Hair transplants

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Assalamu Alaikum.

When many people think of angels, they think of some faraway creatures who have nothing to do with their own lives.

However, this is incorrect. Angels have many tasks which relate to humans –  and not just the Prophets (alaihimissalam).

For example, they guard humans.

لَهُ مُعَقِّبَاتٌ مِّن بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ يَحْفَظُونَهُ مِنْ أَمْرِ اللَّـهِ ۗ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ ۗ وَإِذَا أَرَادَ اللَّـهُ بِقَوْمٍ سُوءًا فَلَا مَرَدَّ لَهُ ۚ وَمَا لَهُم مِّن دُونِهِ مِن وَالٍ

For each (person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him.They guard him by the Command of Allah. Verily! Allah will not change the good condition of a people as long as they do not change their state of goodness themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allah). But when Allah wills a people’s punishment, there can be no turning back of it, and they will find besides Him no protector. [Surah Raad (13) : 11]

Imam Ibn Kathir (rahimahullah) stated in his explanation of this ayah (verse):

“(For him (each person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him. They guard him by the command of Allah.) Allah states that there are angels who take turns guarding each servant, some by night and some by day. These angels protect each person from harm and accidents. There are also angels who take turns recording the good and evil deeds, some angels do this by day and some by night. There are two angels, one to the right and one to the left of each person, recording the deeds. The angel to the right records the good deeds, while the angel to the left records the evil deeds. There are also two angels that guard and protect each person, one from the back and one from in front. Therefore, there are four angels that surround each person by day and they are replaced by four others at night, two scribes and two guards.”

They also ask for forgiveness for the believers.

الَّذِينَ يَحْمِلُونَ الْعَرْشَ وَمَنْ حَوْلَهُ يُسَبِّحُونَ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّهِمْ وَيُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُونَ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا رَبَّنَا وَسِعْتَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ رَّحْمَةً وَعِلْمًا فَاغْفِرْ لِلَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَاتَّبَعُوا سَبِيلَكَ وَقِهِمْ عَذَابَ الْجَحِيمِ

رَبَّنَا وَأَدْخِلْهُمْ جَنَّاتِ عَدْنٍ الَّتِي وَعَدتَّهُمْ وَمَن صَلَحَ مِنْ آبَائِهِمْ وَأَزْوَاجِهِمْ وَذُرِّيَّاتِهِمْ ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ

وَقِهِمُ السَّيِّئَاتِ ۚ وَمَن تَقِ السَّيِّئَاتِ يَوْمَئِذٍ فَقَدْ رَحِمْتَهُ ۚ وَذَٰلِكَ هُوَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ

Those (angels) who bear the Throne (of Allah) and those around it glorify the praises of their Lord, and believe in Him, and ask forgiveness for those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah) (saying): “Our Lord! You comprehend all things in mercy and knowledge, so forgive those who repent and follow Your Way, and save them from the torment of the blazing Fire! Our Lord! And make them enter the Adn (Eden) Paradise (everlasting Gardens) which you have promised them, and to the righteous among their fathers, their wives, and their offspring! Verily, You are the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. And save them from (the punishment, because of what they did of) the sins, and whomsoever You save from (the punishment, because of what they did of) the sins (i.e. excuse them) that Day, him verily, You have taken into mercy.” And that is the supreme success. [Surah Ghaafir (40) : 8 – 9]

They may also give glad tidings to humans (even non-Prophets).

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ :‏ أَنَّ رَجُلاً زَارَ أَخًا لَهُ فِي قَرْيَةٍ أُخْرَى فَأَرْصَدَ اللَّهُ لَهُ عَلَى مَدْرَجَتِهِ مَلَكًا فَلَمَّا أَتَى عَلَيْهِ قَالَ أَيْنَ تُرِيدُ قَالَ أُرِيدُ أَخًا لِي فِي هَذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِ ‏.‏ قَالَ هَلْ لَكَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ تَرُبُّهَا قَالَ لاَ غَيْرَ أَنِّي أَحْبَبْتُهُ فِي اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ‏‏ قَالَ فَإِنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيْكَ بِأَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ أَحَبَّكَ كَمَا أَحْبَبْتَهُ فِيهِ ‏

Abu Hurairah (radiallahu anhu) reported: The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “A man set out to visit a brother (in Faith) in another town and Allah sent an angel on his way. When the man met the angel, the latter asked him, “Where do you intend to go?” He said, “I intend to visit my brother in this town.” The angel said, “Have you done any favour to him?” He said, “No, I have no desire except to visit him because I love him for the sake of Allah, the Exalted, and Glorious.” Thereupon the angel said, “I am a messenger to you from Allah (to inform you) that Allah loves you as you love him (for His sake)”. [Sahih Muslim, Hadeeth No. 6226]

They are also sent to test humans. 

   عن أَبَي هُرَيْرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ أَنَّهُ، سَمِعَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ ‏ : إِنَّ ثَلاَثَةً فِي بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَبْرَصَ وَأَقْرَعَ وَأَعْمَى بَدَا لِلَّهِ أَنْ يَبْتَلِيَهُمْ، فَبَعَثَ إِلَيْهِمْ مَلَكًا، فَأَتَى الأَبْرَصَ‏.‏ فَقَالَ أَىُّ شَىْءٍ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ لَوْنٌ حَسَنٌ وَجِلْدٌ حَسَنٌ، قَدْ قَذِرَنِي النَّاسُ‏.‏ قَالَ فَمَسَحَهُ، فَذَهَبَ عَنْهُ، فَأُعْطِيَ لَوْنًا حَسَنًا وَجِلْدًا حَسَنًا‏.‏ فَقَالَ أَىُّ الْمَالِ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ الإِبِلُ ـ أَوْ قَالَ الْبَقَرُ هُوَ شَكَّ فِي ذَلِكَ، إِنَّ الأَبْرَصَ وَالأَقْرَعَ، قَالَ أَحَدُهُمَا الإِبِلُ، وَقَالَ الآخَرُ الْبَقَرُ ـ فَأُعْطِيَ نَاقَةً عُشَرَاءَ‏.‏ فَقَالَ يُبَارَكُ لَكَ فِيهَا‏.‏ وَأَتَى الأَقْرَعَ فَقَالَ أَىُّ شَىْءٍ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ شَعَرٌ حَسَنٌ، وَيَذْهَبُ عَنِّي هَذَا، قَدْ قَذِرَنِي النَّاسُ‏.‏ قَالَ فَمَسَحَهُ فَذَهَبَ، وَأُعْطِيَ شَعَرًا حَسَنًا‏.‏ قَالَ فَأَىُّ الْمَالِ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ الْبَقَرُ‏.‏ قَالَ فَأَعْطَاهُ بَقَرَةً حَامِلاً، وَقَالَ يُبَارَكُ لَكَ فِيهَا‏.‏ وَأَتَى الأَعْمَى فَقَالَ أَىُّ شَىْءٍ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ يَرُدُّ اللَّهُ إِلَىَّ بَصَرِي، فَأُبْصِرُ بِهِ النَّاسَ‏.‏ قَالَ فَمَسَحَهُ، فَرَدَّ اللَّهُ إِلَيْهِ بَصَرَهُ‏.‏ قَالَ فَأَىُّ الْمَالِ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ الْغَنَمُ‏.‏ فَأَعْطَاهُ شَاةً وَالِدًا، فَأُنْتِجَ هَذَانِ، وَوَلَّدَ هَذَا، فَكَانَ لِهَذَا وَادٍ مِنْ إِبِلٍ، وَلِهَذَا وَادٍ مِنْ بَقَرٍ، وَلِهَذَا وَادٍ مِنَ الْغَنَمِ‏.‏ ثُمَّ إِنَّهُ أَتَى الأَبْرَصَ فِي صُورَتِهِ وَهَيْئَتِهِ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مِسْكِينٌ، تَقَطَّعَتْ بِيَ الْحِبَالُ فِي سَفَرِي، فَلاَ بَلاَغَ الْيَوْمَ إِلاَّ بِاللَّهِ ثُمَّ بِكَ، أَسْأَلُكَ بِالَّذِي أَعْطَاكَ اللَّوْنَ الْحَسَنَ وَالْجِلْدَ الْحَسَنَ وَالْمَالَ بَعِيرًا أَتَبَلَّغُ عَلَيْهِ فِي سَفَرِي‏.‏ فَقَالَ لَهُ إِنَّ الْحُقُوقَ كَثِيرَةٌ‏.‏ فَقَالَ لَهُ كَأَنِّي أَعْرِفُكَ، أَلَمْ تَكُنْ أَبْرَصَ يَقْذَرُكَ النَّاسُ فَقِيرًا فَأَعْطَاكَ اللَّهُ فَقَالَ لَقَدْ وَرِثْتُ لِكَابِرٍ عَنْ كَابِرٍ‏.‏ فَقَالَ إِنْ كُنْتَ كَاذِبًا فَصَيَّرَكَ اللَّهُ إِلَى مَا كُنْتَ، وَأَتَى الأَقْرَعَ فِي صُورَتِهِ وَهَيْئَتِهِ، فَقَالَ لَهُ مِثْلَ مَا قَالَ لِهَذَا، فَرَدَّ عَلَيْهِ مِثْلَ مَا رَدَّ عَلَيْهِ هَذَا فَقَالَ إِنْ كُنْتَ كَاذِبًا فَصَيَّرَكَ اللَّهُ إِلَى مَا كُنْتَ‏.‏ وَأَتَى الأَعْمَى فِي صُورَتِهِ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مِسْكِينٌ وَابْنُ سَبِيلٍ وَتَقَطَّعَتْ بِيَ الْحِبَالُ فِي سَفَرِي، فَلاَ بَلاَغَ الْيَوْمَ إِلاَّ بِاللَّهِ، ثُمَّ بِكَ أَسْأَلُكَ بِالَّذِي رَدَّ عَلَيْكَ بَصَرَكَ شَاةً أَتَبَلَّغُ بِهَا فِي سَفَرِي‏.‏ فَقَالَ قَدْ كُنْتُ أَعْمَى فَرَدَّ اللَّهُ بَصَرِي، وَفَقِيرًا فَقَدْ أَغْنَانِي، فَخُذْ مَا شِئْتَ، فَوَاللَّهِ لاَ أَجْهَدُكَ الْيَوْمَ بِشَىْءٍ أَخَذْتَهُ لِلَّهِ‏.‏ فَقَالَ أَمْسِكْ مَالَكَ، فَإِنَّمَا ابْتُلِيتُمْ، فَقَدْ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْكَ وَسَخِطَ عَلَى صَاحِبَيْكَ ‏

