue forth from lack of caution in handling it as it should be handled. A little change of word or mode could distort the reality of the event. The religious codes and laws of past communities were lost through this trap door of negligence and lack of caution leaving their religious books to become collections of stories devoid of reliable authority. So, by adding a single word: بِالْحَقِّ (truthfully) at this place in the verse, a clear signal was given towards this important objective.In addition to what has been said above, through this very word, the addressees of the Holy Qur'an are also being chastened and guided to the fact that their noble prophet, on him be the peace and blessing of Allah, who is a total Ummiyy (untaught by any human being), yet he is describing the events which took place thousands of years ago, absolutely true and correct. When so, how else could it be explained but that it was divinely revealed to a Divinely ordained prophet?After this introduction, the event relating to these two sons of Adam	was put in the following words by the Holy Qur'an: اِذْ قَرَّ‌بَا قُرْ‌بَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ الْآخَرِ‌ that is, both of them offered their sacrifices for Allah Ta` ala, but it was accepted from one of them and was not accepted from the other.The word: قربان (Qurban ), in terms of Arabic lexical usage, refers to whatever is made the medium of nearness to someone; and in Islamic legal terminology, it means the Dhabihah or sacrifice which is offered to seek nearness to Allah Ta` ala.The event of offering this sacrifice which has been reported on the basis of sound and strong chains of authorities and which has been declared by Commentator Ibn Kathir as the unanimously agreed upon position of all earlier and later ` Ulama is given below.When Sayyidna Adam and Hawwa' (علیہما السلام) came to live in the world and started having children, it so happened that they had twins from every pregnancy, one of the two being a boy, while the other, a girl. That was a time when, among the children of Adam (علیہ السلام) there was no one other than brothers and sisters - and brothers and sisters cannot be married to one another. So, Allah Jalla Sha'nuhu, in terms of the need of the time, had promulgated a special provision in the religious law given to Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) that, as for a boy and girl born out of one pregnancy, they shall be regarded as real brothers and sisters among themselves and marriage between them shall be considered forbidden. But, for a boy born in the second pregnancy, a girl born in the first one shall not be legally taken as a real sister and marriage between them would be permissible.But, what happened was that the girl born with the first boy, Qabil, was beautiful while the girl born with the second boy, Habil, was ugly. When came the time of marriage, the ugly girl born with Habil fell to the lot of Qabil according to rules. This enraged Qabil. He turned hostile to Habil and started resisting that the girl born with him should be the one given in marriage to him. Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) ، in view of the legal rule of procedure, did not accept the demand. However, to remove the division between Habil and Qabil, he proposed that they should both offer their respective sacrifice for Allah. Whoever. has his sacrifice accepted will be the one to have that girl. The reason is that Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) was certain that the sacrifice to be accepted will be the sacrifice of the one who has the right to marry her, that is, the sacrifice of Habil.In those days, an open sign of a sacrifice being accepted was that a fire would come from the sky and eat up the sacrifice; and the sacrifice which was not eaten up by the fire was the sign of its remaining unacceptable.Now, the situation was that Habil was the owner of a flock of sheep and goats. He offered the sacrifice of a good spring lamb. Qabil was a farmer. He offered some grains as his sacrifice. As customary with them, a fire did come from the sky and ate up the sacrifice offered by Habil - and the sacrifice offered by Qabil remained lying where it was, untouched. Thereupon, hit by failure and disgrace, Qabil was further enraged. Unable to restrain it, he told his brother openly: لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ (I will kill you).Habil did not respond to his angry remark with counter anger on the spot. He rather said something which was peaceful and principled. It even had an element of sympathetic concern for him: لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ (Allah accepts only from the God-fearing) that is, if you had been God-fearing, practicing Taqwa and piety, your sacrifice too would have been accepted. Since you did not do so, the sacrifice was not accepted. Why blame me for it?Also mentioned within this