Bayna’l Khawf Ve’r Raja – Between Hope and Fear
This is a term of Aqeedah, belief system and it means to strike a balance of “hope and fear” while one spirit’s journey on the path to Allah.
Khawf means fear, raja means hope. One should have a balance of both, neither should dominate the soul. There should be room for both feelings.
It is suggested in the Holy Quran:
Say: “O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Az-Zumar, 39/53)
Their limbs do forsake their beds of sleep, the while they call on their Lord, in Fear and Hope: and they spend (in charity) out of the sustenance which We have bestowed on them. (As-Sajda 32/16)
Prophet Muhammad (saw) says in a hadith:
‘Ala’ reported on the authority of his father who reported on the authority of Abu Huraira that Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: If a believer were to know the punishment (in Hell) none would have the audacity to aspire for Paradise (but he would earnestly desire to be rescued from Hell), and if a non-believer were to know what is there with Allah as a mercy. none would have been disappointed in regard to Paradise. (Muslim- Kitap Al-Tauba, Book 37, Number 6636)
Imam Nevevi said “A person’s hopefulness and fear from Allah(j.j) should be equal to each other in amount”
Here the fear from Allah(j.j) is related with future. A person is fearful of events to unfold in the future that are unpleasant or he is afraid not being able to achieve something desired, according to sufi scholar Qushayri.
“Being hopeful” means a soul’s intention towards something that he wants to achieve in the future.
Receiving a pleasant thing and avoiding an unpleasant one, can happen only through Allah’s(j.j) will so therefore, the person has to have a balance of both fear and hope feeling towards Him.
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