وَلَئِنْ أَذَقْنَاهُ رَحْمَةً مِّنَّا مِن بَعْدِ ضَرَّاءَ مَسَّتْهُ لَيَقُولَنَّ هَـٰذَا لِي وَمَا أَظُنُّ السَّاعَةَ قَائِمَةً وَلَئِن رُّجِعْتُ إِلَىٰ رَبِّي

إِنَّ لِي عِندَهُ لَلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ فَلَنُنَبِّئَنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِمَا عَمِلُوا وَلَنُذِيقَنَّهُم مِّنْ عَذَابٍ غَلِيظٍ

And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from us, after some adversity (severe poverty or disease, etc.) has touched him, he is sure to say: “This is for me (due to my merit), I think not that the Hour will be established. But if I am brought back to my Lord, Surely, there will be for me the best (wealth, etc.) with Him. Then, We verily, will show to the disbelievers what they have done and We shall make them taste a severe torment. [Surah Fussilat (41) : 50]

He (rahimahullah) then said:

“Muhajid said, “(Meaning) this is due to my works and I deserve it.”

Ibn Abbas (radiallahu anhuma) said, “He means from myself.””

Ibn Kathir stated in his explanation of this ayah (verse):

﴿وَلَئِنْ أَذَقْنَـهُ رَحْمَةً مِّنَّا مِن بَعْدِ ضَرَّآءَ مَسَّتْهُ لَيَقُولَنَّ هَـذَا لِى﴾

(And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: “This is due to my (merit)…”) means, if something good happens to him or some provision comes to him after a period of difficulty, he says, `this is because of me, because I deserve this from my Lord.’

﴿وَمَآ أَظُنُّ السَّاعَةَ قَائِمَةً﴾

(I think not that the Hour will be established.) means, he does not believe that the Hour will come. So when he is given some blessing, he becomes careless, arrogant and ungrateful, as Allah says:

﴿كَلاَّ إِنَّ الإِنسَـنَ لَيَطْغَى – أَن رَّءَاهُ اسْتَغْنَى ﴾

(Nay! Verily, man does transgress. Because he considers himself self-sufficient.) (96:6)

﴿وَلَئِن رُّجِّعْتُ إِلَى رَبِّى إِنَّ لِى عِندَهُ لَلْحُسْنَى﴾

(But if I am brought back to my Lord, surely there will be for me the best with Him.) means, `if there is a Hereafter after all, then my Lord will be generous and kind to me just as He was in this world.’ So he expects Allah to do him favors in spite of his bad deeds and lack of certain faith. Allah says:

﴿فَلَنُنَبِّئَنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ بِمَا عَمِلُواْ وَلَنُذِيقَنَّهُمْ مِّنْ عَذَابٍ غَلِيظٍ﴾

(Then, We verily will show to the disbelievers what they have done, and We shall make them taste a severe torment.) Thus Allah threatens punishment and vengeance to those whose conduct and belief is like that.”

Shaikh Saleh Al-Fawzan explained this ayah in his book “Concise Commentary on the Book of Tawheed“, by first stating its relevance to the book itself:

“This chapter asserts that man’s claims that he deserves Allah’s favors granted to him after being in distress contradicts the perfection of his belief in monotheism.”

He then explains the meaning of the ayah saying:

“In this verse, Allah, Exalted be He, states that when man is in distress, he humbles himself before Allah, returns to Him, and invokes him to remove his afflictions. However, at times of ease and welfare, that man’s attitude changes so he denies Allah’s Grace, renders no thanks to him, claiming that he obtained those favors through his skills and hard work. Moreover, such an ungrateful man perpetrates a greater sin by denying the inevitable termination of his life and the coming of the Day of Resurrection. He also claims that should there be an afterlife, he would continue to lead a life of luxury as he deserves. Commenting on these claims, Allah, Exalted be He, emphasizes that people of such a kind will inevitably come to know the true nature of their heinous deeds and thus receive the most painful punishment.”

Shaikh Saalih ibn Abdil Azeez Aal Ash-Shaikh explained this verse and Mujahid’s explanation of it (mentioned above) in his book “Interpretation of Kitab At-Tawhid: The Destination of the Seeker of Truth” saying:

“”Muhajid said, “(Meaning) this is due to my works and I deserve it.” This means that he was deserving of that and that Allah did not favor him with this thing, or He favored him with it because he deserved this favoring. Two kinds of people are included in this description that has been mentioned in this verse: the person who attributes something to himself and he does not attribute it to Allah. The second is the person who attributes something to himself from the aspect of deserving and he sees himself as deserving that thing from Allah, as occurs with some of those who have been deceived. The action of the slave of Allah is a means and this means differs. It may be effective by the permission of Allah, and thus, the matter goes back to the fact that it is the bounty of Allah that He gives to whomever He wishes.”

Ibn Abdul Wahhab then mentions another ayah relevant to the chapter, which is the saying of Qaroon:

قَالَ إِنَّمَا أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَىٰ عِلْمٍ عِندِي ۚ

He said: “This has been given to me only because of knowledge I possess.”  [Surah Al-Qasas (28) : 78]

Who was Qaroon, you ask?

Well, he was a genuinely awful fellow who was the cousin of Musa (alaihissalam). Allah granted him a HUGE amount of wealth, yet he still didn’t show an ounce of gratitude. His story is as follows and includes his statement above:

إِنَّ قَارُونَ كَانَ مِن قَوْمِ مُوسَىٰ فَبَغَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ ۖوَآتَيْنَاهُ مِنَ الْكُنُوزِ مَا إِنَّ مَفَاتِحَهُ لَتَنُوءُ بِالْعُصْبَةِ أُولِي الْقُوَّةِ إِذْ قَالَ لَهُ قَوْمُهُ لَا تَفْرَحْ ۖ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ لَا يُحِبُّ الْفَرِحِينَ

وَابْتَغِ فِيمَا آتَاكَ اللَّـهُ الدَّارَ الْآخِرَةَ ۖ وَلَا تَنسَ نَصِيبَكَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا ۖ وَأَحْسِن كَمَا أَحْسَنَ اللَّـهُ إِلَيْكَ ۖ وَلَا تَبْغِ الْفَسَادَ فِي الْأَرْضِ ۖ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُفْسِدِينَ

قَالَ إِنَّمَا أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَىٰ عِلْمٍ عِندِي ۚ أَوَلَمْ يَعْلَمْ أَنَّ اللَّـهَ قَدْ أَهْلَكَ مِن قَبْلِهِ مِنَ الْقُرُونِ مَنْ هُوَ أَشَدُّ مِنْهُ قُوَّةً وَأَكْثَرُ جَمْعًا ۚ وَلَا يُسْأَلُ عَن ذُنُوبِهِمُ الْمُجْرِمُونَ

فَخَرَجَ عَلَىٰ قَوْمِهِ فِي زِينَتِهِ ۖ قَالَ الَّذِينَ يُرِيدُونَ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا يَا لَيْتَ لَنَا مِثْلَ مَا أُوتِيَ قَارُونُ إِنَّهُ لَذُو حَظٍّ عَظِيمٍ

وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْعِلْمَ وَيْلَكُمْ ثَوَابُ اللَّـهِ خَيْرٌ لِّمَنْ آمَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحًا وَلَا يُلَقَّاهَا إِلَّا الصَّابِرُونَ

فَخَسَفْنَا بِهِ وَبِدَارِهِ الْأَرْضَ فَمَا كَانَ لَهُ مِن فِئَةٍ يَنصُرُونَهُ مِن دُونِ اللَّـهِ وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُنتَصِرِينَ

وَأَصْبَحَ الَّذِينَ تَمَنَّوْا مَكَانَهُ بِالْأَمْسِ يَقُولُونَ وَيْكَأَنَّ اللَّـهَ يَبْسُطُ الرِّزْقَ لِمَن يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَقْدِرُ ۖ لَوْلَا أَن مَّنَّ اللَّـهُ عَلَيْنَا لَخَسَفَ بِنَا ۖ وَيْكَأَنَّهُ لَا يُفْلِحُ الْكَافِرُونَ

تِلْكَ الدَّارُ الْآخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوًّا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فَسَادًا ۚ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

مَن جَاءَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ فَلَهُ خَيْرٌ مِّنْهَا ۖ وَمَن جَاءَ بِالسَّيِّئَةِ فَلَا يُجْزَى الَّذِينَ عَمِلُوا السَّيِّئَاتِ إِلَّا مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ

Verily, Qarun was of Musa’s people, but he behaved arrogantly towards them. And We gave him of the treasures, that of which the keys would have been a burden to a body of strong men. When his people said to him: “Do not be glad (with ungratefulness to Allah’s Favours). Verily! Allah likes not those who are glad (with ungratefulness to Allah’s Favours). But seek, with that (wealth) which Allah has bestowed on you, the home of the Hereafter, and forget not your portion of legal enjoyment in this world, and do good as Allah has been good to you, and seek not mischief in the land. Verily, Allah likes not the Mufsidoon (those who commit great crimes and sins, oppressors, tyrants, mischief-makers, corrupts).” 

