Chapter I: Repentance
try to do it, or else you will be a sinner. If you die before making
pilgrimage, you will die as a sinner as the Proph et said : He who
dies without making pilgrimage may die if he wishes as a
Christian, or if he wishes as a Jew. Regarding other sins, enquire
about those committed upto date by your ears, eyes, tongue,
stomach, hands, feet and sexual organ and try to repent for them
and remove the wrong's you have done to others by the
commission of sins. Repent sincerely for the sins for breach of
duties towards God. Take account of all the sins from maturity
upto date and do one good dead in place of one sin. The Prophet
said : "Fear God wherever you remain and do a good deed after
an evil deed and it will effect it. God says : Good deeds remove
the bad ones-11 : 114 Your object will be to give up every sin as
harmful like poison.
Sin is darkness and virtue is light. As darkness can be removed by light, so also sin can be removed by virtue. This is the easy way for effacing sins, as a thing can be destroyed by its opposite thing. Love for the world is the root of all sins. The Prophet said : There are some kinds of sins which are expiated only by cares and anxieties. The Prophet also said : When the sins of a man become too much and there remains no such good deed which can expiate his sins, God admits in his mind cares and anxiteties which expiate his sins.
Question: Man's cares and anxieties generally arise in connection with his properties, children, name and fame. Can they be expiation of sins ?
Vol-IV THE BOOK OF CONSTRUCTIVE VIRTUES 39
;!::|!i
BREACH OF DUTIES TOWARDS THE PEOPLE : In this matter also you have some duty towards God as He prohibited the people from oppression. So for this breach of duty he should be penitently sincere to Him and promise not to do it again in future.
Be kind to a man whom you have oppressed. Return to him his properties, if you have taken them unjusty. Praise one whose honours you have destroyed. Speak good of your neighbour whom you have backbited. These will not save you, unless you refrain from doing wrong to others. If you have done harm to the life or honour of a man or given trouble to his heart, you have oppressed him. If you have killed a person out of mistake, give blood money to his heirs.