SURAH GHAFIR

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His saying, the Almighty: "Ha Mim. The revelation of the Book is from Allah, the Exalted in Might, the All-Knowing."

18415 - Abu Bakr ibn 'Ayyash said: I heard Abu Ishaq al-Sabi'i saying: A man came to 'Umar ibn al-Khattab and said: "O Commander of the Faithful, I have committed murder, so is there any repentance for me?" He read to him: "Ha Mim. The revelation of the Book is from Allah, the Exalted in Might, the All-Knowing. The Forgiver of sin, the Accepter of repentance, the Severe in punishment..." and he said: "Do [good] deeds and do not despair."

18416 - Musa ibn Marwan al-Raqqi narrated to us, 'Umar—meaning Ibn Ayyub—narrated to us, Ja'far ibn Barqan informed us, from Yazid ibn al-Asamm, who said: There was a man from the people of Syria who possessed strength, and he used to visit 'Umar ibn al-Khattab. 'Umar missed him and said: "What has happened to such-and-such son of such-and-such?" They replied: "O Commander of the Faithful, he has returned to [drinking] this wine." He said: So 'Umar called his scribe and said: "Write: 'From 'Umar ibn al-Khattab to such-and-such son of such-and-such. Peace be upon you. I praise to you Allah, besides whom there is no deity, the Forgiver of sin, the Accepter of repentance, the Severe in punishment, the Owner of bounty. There is no deity except Him; to Him is the destination.'" Then he said to his companions: "Pray to Allah for your brother that He may turn his heart [to repentance] and that Allah may accept his repentance." When the letter from 'Umar reached the man, he began to read it, repeat it, and say: "The Forgiver of sin, the Accepter of repentance, the Severe in punishment. He has warned me of His punishment and promised me that He will forgive me."

18417 - 'Umar ibn Shaybah narrated to us, Hammad ibn Waqid Abu 'Umar al-Saffar narrated to us, Thabit al-Bunani narrated to us, saying: I was with Mus'ab ibn al-Zubayr in the Sawad of Kufa. I entered an orchard to pray two rak'ahs, and I began [reading] "Ha Mim" (Ghafir/al-Mu'min) until I reached: "There is no deity except Him; to Him is the destination." Suddenly, there was a man behind me on a grey mule, wearing Yemeni patterned garments. He said: "When you say: 'Forgiver of sin,' say: 'O Forgiver of sin, forgive me my sin.' And when you say: 'Accepter of repentance,' say: 'O Accepter of repentance, accept my repentance.' And when you say: 'Severe in punishment,' say: 'O Severe in punishment, do not punish me.'" He said: I turned around but saw no one. I went to the gate and asked: "Has a man wearing Yemeni patterned garments passed by you?" They said: "We saw no one." They used to narrate that he was Elias.