And some of them said: The meaning of His statement, "Allah has set a seal upon their hearts," is an information from Allah, majestic is His praise, regarding their arrogance and their turning away from listening to that to which they were called of the truth, just as it is said: "So-and-so is deaf to this speech," when he refuses to hear it and elevates himself above understanding it out of arrogance.
Abū Jaʿfar said: The truth in that, in my view, is what is authentically reported with its like from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of God be upon him, which is what:—
304- Muḥammad ibn Bashshār narrated to us, he said: Ṣafwān ibn ʿĪsā narrated to us, he said: Ibn ʿAjlān narrated to us, from al-Qaʿqāʿ, from Abū Ṣāliḥ, from Abū Hurayra, he said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of God be upon him, said: "Indeed, when the believer commits a sin, a black spot appears in his heart. If he repents, desists, and seeks forgiveness (Istighfar), it polishes his heart; but if he increases [in sin], it increases until it covers his heart. That is the 'covering' (al-rān) of which Allah, majestic is His praise, said: {No! Rather, the stain has covered their hearts because of what they used to earn} (14) [Sūrat al-Muṭaffifīn: 14]." (1)
Notes
- (1) Hadith 304—It will come in al-Ṭabarī with this chain of transmission 30: 62 Būlāq. And he narrated it there with another chain of transmission before it, and two other chains of transmission after it: all of them from the route of Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān from al-Qaʿqāʿ.
Muḥammad ibn Bashshār: He is the Hadith master from Basra, known by the honorific title "Bandār" with a ḍamma on the Bāʾ and a sukūn on the Nūn. The authors of the Six Books and other Imams narrated from him. In the printed edition here, it occurred as "Muḥammad ibn Yasār", which is an error. Ibn ʿAjlān, with a fatḥa on the ʿAyn and a sukūn on the Jīm: He is Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān al-Madanī, one of the trustworthy, practicing scholars. Al-Qaʿqāʿ ibn Ḥakīm al-Kinānī al-Madanī: A trustworthy Successor (Tābiʿī). Abū Ṣāliḥ: He is al-Sammān, and his name is "Dhakwān". A trustworthy Successor (Tābiʿī). Aḥmad said: "Trustworthy, trustworthy; among the most noble and reliable of people."
And the hadith was narrated by Aḥmad in al-Musnad 7939 (2: 297 Ḥalabī) from Ṣafwān ibn ʿĪsā, with this chain of transmission. And al-Ḥākim narrated it 2: 517 from the route of Bakkār ibn Qutayba the Judge from Ṣafwān. He said: "This hadith is Sahih (Authentic) according to the condition of Muslim, though they did not record it," and al-Dhahabī agreed with him. It was also narrated by al-Tirmidhī 4: 210, and Ibn Mājah 2: 291, from the route of Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān. Al-Tirmidhī said: "This is a Hasan (Good) Sahih (Authentic) hadith."
And Ibn Kathīr mentioned it 1: 84 from this narration of al-Ṭabarī, then said: This hadith, from this aspect, has been narrated by al-Tirmidhī and al-Nasāʾī from Qutayba from al-Layth ibn Saʿd, and Ibn Mājah from Hishām ibn ʿAmmār from Ḥātim ibn Ismāʿīl and al-Walīd ibn Muslim—all three from Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān, with it. And al-Tirmidhī said: "Hasan (Good) Sahih (Authentic)", then he mentioned it again 9: 143 from the narration of these [scholars] and from the narration of Aḥmad in al-Musnad. Al-Suyūṭī mentioned it 6: 325, adding its attribution to ʿAbd ibn Ḥumayd, Ibn Ḥibbān, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Mardawayh, and al-Bayhaqī in Shuʿab al-Īmān.
And in the Matn (Text of a hadith) of the hadith here, in the printed edition: "was a spot... his heart was polished... until it covers his heart." And it is in the upcoming narration of al-Ṭabarī, as in the manuscript, except for his statement "until it covers his heart", which there reads "until it overcomes his heart."
This translation was produced with AI assistance and is part of an ongoing human-review process. Found a mistake? Use the feedback option in the reader menu.