statement is the cure for the envy (hasad) of the envier (hasid), that is, when the envier sees that Allah Ta` ala has given someone a particular blessing which has not been given to him, then, he should take his deprivation as a result of his own practical shortcomings and sins and think of repenting from them and correcting his or her behaviour - not that one starts wishing and worrying about ways through which the other person could be made to lose the blessing he has - because this would not bring him any gain, in fact, it will become the cause of some loss to him, for acceptability with Allah depends on Taqwa (fear of Allah). (Mazhari)Acceptability of Deeds Depends on Ikhlas (Sincerity) and Taqwa (Fear of Allah)There appears in this dialogue between Habil and Qabil a sentence which has the status of an important principle: The acceptability of one's deeds and acts of worship depends on Taqwa. The deed of a person who has no Taqwa in him is not accepted. For this reason, the learned among the righteous elders (salaf) have said that this verse is a shot in the arms of those who are devoted to acts of worship and do deeds in the hope of finding the pleasure of Allah. And this was the reason why Sayyidna ` Amir ibn ` Abdullah was crying at the time of his death. People around him asked: 'As for you, you have been busy doing your ` Ibadat (acts of worship) and good deeds throughout your life, why, then, would you weep?' He said, 'You are saying this and ringing in my ears is this saying of Allah Ta` ala: إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّـهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ (Allah accepts only from the God-fearing). I just do not know if any ` Ibadah of mine will be accepted, or not.'Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn Masud ؓ said: 'If I become certain that Allah Ta` ala has accepted some deed of mine, then, I would not surrender this blessing even if the whole world were to turn into solid gold and pass into my possession, in fact, I would take it to be nothing as compared to that blessing.'Similarly, said Sayyidna Abu Ad-Darda' 'If it stands settled that one Salah of mine has found acceptance with Allah Ta` ala, then, that is far more than a whole world full of blessings for me.'Sayyidna ` Umar ibn ` Abd al-` Aziz, may Allah be pleased with him, gave the following good counsel to a person in a letter he wrote to him."I tell you to hold on to Taqwa without which no deed is accepted; and mercy is not shown to anyone except those who observe Taqwa; and without it there is no Divine reward on anything. There are many who preach it but there are very few who practice it."And Sayyidna al-Murtada ؓ said: 'Even the smallest deed done with Taqwa is not small. And how a deed which has been accepted can be called small? (Ibn Kathir)
<h2 class="title">The Story of Habil (Abel) and Qabil (Cain)</h2><p>Allah describes the evil end and consequence of transgression, envy and injustice in the story of the two sons of Adam, Habil and Qabil. One of them fought against the other and killed him out of envy and transgression, because of the bounty that Allah gave his brother and because the sacrifice that he sincerely offered to Allah was accepted. The murdered brother earned forgiveness for his sins and was admitted into Paradise, while the murderer failed and earned a losing deal in both the lives. Allah said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَىْ ءْادَمَ بِالْحَقِّ</div><p>(And recite to them the story of the two sons of Adam in truth;) meaning, tell these envious, unjust people, the brothers of swine and apes from the Jews and their likes among mankind, the story of the two sons of Adam, Habil and Qabil, as many scholars among the Salaf and later generations said. Allah's statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">بِالْحَقِّ</div><p>(in truth;) means, clearly and without ambiguity, alteration, confusion, change, addition or deletion. Allah said in other Ayat,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنَّ هَـذَا لَهُوَ الْقَصَصُ الْحَقُّ</div><p>(Verily, this is the true narrative about the story of `Isa,)</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">نَحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ نبَأَهُم بِالْحَقِّ</div><p>(We narrate unto you their story with truth, ) and,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">ذلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ</div><p>(Such is `Isa, son of Maryam. (It is) a statement of truth.) Several scholars among the Salaf and the later generations said that Allah allowed Adam to marry his daughters to his sons because of the necessity of such action. They also said that in every pregnancy, Adam was given a twin, a male and a female, and he used to give the female of one twin, to the male of the other twin, in marriage. Habil's sister was not beautiful while Qabil's sister was beautiful, resulting in Qabil wanting her for himself, instead of his brother. Adam refused unless they both offer a sacrifice, and he whose sacrifice was accepted, would marry Qabil's sister. Habil's sacrifice was accepted, while Qabil's sacrifice was rejected, and thus what Allah told us about them occurred. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said -- that during the time of Adam -- "The woman was not allowed in marriage for her male twin, but Adam was commanded to marry her to any of her other brothers. In each pregnancy, Adam was given a twin, a male and a female. A beautiful daughter was once born for Adam and another one that was not beautiful. So the twin brother of the ugly daughter said, `Marry your sister to me and I will marry my sister to you.' He said, `No, for I have more right to my sister.' So they both offered a sacrifice. The sacrifice of the one who offered the sheep was accepted while the sacrifice of the other the twin brother of the beautiful daughter, which consisted of some produce, was not accepted. So the latter killed his brother." This story has a better than good chain of narration. The statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ</div><p>("Verily, Allah accepts only from those who have Taqwa.) who fear Allah in their actions. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Abu Ad-Darda' said, "If I become certain that Allah has accepted even one prayer from me, it will be better for me than this life and all that in it. This is because Allah says,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ</div><p>(Verily, Allah accepts only from the those who have Taqwa.) The statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">لَئِن بَسَطتَ إِلَىَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِى مَآ أَنَاْ بِبَاسِطٍ يَدِىَ إِلَيْكَ لاًّقْتُلَكَ إِنِّى أَخَافُ اللَّهَ رَبَّ الْعَـلَمِينَ </div><p>("If you do stretch your hand against me to kill me, I shall never stretch my hand against you to kill you, for I fear Allah; the Lord of all that exists.") Qabil's brother, the pious man whose sacrifice was accepted because of his piety, said to his brother, who threatened to kill him without justification,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">لَئِن بَسَطتَ إِلَىَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِى مَآ أَنَاْ بِبَاسِطٍ يَدِىَ إِلَيْكَ لاًّقْتُلَكَ</div><p>(If you do stretch your hand against me to kill me, I shall never stretch my hand against you to kill you,) I will not commit the same evil act that you threaten to commit, so that I will not earn the same sin as you,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنِّى أَخَافُ اللَّهَ رَبَّ الْعَـلَمِينَ</div><p>(for I fear Allah; the Lord of the all that exists.) and, as a result, I will not commit the error that you threaten to commit. Rather, I will observe patience and endurance. `Abdullah bin `Amr said, "By Allah! Habil was the stronger of the two men. But, fear of Allah restricted his hand." The Prophet said in a Hadith recorded in the Two Sahihs,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«إِذَا تَوَاجَهَ الْمُسْلِمَانِ بِسَيْفَيهِمَا فَالْقَاتِلُ وَالْمَقْتُولُ فِي النَّار»</div><p>(When two Muslims fight (meet) each other with their swords, both the murderer as well as the murdered will go to the Hellfire.) They said, "O Allah's Messenger! It is all right for the murderer, but what about the victim" Allah's Messenger replied,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«إِنَّه كَانَ حَرِيصًا عَلى قَتْلِ صَاحِبِه»</div><p>(He surely had the intention to kill his comrade.) Imam Ahmad recorded that, at the beginning of the calamity that `Uthman suffered from, Sa`d bin Abi Waqqas said, "I bear witness that the Messenger of Allah said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«إِنَّهَا سَتَكُونُ فِتْنَةٌ القَاعِدُ فِيهَا خَيْرٌ مِنَ الْقَائِمِ، وَالْقَائِمُ خَيْرٌ مِنَ الْمَاشِي، وَالْمَاشِي خَيْرٌ مِنَ السَّاعِي»</div><p>(There will be a Fitnah, and he who sits idle during it is better than he who stands up, and he who stands up in it is better than he who walks, and he who walks is better than he who is walking at a fast pace.) When he was asked, `What if someone enters my home and stretched his hand to kill me' He said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«كُنْ كَابْنِ آدَم»</div><p>(Be just like (the pious) son of Adam.)" At-Tirmidhi also recorded it this way, and said, "This Hadith is Hasan, and similar is reported on this subject from Abu Hurayrah, Khabbab bin Al-Aratt, Abu Bakr, Ibn Mas`ud, Abu Waqid and Abu Musa." The Qur'an continues,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ فَتَكُونَ مِنْ أَصْحَـبِ النَّارِ وَذَلِكَ جَزَآءُ الظَّـلِمِينَ </div><p>("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours, then you will be one of the dwellers of the Fire, and that is the recompense of the wrongdoers.") Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak, As-Suddi and Qatadah said that,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ</div><p>("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours...") means, the sin of murdering me, in addition to your previous sins. Ibn Jarir recorded this. Allah's statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَطَوَّعَتْ لَهُ نَفْسُهُ قَتْلَ أَخِيهِ فَقَتَلَهُ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَـسِرِينَ </div><p>(So the soul of the other encouraged him and made fair-seeming to him the murder of his brother; he murdered him and became one of the losers.) means, his conscience encouraged him to kill his brother by making it seem like a sensible thing to do, so he killed him, even after his brother admonished him. Ibn Jarir said, "When he wanted to kill his brother, he started to twist his neck. So Shaytan took an animal and placed its head on a rock, then he took another rock, and similar is reported on this subject from Abu Hurayrah, Khabbab bin Al-Aratt, Abu Bakr, Ibn Mas`ud, Abu Waqid and Abu Musa." The Qur'an continues,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ فَتَكُونَ مِنْ أَصْحَـبِ النَّارِ وَذَلِكَ جَزَآءُ الظَّـلِمِينَ </div><p>("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours, then you will be one of the dwellers of the Fire, and that is the recompense of the wrongdoers.") Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak, As-Suddi and Qatadah said that,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ</div><p>("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours...") means, the sin of murdering me, in addition to your previous sins. Ibn Jarir recorded this. Allah's statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَطَوَّعَتْ لَهُ نَفْسُهُ قَتْلَ أَخِيهِ فَقَتَلَهُ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَـسِرِينَ </div><p>(So the soul of the other encouraged him and made fair-seeming to him the murder of his brother; he murdered him and became one of the losers.) means, his conscience encouraged him to kill his brother by making it seem like a sensible thing to do, so he killed him, even after his brother admonished him. Ibn Jarir said, "When he wanted to kill his brother, he started to twist his neck. So Shaytan took an animal and placed its head on a rock, then he took another rock, and smashed its head with it until he killed it while the son of Adam was looking. So he did the same thing to his brother." Ibn Abi Hatim also recorded this. `Abdullah bin Wahb said that `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said that his father said, "Qabil held Habil by the head to kill him, so Habil laid down for him and Qabil started twisting Habil's head, not knowing how to kill him. Shaytan came to Qabil and said, `Do you want to kill him' He said, `Yes.' Shaytan said, `Take that stone and throw it on his head.' So Qabil took the stone and threw it at his brother's head and smashed his head. Shaytan then went to Hawwa' in a hurry and said to her, `O Hawwa'! Qabil killed Habil.' She asked him, `Woe to you! What does `kill' mean' He said, `He will no longer eat, drink or move.' She said, `And that is death' He said, `Yes it is.' So she started to weep until Adam came to her while she was weeping and said, `What is the matter with you' She did not answer him. He asked her two more times, but she did not answer him. So he said, `You and your daughters will inherit the practice of weeping, while I and my sons are free of it."' Ibn Abi Hatim recorded it. Allah's statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَـسِرِينَ</div><p>(And became one of the losers.) in this life and the Hereafter, and which loss is worse than this Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah bin Mas`ud said that the Messenger of Allah said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«لَا تُقْتَلُ نَفْسٌ ظُلْمًا إِلَّا كَانَ عَلَى ابْنِ آدَمَ الْأَوَّلِ كِفْلٌ مِنْ دَمِهَا،لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ أَوَّلَ مَنْ سَنَّ الْقَتْل»</div><p>(Any soul that is unjustly killed, then the first son of Adam will carry a burden of its shedding, for he was the first to practice the crime of murder.) The Group, with the exception of Abu Dawud, also recorded this Hadith. Ibn Jarir recorded that `Abdullah bin `Amr used to say, "The son of Adam, who killed his brother, will be the most miserable among men. There is no blood shed on earth since he killed his brother, until the Day of Resurrection, but he will carry a burden from it, for he was the first person to establish murder." Allah said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ غُرَاباً يَبْحَثُ فِى الاٌّرْضِ لِيُرِيَهُ كَيْفَ يُوَارِى سَوْءَةَ أَخِيهِ قَالَ يَـوَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِى فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ النَّـدِمِينَ </div><p>(Then Allah sent a crow who scratched the ground