He said: “This has been given to me only because of knowledge I possess.” Did he not know that Allah had destroyed before him generations, men who were stronger than him in might and greater in the amount (of riches) they had collected. But the Mujrimoon (criminals, disbelievers, polytheists, sinners, etc.) will not be questioned of their sins (because Allah knows them well, so they will be punished without account). 

So he went forth before his people in his pomp. Those who were desirous of the life of the world, said: “Ah, would that we had the like of what Qarun  has been given? Verily! He is the owner of a great fortune.” But those who had been given (religious) knowledge said: “Woe to you! The Reward of Allah (in the Hereafter) is better for those who believe and do righteous good deeds, and this none shall attain except those who are patient (in following the truth).” 

So We caused the earth to swallow him and his dwelling place. Then he had no group or party to help him against Allah, nor was he one of those who could save themselves. And those who had desired (for a position like) his position the day before, began to say: “Know you not that it is Allah Who enlarges the provision or restricts it to whomsoever He pleases of His slaves. Had it not been that Allah was Gracious to us, He could have caused the earth to swallow us up (also)! Know you not that the disbelievers will never be successful.” 

That home of the Hereafter (i.e. Paradise), We shall assign to those who rebel not against the truth with pride and oppression in the land nor do mischief by committing crimes. And the good end is for the Muttaqoon (pious). Whosoever brings good (Islamic Monotheism along with righteous deeds), he shall have the better thereof, and whosoever brings evil (polytheism along with evil deeds) then, those who do evil deeds will only be requited for what they used to do.

[Surah Al-Qasas (28) : 76 – 84]

I told you that he was an awful fellow, didn’t I? And the scary part? We all tend to behave like him.

Don’t agree with me? Read further and then see if you change your mind.

Ibn Abdil Wahhaab mentions the following after the saying of Qaroon:

“Qataadah said, “(Meaning) due to knowledge that I possess of the different methods of earning.

Other said, “(Meaning) due to knowledge from Allah that I deserve”. This is the meaning of the statement of Mujahid, “(Meaning) I have been given it due to my nobility.”

Shaikh Saalih ibn Abdil Azeez Aal Ash-Shaikh explained this verse and Qataadah’s explanation of it (mentioned above) saying:

“This happens to many people from those whom Allah has enriched and they have begun making tremendous business. Such a person attributes something to himself and says. “I have knowledge of the different methods of earning”, and similar statements, or if he is given a position (job), he says, “This is due to my efforts.”

Ibn Kathir stated in his explanation of the story of Qaroon:

“It was recorded that Ibn Abbas said:

﴿إِنَّ قَـرُونَ كَانَ مِن قَوْمِ مُوسَى﴾

(Verily, Qarun was of Musa’s people,) “He was the son of his paternal uncle.” This was also the view of Ibrahim An-Nakhai, Abdullah bin Al-Harith bin Nawfal, Sammak bin Harb, Qatadah, Malik bin Dinar, Ibn Jurayj and others; they all said that he was the cousin of Musa, peace be upon him. Ibn Jurayj said: “He was Qarun bin Yashar bin Qahith, and Musa was the son of Imran bin Qahith.

﴿وَءَاتَيْنَاهُ مِنَ الْكُنُوزِ﴾

(And We gave him of the treasures,) meaning, of wealth;

﴿مَآ إِنَّ مَفَاتِحَهُ لَتَنُوأُ بِالْعُصْبَةِ أُوْلِى الْقُوَّةِ﴾

(that of which the keys would have been a burden to a body of strong men.) Groups of strong men would not have been able to carry them because they were so many. Al-Amash narrated from Khaythamah, “The keys of Qarun’s treasure were made of leather, each key like a finger, and each key was for a separate storeroom. When he rode anywhere, the keys would be carried on sixty mules with white blazes on their foreheads and white feet.” Other views were also given, and Allah knows best.

﴿إِذْ قَالَ لَهُ قَوْمُهُ لاَ تَفْرَحْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يُحِبُّ الْفَرِحِينَ﴾

(Remember when his people said to him: “Do not exult. Verily, Allah likes not those who exult.”) means, the righteous ones among his people exhorted him. By way of sincere advice and guidance, they said: “Do not exult in what you have,” meaning, `do not be arrogant and proud of your wealth.’

﴿إِنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يُحِبُّ الْفَرِحِينَ﴾

(Verily, Allah likes not those who exult.) Ibn Abbas said, “This means, those who rejoice and gloat.” Mujahid said, “It means those who are insolent and reckless, and do not thank Allah for what He has given them.” His saying:

﴿وَابْتَغِ فِيمَآ ءَاتَاكَ اللَّهُ الدَّارَ الاٌّخِرَةَ وَلاَ تَنسَ نَصِيبَكَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا﴾

(But seek, with that which Allah has bestowed on you, the home of the Hereafter, and forget not your portion of lawful enjoyment in this world;) means, `use this great wealth and immense blessing Allah has given you to worship your Lord and draw closer to Him by doing a variety of good deeds which will earn you reward in this world and the Hereafter.’

﴿وَلاَ تَنسَ نَصِيبَكَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا﴾

(and forget not your portion of lawful enjoyment in this world;) `That which Allah has permitted of food, drink, clothing, dwelling places and women. Your Lord has rights over you, your self has rights over you, your family has rights over you, and your visitors have rights over you. So give each of them their due.’

﴿وَأَحْسِن كَمَآ أَحْسَنَ اللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ﴾

(and be generous as Allah has been generous to you, ) `Be generous to His creatures, as He has been generous to you.’

﴿وَلاَ تَبْغِ الْفَسَادَ فِى الاٌّرْضِ﴾

(and seek not mischief in the land.) meaning: `do not let your aim be to spread corruption on earth and do harm to Allah’s creation.’

﴿إِنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يُحِبُّ الْمُفْسِدِينَ﴾

(Verily, Allah likes not the mischief-makers.)

﴿قَالَ إِنَّمَآ أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَى عِلْمٍ عِندِى أَوَلَمْ يَعْلَمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ أَهْلَكَ مِن قَبْلِهِ مِنَ الْقُرُونِ مَنْ هُوَ أَشَدُّ مِنْهُ قُوَّةً وَأَكْثَرُ جَمْعاً وَلاَ يُسْأَلُ عَن ذُنُوبِهِمُ الْمُجْرِمُونَ﴾

(78. He said: “This has been given to me only because of the knowledge I possess.” Did he not know that Allah had destroyed before him generations, men who were stronger than him in might and greater in the amount they had collected But the criminals will not be questioned of their sins.)

﴿قَالَ إِنَّمَآ أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَى عِلْمٍ عِندِى﴾

(He said: “This has been given to me only because of the knowledge I possess.”) meaning, `I have no need of your advice; Allah has only given me this wealth because He knows that I deserve it and because He loves me. ‘ In other words: `He has given it to me because He knows that I am fit for this.’ This is like the Ayat:

﴿فَإِذَا مَسَّ الإِنسَـنَ ضُرٌّ دَعَانَا ثُمَّ إِذَا خَوَّلْنَـهُ نِعْمَةً مِّنَّا قَالَ إِنَّمَآ أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَى عِلْمٍ﴾

(When harm touches man, he calls upon Us; then when We have changed it into a favor from Us, he says: “Only because of knowledge I obtained it.”) (39:49) An alternative interpretation of this Ayah says that the meaning is: “Only because of what Allah knows about me did I obtain this favor.” This is like His saying:

﴿وَلَئِنْ أَذَقْنَـهُ رَحْمَةً مِّنَّا مِن بَعْدِ ضَرَّآءَ مَسَّتْهُ لَيَقُولَنَّ هَـذَا لِى﴾

(And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: “This is from me.”) (41:50) meaning, “I deserved it.” Imam Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam explained this Ayah very well. Concerning the phrase,

﴿قَالَ إِنَّمَآ أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَى عِلْمٍ عِندِى﴾

(He said: “This has been given to me only because of the knowledge I possess.”) He said: “Were it not for the fact that Allah is pleased with me and knows my virtue, He would not have given me this wealth.” And He said:

﴿أَوَلَمْ يَعْلَمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ أَهْلَكَ مِن قَبْلِهِ مِنَ الْقُرُونِ مَنْ هُوَ أَشَدُّ مِنْهُ قُوَّةً وَأَكْثَرُ جَمْعاً﴾

(Did he not know that Allah had destroyed before him generations, men who were stronger than him in might and greater in the amount they had collected) This is what those who have little knowledge say when they see a person whom Allah has granted a lot of wealth; they say that if he did not deserve it, Allah would not have given it to him.

فَخَرَجَ عَلَى قَوْمِهِ فِى زِينَتِهِ قَالَ الَّذِينَ يُرِيدُونَ الْحَيَوةَ الدُّنْيَا يلَيْتَ لَنَا مِثْلَ مَآ أُوتِىَ قَـرُونُ إِنَّهُ لَذُو حَظٍّ عَظِيمٍ – وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُواْ الْعِلْمَ وَيْلَكُمْ ثَوَابُ اللَّهِ خَيْرٌ لِّمَنْ ءَامَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَـلِحاً وَلاَ يُلَقَّاهَآ إِلاَّ الصَّـبِرُونَ 

(79. So, he went forth before his people in his finery. Those who were desirous of the life of the world, said: “Ah, would that we had the like of what Qarun has been given! Verily, he is the owner of a great fortune.”) (80. But those who had been given knowledge said: “Woe to you! The reward of Allah is better for those who believe and do righteous deeds, and this none shall attain except the patient.”)

Allah tells us how Qarun went forth one day before his people with his magnificent regalia; wearing his fine clothes, accompanied by his fine horses, his servants and retinue. When those whose desires and inclinations were for the world saw his adornments and splendor, they wished that they could have the same as he had been given, and said:

﴿يلَيْتَ لَنَا مِثْلَ مَآ أُوتِىَ قَـرُونُ إِنَّهُ لَذُو حَظٍّ عَظِيمٍ﴾

(Ah, would that we had the like of what Qarun has been given! Verily, he is the owner of a great fortune.) meaning, `he is very lucky and has a great share in this world.’ When the people of beneficial knowledge heard this, they said to them:

﴿وَيْلَكُمْ ثَوَابُ اللَّهِ خَيْرٌ لِّمَنْ ءَامَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَـلِحاً﴾

(Woe to you! The reward of Allah is better for those who believe and do righteous deeds,) `Allah’s reward to His believing, righteous servants in the Hereafter is better than what you see,’ as is reported in the authentic Hadith:

«يَقُولُ اللهُ تَعَالَى: أَعْدَدْتُ لِعِبَادِي الصَّالِحِينَ مَا لَا عَيْنٌ رَأَتْ وَلَا أُذُنٌ سَمِعَتْ وَلَا خَطَرَ عَلَى قَلْبِ بَشَرٍ وَاقْرَءُوا إِنْ شِئْتُمْ:

﴿فَلاَ تَعْلَمُ نَفْسٌ مَّآ أُخْفِىَ لَهُم مِّن قُرَّةِ أَعْيُنٍ جَزَآءً بِمَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ ﴾

(Allah has prepared for His righteous servants what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and the heart of a human cannot comprehend. Recite, if you wish: (No person knows what is kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do.)) (32:17).

﴿وَلاَ يُلَقَّاهَآ إِلاَّ الصَّـبِرُونَ﴾

(and this none shall attain except the patient.) As-Suddi said: “None shall reach Paradise except for the patient” — as if this were the completion of the statement made by the people of knowledge. Ibn Jarir said, “This applies only to those who patiently forsake the love of this world, seeking the Hereafter. It is as if this is part of what the people of knowledge said, but it is made part of the Words of Allah, stating this fact.”

﴿فَخَسَفْنَا بِهِ وَبِدَارِهِ الاٌّرْضَ فَمَا كَانَ لَهُ مِن فِئَةٍ يَنصُرُونَهُ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُنتَصِرِينَ – وَأَصْبَحَ الَّذِينَ تَمَنَّوْاْ مَكَانَهُ بِالاٌّمْسِ يَقُولُونَ وَيْكَأَنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْسُطُ الرِّزْقَ لِمَن يَشَآءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَقْدِرُ لَوْلا أَن مَّنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا لَخَسَفَ بِنَا وَيْكَأَنَّهُ لاَ يُفْلِحُ الْكَـفِرُونَ ﴾

(81. So, We caused the earth to swallow him and his dwelling place. Then he had no group to help him against Allah, nor was he one of those who could save themselves.) (82. And those who desired his position the day before, began to say: “Know you not that it is Allah Who expands the provision or restricts it to whomsoever He pleases of His servants. Had it not been that Allah was Gracious to us, He could have caused the earth to swallow us up! Know you not that the disbelievers will never be successful.”)

After telling us about Qarun’s conceit and pride in his adornments, and how he was arrogant towards his people and transgressed against them, Allah then tells us how he and his dwelling place were swallowed up by the earth. This was also reported in the Sahih by Al-Bukhari from Salim, who said that his father told him that the Messenger of Allah said:

«بَيْنَمَا رَجُلٌ يَجُرُّ إِزَارَهُ إِذْ خُسِفَ بِهِ، فَهُوَ يَتَجَلْجَلُ فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَة»

(While a man was dragging his lower garment, he was swallowed up and he will remain sinking down into the earth until the Day of Resurrection.) He also recorded something similar from Salim from Abu Hurayrah from the Prophet . Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Said said, “The Messenger of Allah said:

«بَيْنَمَا رَجُلٌ فِيمَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ خَرَجَ فِي بُرْدَيْنِ أَخْضَرَيْنِ يَخْتَالُ فِيهِمَا، أَمَرَ اللهُ الْأَرْضَ فَأَخَذَتْهُ، فَإِنَّهُ لَيَتَجَلْجَلُ فِيهَا إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَة»

(When a man among the people who came before you went out wearing two green garments, walking proudly and arrogantly, Allah commanded the earth to swallow him up, and he will remain sinking down into it until the Day of Resurrection.) This version was recorded only by Ahmad, and its chain of narration is Hasan (sound).

﴿فَمَا كَانَ لَهُ مِن فِئَةٍ يَنصُرُونَهُ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُنتَصِرِينَ﴾

(Then he had no group to help him against Allah, nor was he one of those who could save themselves.) means, his wealth, group, servants and retinue were of no avail to him; they could not protect him from the wrath and vengeance of Allah. Nor could he help himself or save himself. There was no one to help him, neither himself nor anybody else.

Allah’s saying:

﴿وَأَصْبَحَ الَّذِينَ تَمَنَّوْاْ مَكَانَهُ بِالاٌّمْسِ﴾

(And those who had desired his position the day before,) means, those witnessed him with his finery and said:

﴿قَالَ الَّذِينَ يُرِيدُونَ الْحَيَوةَ الدُّنْيَا يلَيْتَ لَنَا مِثْلَ مَآ أُوتِىَ قَـرُونُ إِنَّهُ لَذُو حَظٍّ عَظِيمٍ﴾

(Those who were desirous of the life of the world, said: “Ah, would that we had the like of what Qarun has been given! Verily, he is the owner of a great fortune.”) When he was swallowed up in the earth, they began to say:

﴿وَيْكَأَنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْسُطُ الرِّزْقَ لِمَن يَشَآءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَقْدِرُ﴾

(Know you not that it is Allah Who expands the provision or restricts it to whomsoever He pleases of His servants.) Wealth does not indicate that Allah is pleased with its owner, for Allah gives and withholds, allows times of difficulty and times of ease, raises and lowers, His is the most complete wisdom and most convincing proof. According to a Hadith narrated by Ibn Masud,

«إِنَّ اللهَ قَسَمَ بَيْنَكُمْ أَخْلَاقَكُمْ كَمَا قَسَمَ أَرْزَاقَكُمْ، وَإِنَّ اللهَ يُعْطِي الْمَالَ مَنْ يُحِبُّ وَمَنْ لَا يُحِبُّ، وَلَا يُعْطِي الْإِيمَانَ إِلَّا مَنْ يُحِب»

(Allah has alloted character among you just as He has alloted your provision. Allah gives wealth to those whom He loves and those whom He does not love, but He gives Faith only to those whom He loves.)

﴿لَوْلا أَن مَّنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا لَخَسَفَ بِنَا﴾

(Had it not been that Allah was Gracious to us, He could have caused the earth to swallow us up!) meaning, `were it not for the kindness and grace of Allah towards us, we could have been swallowed up by the earth just as he was swallowed up, because we wanted to be like him.’

﴿وَيْكَأَنَّهُ لاَ يُفْلِحُ الْكَـفِرُونَ﴾

(Know you not that the disbelievers will never be successful.) He was a disbeliever, and the disbelievers will never be successful before Allah in this world or in the Hereafter.