to show him how to hide the dead body of his brother. He (the murderer) said, "Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother" Then he became one of those who regretted.) As-Suddi said that the Companions said, "When his brother died, Qabil left him on the bare ground and did not know how to bury him. Allah sent two crows, which fought with each other until one of them killed the other. So it dug a hole and threw sand over the dead corpse (which it placed in the hole). When Qabil saw that, he said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">يَـوَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِى</div><p>("Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother") `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas said, "A crow came to the dead corpse of another crow and threw sand over it, until it hid it in the ground. He who killed his brother said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">يَـوَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِى</div><p>(Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother)" Al-Hasan Al-Basri commented on the statement,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ النَّـدِمِينَ</div><p>(Then he became one of those who regretted.) "Allah made him feel sorrow after the loss that he earned."</p><h2 class="title">The Swift Punishment for Transgression and Cutting the Relations of the Womb</h2><p>A Hadith states that the Prophet said,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">«مَا مِنْ ذَنْبٍ أَجْدَرُ أَنْ يُعَجِّلَ اللهُ عُقُوبَتَهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا مَعَ مَا يَدَّخِرُ لِصَاحِبهِ فِي الْآخِرَةِ مِنَ الْبَغْيِ وَقَطِيعَةِ الرَّحِم»</div><p>(There is no sin that is more worthy of Allah hastening its punishment in this life, in addition to what He has in store for its offender in the Hereafter, more than transgression and cutting the relations of the womb.) The act of Qabil included both of these. We are Allah's and to Him is our return.</p>
The Story of Habil (Abel) and Qabil (Cain)Allah describes the evil end and consequence of transgression, envy and injustice in the story of the two sons of Adam, Habil and Qabil. One of them fought against the other and killed him out of envy and transgression, because of the bounty that Allah gave his brother and because the sacrifice that he sincerely offered to Allah was accepted. The murdered brother earned forgiveness for his sins and was admitted into Paradise, while the murderer failed and earned a losing deal in both the lives. Allah said,وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَىْ ءْادَمَ بِالْحَقِّ(And recite to them the story of the two sons of Adam in truth;) meaning, tell these envious, unjust people, the brothers of swine and apes from the Jews and their likes among mankind, the story of the two sons of Adam, Habil and Qabil, as many scholars among the Salaf and later generations said. Allah's statement,بِالْحَقِّ(in truth;) means, clearly and without ambiguity, alteration, confusion, change, addition or deletion. Allah said in other Ayat,إِنَّ هَـذَا لَهُوَ الْقَصَصُ الْحَقُّ(Verily, this is the true narrative about the story of `Isa,)نَحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ نبَأَهُم بِالْحَقِّ(We narrate unto you their story with truth, ) and,ذلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ(Such is `Isa, son of Maryam. (It is) a statement of truth.) Several scholars among the Salaf and the later generations said that Allah allowed Adam to marry his daughters to his sons because of the necessity of such action. They also said that in every pregnancy, Adam was given a twin, a male and a female, and he used to give the female of one twin, to the male of the other twin, in marriage. Habil's sister was not beautiful while Qabil's sister was beautiful, resulting in Qabil wanting her for himself, instead of his brother. Adam refused unless they both offer a sacrifice, and he whose sacrifice was accepted, would marry Qabil's sister. Habil's sacrifice was accepted, while Qabil's sacrifice was rejected, and thus what Allah told us about them occurred. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said -- that during the time of Adam -- "The woman was not allowed in marriage for her male twin, but Adam was commanded to marry her to any of her other brothers. In each pregnancy, Adam was given a twin, a male and a female. A beautiful daughter was once born for Adam and another one that was not beautiful. So the twin brother of the ugly daughter said, `Marry your sister to me and I will marry my sister to you.' He said, `No, for I have more right to my sister.' So they both offered a sacrifice. The sacrifice of the one who offered the sheep was accepted while the sacrifice of the other the twin brother of the beautiful daughter, which consisted of some produce, was not accepted. So the latter killed his brother." This story has a better than good chain of narration. The statement,إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ("Verily, Allah accepts only from those who have Taqwa.) who fear Allah in their actions. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Abu Ad-Darda' said, "If I become certain that Allah has accepted even one prayer from me, it will be better for me than this life and all that in it. This is because Allah says,إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ(Verily, Allah accepts only from the those who have Taqwa.) The statement,لَئِن بَسَطتَ إِلَىَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِى مَآ أَنَاْ بِبَاسِطٍ يَدِىَ إِلَيْكَ لاًّقْتُلَكَ إِنِّى أَخَافُ اللَّهَ رَبَّ الْعَـلَمِينَ ("If you do stretch your hand against me to kill me, I shall never stretch my hand against you to kill you, for I fear Allah; the Lord of all that exists.") Qabil's brother, the pious man whose sacrifice was accepted because of his piety, said to his brother, who threatened to kill him without justification,لَئِن بَسَطتَ إِلَىَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِى مَآ أَنَاْ بِبَاسِطٍ يَدِىَ إِلَيْكَ لاًّقْتُلَكَ(If you do stretch your hand against me to kill me, I shall never stretch my hand against you to kill you,) I will not commit the same evil act that you threaten to commit, so that I will not earn the same sin as you,إِنِّى أَخَافُ اللَّهَ رَبَّ الْعَـلَمِينَ(for I fear Allah; the Lord of the all that exists.) and, as a result, I will not commit the error that you threaten to commit. Rather, I will observe patience and endurance. `Abdullah bin `Amr said, "By Allah! Habil was the stronger of the two men. But, fear of Allah restricted his hand." The Prophet said in a Hadith recorded in the Two Sahihs,«إِذَا تَوَاجَهَ الْمُسْلِمَانِ بِسَيْفَيهِمَا فَالْقَاتِلُ وَالْمَقْتُولُ فِي النَّار»(When two Muslims fight (meet) each other with their swords, both the murderer as well as the murdered will go to the Hellfire.) They said, "O Allah's Messenger! It is all right for the murderer, but what about the victim" Allah's Messenger replied,«إِنَّه كَانَ حَرِيصًا عَلى قَتْلِ صَاحِبِه»(He surely had the intention to kill his comrade.) Imam Ahmad recorded that, at the beginning of the calamity that `Uthman suffered from, Sa`d bin Abi Waqqas said, "I bear witness that the Messenger of Allah said,«إِنَّهَا سَتَكُونُ فِتْنَةٌ القَاعِدُ فِيهَا خَيْرٌ مِنَ الْقَائِمِ، وَالْقَائِمُ خَيْرٌ مِنَ الْمَاشِي، وَالْمَاشِي خَيْرٌ مِنَ السَّاعِي»(There will be a Fitnah, and he who sits idle during it is better than he who stands up, and he who stands up in it is better than he who walks, and he who walks is better than he who is walking at a fast pace.) When he was asked, `What if someone enters my home and stretched his hand to kill me' He said,«كُنْ كَابْنِ آدَم»(Be just like (the pious) son of Adam.)" At-Tirmidhi also recorded it this way, and said, "This Hadith is Hasan, and similar is reported on this subject from Abu Hurayrah, Khabbab bin Al-Aratt, Abu Bakr, Ibn Mas`ud, Abu Waqid and Abu Musa." The Qur'an continues,إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ فَتَكُونَ مِنْ أَصْحَـبِ النَّارِ وَذَلِكَ جَزَآءُ الظَّـلِمِينَ ("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours, then you will be one of the dwellers of the Fire, and that is the recompense of the wrongdoers.") Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak, As-Suddi and Qatadah said that,إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours...") means, the sin of murdering me, in addition to your previous sins. Ibn Jarir recorded this. Allah's statement,فَطَوَّعَتْ لَهُ نَفْسُهُ قَتْلَ أَخِيهِ فَقَتَلَهُ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَـسِرِينَ (So the soul of the other encouraged him and made fair-seeming to him the murder of his brother; he murdered him and became one of the losers.) means, his conscience encouraged him to kill his brother by making it seem like a sensible thing to do, so he killed him, even after his brother admonished him. Ibn Jarir said, "When he wanted to kill his brother, he started to twist his neck. So Shaytan took an animal and placed its head on a rock, then he took another rock, and similar is reported on this subject from Abu Hurayrah, Khabbab bin Al-Aratt, Abu Bakr, Ibn Mas`ud, Abu Waqid and Abu Musa." The Qur'an continues,إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ فَتَكُونَ مِنْ أَصْحَـبِ النَّارِ وَذَلِكَ جَزَآءُ الظَّـلِمِينَ ("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours, then you will be one of the dwellers of the Fire, and that is the recompense of the wrongdoers.") Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak, As-Suddi and Qatadah said that,إِنِّى أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِى وَإِثْمِكَ("Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours...") means, the sin of murdering me, in addition to your previous sins. Ibn Jarir recorded this. Allah's statement,فَطَوَّعَتْ لَهُ نَفْسُهُ قَتْلَ أَخِيهِ فَقَتَلَهُ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَـسِرِينَ (So the soul of the other encouraged him and made fair-seeming to him the murder of his brother; he murdered him and became one of the losers.) means, his conscience encouraged him to kill his brother by making it seem like a sensible thing to do, so he killed him, even after his brother admonished him. Ibn Jarir said, "When he wanted to kill his brother, he started to twist his neck. So Shaytan took an animal and placed its head on a rock, then he took another rock, and smashed its head with it until he killed it while the son of Adam was looking. So he did the same thing to his brother." Ibn Abi Hatim also recorded this. `Abdullah bin Wahb said that `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said that his father said, "Qabil held Habil by the head to kill him, so Habil laid down for him and Qabil started twisting Habil's head, not knowing how to kill him. Shaytan came to Qabil and said, `Do you want to kill him' He said, `Yes.' Shaytan said, `Take that stone and throw it on his head.' So Qabil took the stone and threw it at his brother's head and smashed his head. Shaytan then went to Hawwa' in a hurry and said to her, `O Hawwa'! Qabil killed Habil.' She asked him, `Woe to you! What does `kill' mean' He said, `He will no longer eat, drink or move.' She said, `And that is death' He said, `Yes it is.' So she started to weep until Adam came to her while she was weeping and said, `What is the matter with you' She did not answer him. He asked her two more times, but she did not answer him. So he said, `You and your daughters will inherit the practice of weeping, while I and my sons are free of it."' Ibn Abi Hatim recorded it. Allah's statement,فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَـسِرِينَ(And became one of the losers.) in this life and the Hereafter, and which loss is worse than this Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah bin Mas`ud said that the Messenger of Allah said,«لَا تُقْتَلُ نَفْسٌ ظُلْمًا إِلَّا كَانَ عَلَى ابْنِ آدَمَ الْأَوَّلِ كِفْلٌ مِنْ دَمِهَا،لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ أَوَّلَ مَنْ سَنَّ الْقَتْل»(Any soul that is unjustly killed, then the first son of Adam will carry a burden of its shedding, for he was the first to practice the crime of murder.) The Group, with the exception of Abu Dawud, also recorded this Hadith. Ibn Jarir recorded that `Abdullah bin `Amr used to say, "The son of Adam, who killed his brother, will be the most miserable among men. There is no blood shed on earth since he killed his brother, until the Day of Resurrection, but he will carry a burden from it, for he was the first person to establish murder." Allah said,فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ غُرَاباً يَبْحَثُ فِى الاٌّرْضِ لِيُرِيَهُ كَيْفَ يُوَارِى سَوْءَةَ أَخِيهِ قَالَ يَـوَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِى فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ النَّـدِمِينَ (Then Allah sent a crow who scratched the ground to show him how to hide the dead body of his brother. He (the murderer) said, "Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother" Then he became one of those who regretted.) As-Suddi said that the Companions said, "When his brother died, Qabil left him on the bare ground and did not know how to bury him. Allah sent two crows, which fought with each other until one of them killed the other. So it dug a hole and threw sand over the dead corpse (which it placed in the hole). When Qabil saw that, he said,يَـوَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِى("Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother") `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas said, "A crow came to the dead corpse of another crow and threw sand over it, until it hid it in the ground. He who killed his brother said,يَـوَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِى(Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother)" Al-Hasan Al-Basri commented on the statement,فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ النَّـدِمِينَ(Then he became one of those who regretted.) "Allah made him feel sorrow after the loss that he earned."The Swift Punishment for Transgression and Cutting the Relations of the WombA Hadith states that the Prophet said,«مَا مِنْ ذَنْبٍ أَجْدَرُ أَنْ يُعَجِّلَ اللهُ عُقُوبَتَهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا مَعَ مَا يَدَّخِرُ لِصَاحِبهِ فِي الْآخِرَةِ مِنَ الْبَغْيِ وَقَطِيعَةِ الرَّحِم»(There is no sin that is more worthy of Allah hastening its punishment in this life, in addition to what He has in store for its offender in the Hereafter, more than transgression and cutting the relations of the womb.) The act of Qabil included both of these. We are Allah's and to Him is our return.