تِلْكَ الدَّارُ الاٌّخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لاَ يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوّاً فِى الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ فَسَاداً وَالْعَـقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ 

مَن جَآءَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ فَلَهُ خَيْرٌ مِّنْهَا وَمَن جَآءَ بِالسَّيِّئَةِ فَلاَ يُجْزَى الَّذِينَ عَمِلُواْ السَّيِّئَاتِ إِلاَّ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ 

(83. That is the home of the Hereafter, We shall assign to those who do not want to exalt themselves in the land nor cause corruption. And the good end is for those who have Taqwa.) (84. Whosoever brings good, he shall have the better thereof; and whosoever brings evil, then those who do evil deeds will only be requited for what they used to do.)

Allah tells us that He has made the home of the Hereafter, and its eternal delights which will never change or fade away, for His believing, humble servants who do not rebel against the truth with pride and oppression in the land. They do not exalt themselves above the creatures of Allah, arrogantly oppressing them and spreading corruption among them. Ikrimah said that this phrase referred to haughtiness and arrogance. Ibn Jurayj said:

﴿لاَ يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوّاً فِى الاٌّرْضِ﴾

(those who do not want to exalt themselves in the land) “Arrogance and tyranny,

﴿وَلاَ فَسَاداً﴾

(nor cause corruption) committing sins.” Ibn Jarir recorded that Ali said, “If a man wants the straps of his sandals to be better than the straps of his companion’s sandals, then he is one of those referred to in the Ayah,

﴿تِلْكَ الدَّارُ الاٌّخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لاَ يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوّاً فِى الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ فَسَاداً وَالْعَـقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ ﴾

(That is the home of the Hereafter, We shall assign to those who do not want to exalt themselves in the land nor cause corruption. And the good end is for those who have Taqwa.) This is understood to mean that if his intention is to show off and appear better than others, then that is to be condemned, as it was reported in the Sahih that the Prophet said:

«إِنَّهُ أُوحِيَ إِلَيَّ أَنْ تَوَاضَعُوا حَتَّى لَا يَفْخَرَ أَحَدٌ عَلَى أَحَدٍ وَلَا يَبْغِي أَحَدٌ عَلَى أَحَد»

(It has been revealed to me that you should be humble to the extent that none of you boasts to others or mistreats others. ) But if a person simply likes to look good, then there is nothing wrong with that. It was recorded that a man said: “O Messenger of Allah, I like to have my garment looking good and my shoes looking good — is this a kind of arrogance” The Prophet said:

«لَا، إِنَّ اللهَ جَمِيلٌ يُحِبُّ الْجَمَال»

(No, for Allah is beautiful and loves beauty…) And Allah says:

﴿مَن جَآءَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ﴾

(Whosoever brings good,) meaning, on the Day of Resurrection,

﴿فَلَهُ خَيْرٌ مِّنْهَا﴾

(he shall have the better thereof;) meaning, the reward of Allah is better than the good deeds of His servant — how can it not be, when Allah has multiplied it many times over This is the position of generosity. Then Allah says:

﴿وَمَن جَآءَ بِالسَّيِّئَةِ فَلاَ يُجْزَى الَّذِينَ عَمِلُواْ السَّيِّئَاتِ إِلاَّ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ﴾

(and whosoever brings evil, then those who do evil deeds will only be requited for what they used to do.) This is like the Ayah,

﴿وَمَن جَآءَ بِالسَّيِّئَةِ فَكُبَّتْ وُجُوهُهُمْ فِى النَّارِ هَلْ تُجْزَوْنَ إِلاَّ مَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ ﴾

(And whoever brings an evil deed, they will be cast down on their faces in the Fire. (And it will be said to them) “Are you being recompensed anything except what you used to do”) (27: 90). This is the postition of generosity and justice.”

Ibn Abdil Wahhab then ends this chapter by mentioning the story of the three men and the angel who was sent to test them.

Shaikh Saalih ibn Abdil Azeez Aal Ash-Shaikh explained this story saying:

“Then he (i.e. Muhammad ibn Abdil Wahhab) brings the lengthy hadith of Abu Hurairah (radiallahu anhu) and the implication of it is obvious. So that Allah cured these people, but when he cured them, two of them attributed the favor to themselves and the third attributed it to Allah. Thus, Allah rewarded the last one with good and made his favor last for him, and He punished the sinfulness of the two men. This is the bounty of Allah that He favors with, then He affirms the favor for whomever He wills and removes it from whomever He wills. From the causes of securing the favor is that the slave magnifies his Lord, knows that the bounty is in the Hand of Allah and that the favor is the favor of Allah. The perfection of At-Tauhid is that is that the slave knows that he is in need of Allah and he is not deserving of anything from Allah. Rather, Allah is the Lord, Who deserves to be worshipped, thanked and honored by His slaves. He deserves that they remember Him and attribute favors to Him.”

So, what was the ultimate point of this story? It is that we be grateful for Allah’s blessings and that we should not assume that we “deserved” it.

Now, Allah has granted us zillions of blessings but we take many of them for granted. One of the blessings He has granted us is hair.

Hair, you ask? Yes, hair. That’s a blessing that not everybody has, as evidenced from the story itself. That’s what the bald man asked for, remember?

And the one who has hair needs to show his (or her) gratitude by taking care of their hair:

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ :‏ مَنْ كَانَ لَهُ شَعْرٌ فَلْيُكْرِمْهُ ‏

Narrated Abu Hurairah (radiallahu anhu): The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said: He who has hair should honour it (i.e. take care of it)” [Sunan Abee Dawood, Hadeeth No. 4163. Graded “hasan sahih” (authentic) by Shaikh Al-Albani (rahimahullah).]

So, we shouldn’t take having hair for granted and think that we “deserve” it.

Now, what about those who are bald and don’t have any hair? Well, Shaikh Ibn Uthaimeen (rahimahullah) derived a very interesting fiqh (jurisprudence) issue from this story – the permissibility of hair transplants. He was asked:

“Hair transplants are done for one who has become bald by taking hair from the back of the head and transplanting it in the bald spot. Is that permissible? 

He replied: 

Yes, that is permissible, because this comes under the heading of restoring that which Allah has created, or correcting a fault; it does not come under the heading of cosmetic procedures or adding to what Allah has created, so it is not regarded as changing the creation of Allah. Rather it is restoring something that is lacking or removing a fault. There is the well-known story of the three people, one of whom was bald and said that he wished that Allah would restore his hair, so the angel touched him and Allah restored his hair and gave him beautiful hair.”

So, hair transplants are permissible and are not regarded as changing the creation of Allah. If it had been considered in this category, then it would have been forbidden because we are NOT allowed to change the creation of Allah.

Let’s go through the issue of “changing the creation of Allah” in more detail because many people don’t seem to give much importance to this issue.

First of all, Allah had forbidden us from changing His creation so that people are not misled.

فَأَقِمْ وَجْهَكَ لِلدِّينِ حَنِيفًا ۚ فِطْرَتَ اللَّـهِ الَّتِي فَطَرَ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا ۚ لَا تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّـهِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ وَلَـٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

So set you (O Muhammad) your face towards the religion of pure Islamic Monotheism Hanifa (worship none but Allah Alone) Allah’s Fitrah (i.e. Allah’s Islamic Monotheism), with which He has created mankind. No change let there be in Khalq­illah (i.e. the Religion of Allah Islamic Monotheism), that is the straight religion, but most of men know not. [Surah Ar-Rum (30) : 30]

Ibn Kathir explained this ayah saying:

“Allah says: `so set your face and persevere in the religion which Allah has prescribed for you, the worship of Allah Alone, the religion of Ibrahim, to which Allah has guided you and which He has perfected for you with the utmost perfection. In this manner, you will also adhere to the sound Fitrah with which He created His creation.’ Allah created His creation to recognize Him and know His Tawhid, and that there is no God except Him, as we have already seen when discussing the Ayah,

﴿وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَى أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتَ بِرَبِّكُمْ قَالُواْ بَلَى﴾

(and made them testify as to themselves (saying): “Am I not your Lord” They said: “Yes!…”) (7:172). And according to a Hadith, Allah said,

«إِنِّي خَلَقْتُ عِبَادِي حُنَفَاءَ، فَاجْتَالَتْهُمُ الشَّيَاطِينُ عَنْ دِينِهِم»

(“I created my servants Hunafa (i.e., monotheists), then the Shayatin misled them from their religion.”) We will see in the Hadiths that Allah created His creation with the Fitrah of Islam, then among some of them there emerged corrupt religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Zoroastrianism.

﴿لاَ تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ﴾

(No change let there be in Allah’s Khalq,) Some of them said that this means, `do not change the creation of Allah, for if you do, you will divert the people away from the Fitrah with which He created them.’ So it is instructive; just as His saying:

﴿وَمَن دَخَلَهُ كَانَ ءَامِناً﴾

(And whoever enters it, he is safe) This is a good and correct interpretation. Others said that this means, Allah made all of His creation equal, all of them have the same sound Fitrah and are by nature upright; they are all born with this nature and there is no disparity among people in this regard. Ibn Abbas, Ibrahim An-Nakhai, Said bin Jubayr, Mujahid, Ikrimah, Qatadah, Ad-Dahhak and Ibn Zayd said that the Ayah:

﴿لاَ تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ﴾

(No change let there be in Allah’s Khalq) means, the religion of Allah. Al-Bukhari said:

﴿لاَ تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ﴾

(No change let there be in Allah’s Khalq,) “It means, the religion of Allah, and the religion, and the Fitrah is Islam.” Then he reported that Abu Hurayrah said, “The Messenger of Allah said:

«مَا مِنْ مَوْلُودٍ يُولَدُ إِلَّا عَلَى الْفِطْرَةِ فَأَبَوَاهُ يُهَوِّدَانِهِ أَوْ يُنَصِّرَانِهِ أَوْ يُمَجِّسَانِهِ،كَمَا تُنْتَجُ الْبَهِيمَةُ بَهِيمَةً جَمْعَاءَ، هَلْ تُحِسُّونَ فِيهَا مِنْ جَدْعَاءَ؟»

(No child is born except in a state of Fitrah, then his parents make him a Jew or a Christian or a Zoroastrian, just as each animal produces a perfect animal like itself — do you see any among them that are born mutilated) then the narrator (Abu Hurayrah) said (recite this Ayah),

﴿فِطْرَةَ اللَّهِ الَّتِى فَطَرَ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا لاَ تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ ذَلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ﴾

(Allah’s Fitrah with which He has created mankind. No change let there be in Allah’s Khalq, that is the straight religion.)” This was also recorded by Muslim.

﴿ذلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ﴾

(that is the straight religion,) means, adherence to the Shari`ah and the sound Fitrah is the true, straight religion.

﴿وَلَـكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لاَ يَعْلَمُونَ﴾

(but most men know not.) means, most people do not know this and they deviate far astray from it, as Allah says:

﴿وَمَآ أَكْثَرُ النَّاسِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتَ بِمُؤْمِنِينَ ﴾

(And most of mankind will not believe even if you desire it eagerly.) (12:103)

﴿وَإِن تُطِعْ أَكْثَرَ مَن فِى الاٌّرْضِ يُضِلُّوكَ عَن سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ﴾

(And if you obey most of those on the earth, they will mislead you far away from Allah’s path) (6:116).”

We need to be REALLY careful not to change the creation of Allah, because this is exactly what Shaytan (the devil) promised Allah that he would try to make us do.

وَمَن يُشَاقِقِ الرَّسُولَ مِن بَعْدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ الْهُدَىٰ وَيَتَّبِعْ غَيْرَ سَبِيلِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ نُوَلِّهِ مَا تَوَلَّىٰ وَنُصْلِهِ جَهَنَّمَ ۖوَسَاءَتْ مَصِيرًا

إِنَّ اللَّـهَ لَا يَغْفِرُ أَن يُشْرَكَ بِهِ وَيَغْفِرُ مَا دُونَ ذَٰلِكَ لِمَن يَشَاءُ ۚ وَمَن يُشْرِكْ بِاللَّـهِ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَالًا بَعِيدًا

إِن يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِ إِلَّا إِنَاثًا وَإِن يَدْعُونَ إِلَّا شَيْطَانًا

لَّعَنَهُ اللَّـهُ ۘ وَقَالَ لَأَتَّخِذَنَّ مِنْ عِبَادِكَ نَصِيبًا مَّفْرُوضًا

وَلَأُضِلَّنَّهُمْ وَلَأُمَنِّيَنَّهُمْ وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُبَتِّكُنَّ آذَانَ الْأَنْعَامِ وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُغَيِّرُنَّ خَلْقَ اللَّـهِ ۚ وَمَن يَتَّخِذِ الشَّيْطَانَ وَلِيًّا مِّن دُونِ اللَّـهِ فَقَدْ خَسِرَ خُسْرَانًا مُّبِينًا

يَعِدُهُمْ وَيُمَنِّيهِمْ ۖ وَمَا يَعِدُهُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ إِلَّا غُرُورًا

أُولَـٰئِكَ مَأْوَاهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ وَلَا يَجِدُونَ عَنْهَا مَحِيصًا

And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger (Muhammad) after the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the believers’ way. We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and burn him in Hell – what an evil destination. Verily! Allah forgives not (the sin of) setting up partners in worship with Him, but He forgives whom he pleases sins other than that, and whoever sets up partners in worship with Allah, has indeed strayed far away. 

They (all those who worship others than Allah) invoke nothing but female deities besides Him (Allah), and they invoke nothing but Shaitan (Satan), a persistent rebel! Allah cursed him. And he [Shaitan (Satan)] said: “I will take an appointed portion of your slaves; Verily, I will mislead them, and surely, I will arouse in them false desires; and certainly, I will order them to slit the ears of cattle, and indeed I will order them to change the nature created by Allah.” And whoever takes Shaitan as a Wali (protector or helper) instead of Allah, has surely suffered a manifest loss. 

He [Shaitan (Satan)] makes promises to them, and arouses in them false desires; and Shaitan’s promises are nothing but deceptions. The dwelling of such (people) is Hell, and they will find no way of escape from it. [Surah An-Nisaa (4) : 115-121]

Now, Shaikh Ibn Uthaimeen mentioned above that hair transplants are NOT considered changing the creation of Allah. What is the proof of that, one may ask?

Well, the proof is in the story itself. The fact that the angel restored the bald man’s hair shows that it can’t be considered changing the creation of Allah because the angels constantly worship Allah and they don’t disobey Him at all.

وَلِلَّـهِ يَسْجُدُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ مِن دَابَّةٍ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ وَهُمْ لَا يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ

يَخَافُونَ رَبَّهُم مِّن فَوْقِهِمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

And to Allah prostate all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth, of the live moving creatures and the angels, and they are not proud [i.e. they worship their Lord (Allah) with humility]. They fear their Lord above them, and they do what they are commanded. [Surah An-Nahl (16) : 49 – 50]

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُ عَلَيْهَا مَلَائِكَةٌ غِلَاظٌ شِدَادٌ لَّا يَعْصُونَ اللَّـهَ مَا أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

O you who believe! Ward off from yourselves and your families a Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones, over which are (appointed) angels stern (and) severe, who disobey not, (from executing) the Commands they receive from Allah, but do that which they are commanded. [Surah At-Tahreem (66) : 6]

وَقَالُوا اتَّخَذَ الرَّحْمَـٰنُ وَلَدًا ۗ سُبْحَانَهُ ۚ بَلْ عِبَادٌ مُّكْرَمُونَ

لَا يَسْبِقُونَهُ بِالْقَوْلِ وَهُم بِأَمْرِهِ يَعْمَلُونَ

And they say: “The Most Beneficent (Allah) has begotten a son (or children).” Glory to Him! They are but honoured slaves. They speak not until He has spoken, and they act on His Command. [Surah Al-Anbiya (21) : 26-27]

Ibn Kathir explained these two ayaat (verses) saying:

“Here Allah refutes those who claim that He has offspring among the angels — exalted and sanctified be He. Some of the Arabs believed that the angels were the daughters of Allah, but Allah says:

﴿سُبْحَانَهُ بَلْ عِبَادٌ مُّكْرَمُونَ﴾

(Glory to Him! They are but honored servants.) meaning, the angels are servants of Allah who are honored by Him and who hold high positions of noble status. They obey Him to the utmost in all their words and deeds.

﴿لاَ يَسْبِقُونَهُ بِالْقَوْلِ وَهُمْ بِأَمْرِهِ يَعْمَلُونَ ﴾

(They speak not until He has spoken, and they act on His command.) meaning, they do not initiate any matter before Him or go against His commands; on the contrary, they hasten to do as He commands, and He encompasses them with His knowledge so that nothing whatsoever is hidden from Him.”

So, as Ibn Uthaimeen said, restoring one’s hair is permissible. What’s interesting about this is that many people get mocked for getting hair transplants even though they are not changing the creation of Allah!

What’s even more interesting (or very sad, depending on which way you look at it, I suppose) is that many, many people indulge in things which ARE considered changing the creation of Allah – and nobody says anything to them.

That’s not good at all, especially given that those who do these acts (i.e. changing the creation of Allah) are cursed.

Some of these acts have been mentioned in various ahaadeeth.

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ لَعَنَ اللَّهُ الْوَاشِمَاتِ وَالْمُسْتَوْشِمَاتِ وَالنَّامِصَاتِ وَالْمُتَنَمِّصَاتِ وَالْمُتَفَلِّجَاتِ لِلْحُسْنِ الْمُغَيِّرَاتِ خَلْقَ اللَّهِ ‏.‏ قَالَ فَبَلَغَ ذَلِكَ امْرَأَةً مِنْ بَنِي أَسَدٍ يُقَالُ لَهَا أُمُّ يَعْقُوبَ وَكَانَتْ تَقْرَأُ الْقُرْآنَ فَأَتَتْهُ فَقَالَتْ مَا حَدِيثٌ بَلَغَنِي عَنْكَ أَنَّكَ لَعَنْتَ الْوَاشِمَاتِ وَالْمُسْتَوْشِمَاتِ وَالْمُتَنَمِّصَاتِ وَالْمُتَفَلِّجَاتِ لِلْحُسْنِ الْمُغَيِّرَاتِ خَلْقَ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ وَمَا لِيَ لاَ أَلْعَنُ مَنْ لَعَنَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَهُوَ فِي كِتَابِ اللَّهِ فَقَالَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ لَقَدْ قَرَأْتُ مَا بَيْنَ لَوْحَىِ الْمُصْحَفِ فَمَا وَجَدْتُهُ ‏.‏ فَقَالَ لَئِنْ كُنْتِ قَرَأْتِيهِ لَقَدْ وَجَدْتِيهِ قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ‏{‏ وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانْتَهُوا‏}‏ فَقَالَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ فَإِنِّي أَرَى شَيْئًا مِنْ هَذَا عَلَى امْرَأَتِكَ الآنَ ‏.‏ قَالَ اذْهَبِي فَانْظُرِي ‏.‏ قَالَ فَدَخَلَتْ عَلَى امْرَأَةِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ فَلَمْ تَرَ شَيْئًا فَجَاءَتْ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَتْ مَا رَأَيْتُ شَيْئًا ‏.‏ فَقَالَ أَمَا لَوْ كَانَ ذَلِكِ لَمْ نُجَامِعْهَا

Abdullah [Ibn Masud] (radiallahu anhu) said: “May Allah curse the one who does tattoos and the one who has a tattoo done, the one who plucks eyebrows and the one who has her eyebrows plucked, and those who file teeth for the purpose of beautification, changing the creation of Allah.”

This news reached a woman of the tribe of Asad who was called Umm Yaqub and she used to recite the Quran. She came to him and said: “What is this news that has reached me from you that you curse those women who tattooed and those women who have themselves tattooed, the women who pluck hair their eyebrows and those who make spaces between their teeth for beautification changing what Allah has created? Thereupon Abdullah (radiallahu anhu) said: Should I not curse one upon whom Allah’s Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) has invoked curse and that is in the Book also.

Thereupon that woman said: I read the Quran from cover to cover, but I did not find that in it, whereupon he said: If you had read (thoroughly) you would have definitely found this in that (as) Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, has said:

وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُوا ۚ

And whatsoever the Messenger (Muhammad) gives you, take it, and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it). [Surah Al-Hashr (59) : 7]

That woman said: I find this thing in your wife even now. Thereupon he said: Go and see her. She reported: I went to the wife of Abdullah but found nothing of this sort in her. She came back to him and said: I have not seen anything. whereupon he said: Had there been anything like it in her, I would have never slept with her in the bed. [Sahih Muslim, Hadeeth No. 5301]

عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ :‏ لَعَنَ اللَّهُ الْوَاصِلَةَ وَالْمُسْتَوْصِلَةَ، وَالْوَاشِمَةَ وَالْمُسْتَوْشِمَةَ ‏

Narrated Ibn Umar (radiallahu anhuma): Allah’s Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “Allah has cursed such a lady as lengthens (her or someone else’s) hair artificially or gets it lengthened, and also a lady who tattoos (herself or someone else) or gets herself tattooed. [Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 7, Hadeeth No. 820]

So, let’s summarise those mentioned in the above ahadeeth:

• The one who puts tattoos on others
• The one who gets herself tattooed
• The one who plucks other’s eyebrows
• The one who gets her own eyebrow’s plucked
• The one who makes spaces between her teeth, for the purpose of beautification
• The one who puts hair extensions on others
• The one who gets hair extensions

[Please note that although the ahadeeth mentions women, all of this applies to men as well. Any man who does any of these things also falls under this category. Also, there are many other acts which occur today that are considered changing creation but are not in the above list e.g. plastic surgery and gender reassignment surgery].

There are so many women today who are guilty of doing at least one of the above. And what’s really sad is that they don’t realise that they are committing a major sin!

On top of that, they are helping fulfill Shaytan’s (the devil) promise.

وَلَأُضِلَّنَّهُمْ وَلَأُمَنِّيَنَّهُمْ وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُبَتِّكُنَّ آذَانَ الْأَنْعَامِ وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُغَيِّرُنَّ خَلْقَ اللَّـهِ ۚ وَمَن يَتَّخِذِ الشَّيْطَانَ وَلِيًّا مِّن دُونِ اللَّـهِ فَقَدْ خَسِرَ خُسْرَانًا مُّبِينًا

“Verily, I will mislead them, and surely, I will arouse in them false desires; and certainly, I will order them to slit the ears of cattle, and indeed I will order them to change the nature created by Allah.” And whoever takes Shaitan (Satan) as a Wali (protector or helper) instead of Allah, has surely suffered a manifest loss. [Surah An-Nisaa (4) : 119]

Ibn Kathir explained this ayah (verse) saying:

﴿وَلأضِلَّنَّهُمْ﴾

“(Verily, I will mislead them) from the true path,

﴿وَلأُمَنِّيَنَّهُمْ﴾

(and surely, I will arouse in them false desires;) tempting them to feign repentance, arousing false hopes in them, encouraging them to delay and procrastinate with righteous deeds, deceiving them.

﴿وَلاّمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُبَتِّكُنَّ ءَاذَانَ الاٌّنْعَـمِ﴾

(and certainly, I will order them to slit the ears of cattle,) meaning, slitting their ears to designate them as Bahirah, Saibah, and a Wasilah, as Qatadah and As-Suddi stated.

﴿وَلاّمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُغَيِّرُنَّ خَلْقَ اللَّهِ﴾

(And indeed I will order them to change the nature created by Allah.) means tattooing, according to Al-Hasan bin Abi Al-Hasan Al-Basri. In his Sahih, Muslim recorded the prohibition of tattooing the face, which in one of its wordings states: “May Allah curse whoever does this.” It is also recorded in the Sahih that Ibn Masud said, “May Allah curse those who have tattoos and those who do it, who pluck their (facial) hairs and the one who does it for them, and those who make spaces between their teeth for the purpose of beauty, changing what Allah has created.” He then said, “Why should not I curse whom the Messenger of Allah has cursed, when the Book of Allah commands it,” referring to the Ayah,

﴿وَمَآ ءَاتَـكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَـكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُواْ﴾

(And whatsoever the Messenger gives you, take it; and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it)). Allah’s statement,

﴿وَمَن يَتَّخِذِ الشَّيْطَـنَ وَلِيّاً مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ فَقَدْ خَسِرَ خُسْرَاناً مُّبِيناً﴾

(And whoever takes Shaytan as a Wali (protector or helper) instead of Allah, has surely suffered a manifest loss.) means, he will have lost this life and the Hereafter. Indeed, this is a type of loss that cannot be compensated or restored.”

As if that wasn’t enough, these women are also cursed. What does that mean exactly?

Shaikh Saalih Al-Munajjid said:

“Being cursed means being cast far away from goodness. And it was said that being cursed by Allah means being cast far away from Him, and being cursed by people means being reviled and prayed against by them. Everyone whom Allah has cursed is far away from His mercy and deserves punishment, so he is doomed. 

End quote from Lisaan al-‘Arab, 13/387-388 

The one who is cursed is either a kaafir, who is cast far away from the mercy of Allah, to the punishment of Allah, or he is a Muslim but he did an action for which he deserves to be cursed, such as drinking alcohol, consuming riba (usury), reviling his parents and other grave sins. This cursing only results from major sins, but that does not mean that he will abide in Hell for eternity, because if one who believes in Tawheed dies believing in Tawheed and as a Muslim, even if he enters Hell for sins he committed, he will not remain there for eternity. This is the view of Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa‘ah. 

Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

Being cursed means being cast far away from the mercy of Allah; there is no curse for doing any action except major sins. Hence the scholars said: everything for which the punishment is being cursed is a major sin. 

End quote from Duroos wa Fataawa al-Haram al-Madani, p. 57″

He also said:

“The curse of Allah upon those of His slaves who deserve it means His diverting that person away from the path of true guidance towards the path of misguidance and evil, or His uttering what this person deserves of a curse and mentioning this person by way of cursing him. 

This curse has nothing to do with a sign or symbol that appears on a person or that appears to him, such as something coming down to him from the sky that is indicative of this curse, or something appearing in his form or image, or his seeing something that is indicative of this curse, and other such illusions. It also has nothing to do with any kind of insanity or leprosy or other kind of illness befalling him. The curse is a shar‘i ruling that has to do with the person’s religious commitment in this world and his fate with his Lord in the Hereafter. It may seem to you that a person is living the most luxurious life and the finest life in terms of outward appearances, but he is cursed before Allah and cast out from His mercy. And it may seem to you that a person has the lowest standing among the people and the hardest life; he may seem to be the unluckiest or the most unkempt in outward appearance, but before Allah he is one of those who are saved and victorious, upon whom mercy is bestowed.”

Subhan Allah, isn’t that a terrible situation to be in? To be cursed by Allah and be away from His Mercy? So, isn’t it time for these women who do all these things to stop that and repent to Allah?

And no, there’s no point in fooling oneself and saying things like “Oh but that’s just eyebrow cleaning” or “But my husband asked me to do this” or “Allah knows what is in my heart.” As I always used to tell my students, we can fool ourselves but we can never fool Allah.

So, the above group of people are those who DO try change the creation of Allah. As I mentioned earlier, the people who get hair transplants done to restore their hair don’t fall into this category.

Now, in the main story, the bald man felt people were repulsed by him, which is why he asked for good hair.

He wasn’t the only one to suffer due to hair loss. A lot of brothers today (and some sisters as well) have a problem with it as well. Some of them even start getting extremely depressed as a result of it. I think it’s because they start viewing themselves as “less” and their self-confidence erodes. The unmarried brothers from amongst them also seem to think that this affects their changes of getting married. [I personally don’t think that it does given that many women don’t care all that much about hair. They just want a nice guy who will treat them well. Also, there are quite a few women who find bald men more attractive that those with a head full of hair.]

So, what should such brothers (and sisters) do?

Firstly, one needs to do lots of dua (supplication) to cause their hair to be restored. Many people seem to forget to do dua when they want something and that’s not correct. Dua can open so many doors so one needs to do it as much as possible.

The three men asked the angel for what they wanted. Some people might think that they can’t get their hair restored to its original state because no angel showed up at their doorstep. What they don’t realise is that the Lord of all the angels hears their pleas and responds to them. So always remember to ask Allah for what you want.

Secondly, they need to understand that this is a test from Allah and that they need to be patient.

لَتُبْلَوُنَّ فِي أَمْوَالِكُمْ وَأَنفُسِكُمْ وَلَتَسْمَعُنَّ مِنَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ وَمِنَ الَّذِينَ أَشْرَ‌كُوا أَذًى كَثِيرً‌ا ۚ وَإِن تَصْبِرُ‌وا وَتَتَّقُوا فَإِنَّ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ عَزْمِ الْأُمُورِ

‌You shall certainly be tried and tested in your wealth and properties and in your personal selves, and you shall certainly hear much that will grieve you from those who received the Scripture before you (Jews and Christians) and from those who ascribe partners to Allah, but if you persevere patiently, and become Al-Muttaqoon (the pious) then verily, that will be a determining factor in all affairs, and that is from the great matters, [which you must hold on with all your efforts]. [Surah Aal-Imran (3) : 186]

وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُم بِشَيْءٍ مِّنَ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِّنَ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَنفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَ‌اتِ ۗ وَبَشِّرِ‌ الصَّابِرِ‌ينَ

الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُم مُّصِيبَةٌ قَالُوا إِنَّا لِلَّـهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَ‌اجِعُونَ

أُولَـٰئِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَلَوَاتٌ مِّن رَّ‌بِّهِمْ وَرَ‌حْمَةٌ ۖ وَأُولَـٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُهْتَدُونَ

And certainly, We shall test you with something of fear, hunger, loss of wealth, lives and fruits, but give glad tidings to As-Saabireen (the patient ones, etc.), who, when afflicted with calamity, say: “Truly! To Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.” They are those on whom are the Salawaat (i.e. blessings, etc.) (i.e. who are blessed and will be forgiven) from their Lord, and (they are those who) receive His Mercy, and it is they who are the guided-ones. [Surah Al-Baqarah (2) : 155-157]

Thirdly, one should not just focus on this one thing that they don’t have but rather look at all the blessings that they DO have. Remember, the mistake that two of the men made was that they did NOT attribute the Favours of Allah to Him. So we shouldn’t be like that. We need to be thankful to Allah for all that He has given us.

Those who are thankful to Allah, will get more of His Blessings.

وَإِذْ تَأَذَّنَ رَبُّكُمْ لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ ۖ وَلَئِن كَفَرْتُمْ إِنَّ عَذَابِي لَشَدِيدٌ

And (remember) when your Lord proclaimed: “If you give thanks (by accepting Faith and worshipping none but Allah), I will give you more (of My Blessings), but if you are thankless (i.e. disbelievers), verily! My Punishment is indeed severe.” [Surah Ibrahim (14) : 7]

Being thankful and patient will also stop people from falling into depression and losing self-confidence.

Also, many a time, this depression and lack of self-confidence is what keeps people away – not the hair loss itself.

One of my classmates once pointed out something very interesting in this story. She said that the leper and bald man put the blame on the people (for being repulsed) and did not look at themselves. It’s a topic worth pondering over: Were the people around them repulsed by the way they looked or the way they behaved? I suspect it might be the latter.

So, one should try to avoid being the epitome of misery regardless of what problems they face.

Fourthly, another thing that one should be thankful for is that hair transplants are both permissible and available. If they had been forbidden, then one could not have undergone these procedures. If they had not existed (as was the case in the recent past), one would not have had this option with which to restore one’s hair. This is something to ponder over.

Fifthly, before attempting to have a hair transplant done, one should first try simpler means. There are various medicines and lotions available. Also, sometimes, one’s diet could cause problems.

There is a man called Yuri Elkaim who lost all his hair in his teens. It turned out that he had an autoimmune disorder. He then changed his diet and got his hair back. Many years later, he lost it again due to the stress of having his first child. Those who have suffered sudden hair loss might want to google him to see if they might have the same problem.

Sixthly, if one can afford to have a hair transplant, one should be grateful for that fact and not behave like Qarun and attribute one’s earnings to oneself. After all, if a person can afford something, it is a blessing from Allah.

Also, one should do istikharah (the prayer for guidance) and check with the people of knowledge about the details of the operation (to make sure that it is completely permissible). If the transplant works, then one should be grateful to Allah. Otherwise, one will have something in common with the ungrateful bald man mentioned in the story.

If the transplant doesn’t work, then one needs to be patient and understand that this is what was written for him or her.

Lastly, if one cannot afford the transplant at present, one should see if it is possible to save up for it. If not, then one shouldn’t waste time thinking about it. One needs to move on with life and focus on attaining Paradise. After all, that’s one place where nobody is going to have this or any other type of problem.

Remember, we were created to worship Allah so this is what we need to do. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what circumstances we have but rather what is important is how we USE those circumstances to get closer to Allah.

If we have good circumstances, we need to increase in gratitude to Allah and realise that it is a blessing from Him (and not something that we “deserve”). If we have “bad” circumstances, we need to be patient. And that’s the life of a believer.

عَنْ صُهَيْبٍ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ :‏ عَجَبًا لأَمْرِ الْمُؤْمِنِ إِنَّ أَمْرَهُ كُلَّهُ خَيْرٌ وَلَيْسَ ذَاكَ لأَحَدٍ إِلاَّ لِلْمُؤْمِنِ إِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ سَرَّاءُ شَكَرَ فَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَهُ وَإِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ ضَرَّاءُ صَبَرَ فَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَهُ ‏

Suhaib (radiallahu anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “How wonderful is the case of a believer; there is good for him in everything and this applies only to a believer. If prosperity attends him, he expresses gratitude to Allah and that is good for him; and if adversity befalls him, he endures it patiently and that is better for him.” [Sahih Muslim, Hadeeth No. 7138]

Subhan Allah, if we look at our lives, we don’t really spend much time worshipping Allah. Compare this to the angels who are ALWAYS worshipping Allah.

وَلَهُ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۚ وَمَنْ عِندَهُ لَا يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِهِ وَلَا يَسْتَحْسِرُونَ

يُسَبِّحُونَ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ لَا يَفْتُرُونَ

To Him belongs whosoever is in the heavens and on earth. And those who are near Him (i.e. the angels) are not too proud to worship Him, nor are they weary (of His worship). They (i.e. the angels) glorify His Praises night and day, (and) they never slacken (to do so). [Surah Al-Anbiya (21) : 19-20]

وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ اللَّيْلُ وَالنَّهَارُ وَالشَّمْسُ وَالْقَمَرُ ۚ لَا تَسْجُدُوا لِلشَّمْسِ وَلَا لِلْقَمَرِ وَاسْجُدُوا لِلَّـهِ الَّذِي خَلَقَهُنَّ إِن كُنتُمْ إِيَّاهُ تَعْبُدُونَ

فَإِنِ اسْتَكْبَرُوا فَالَّذِينَ عِندَ رَبِّكَ يُسَبِّحُونَ لَهُ بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ وَهُمْ لَا يَسْأَمُونَ

And from among His Signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. Prostrate not to the sun nor to the moon, but prostrate to Allah Who created them, if you (really) worship Him. But if they are too proud (to do so), then there are those who are with your Lord (angels) glorify Him night and day, and never are they tired. [Surah Fussilat (41) : 37 – 38]

They do all this and guess what? They will still say that this was not enough!

عن سلمان رضي الله عنه عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: يُوضَعُ الميزانُ يومَ القيامةِ ، فلو وُزِنَ فيه السمواتُ والأرضُ لوَسِعَت ، فتقول الملائكةُ : يا ربِّ ! لمن يَزِنُ هذا ؟ فيقولُ اللهُ تعالى : لمن شئتُ مِن خلقي ، فيقولون : سبحانك ! ما عبدْناك حقَّ عبادَتِك

Salman (radiallahu anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “The Balance will be set up on the Day of Resurrection, and even if the heavens and the earth were to be weighed in it, they would fit. The angels will say, ‘O Lord! Who will be weighed in this?’ Allah, the Most High, will say, ‘Whoever I will among My creation.’ The angels will say, ‘Glory be to You. We did not worship You as You deserved to be worshipped.’” [Sahih At-Targheeb wat-Tarheeb, Hadeeth No. 3626]

If this is their state, then what about us? Shouldn’t we worship Allah more than we do now? Shouldn’t we be grateful for all the blessings that He has granted us rather than assume that we “deserve” them?

Imagine that an angel was sent to test one of us. How would he find us? Grateful or ungrateful?

That’s something that each of us needs to think about.

angelsgratitudehair transplants