Where the story is told

This story is not in the Quran. It is an authentic hadith that the Prophet ﷺ narrated about a man from earlier times. It is found in Sahih al-Bukhari 3470 and in Sahih Muslim 2766, both through Abu Sa'id al-Khudri.

Sahih al-Bukhari says he was among the Children of Israel. Sahih Muslim says he was among those who lived before us. The two narrations differ a little in wording, and Sahih Muslim gives more details. The story below follows both.

The man, the monk and the scholar

The Prophet ﷺ said that a man had killed ninety-nine people. He then asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was directed to a monk. He told the monk that he had killed ninety-nine people and asked whether there was repentance for him. The monk said no, so the man killed him and completed one hundred.

He then asked again about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was directed to a scholar. He told him that he had killed one hundred people and asked whether he could repent. The scholar said yes, and asked who could stand between him and repentance.

The scholar then gave him two pieces of advice. He told him to go to a certain land where there were people who worshipped Allah, and to worship Allah with them. And he told him not to return to his own land, because it was a land of evil (Sahih Muslim 2766).

The journey and the death

The man set out. When he had gone halfway, death came to him. As he died, he turned his chest toward the land he was heading to, according to Sahih al-Bukhari 3470 and Sahih Muslim 2766.

The angels of mercy and the angels of punishment then disputed over him. The angels of mercy said that he came repentant, turning with his heart to Allah. The angels of punishment said that he had never done any good (Sahih Muslim 2766).

The judgment and the forgiveness

In Sahih Muslim 2766, an angel came to them in the form of a man and they made him a judge between them. He told them to measure the distance between the two lands, and whichever he was closer to would be his. They measured and found him closer to the land he had been heading to, so the angels of mercy took him.

In Sahih al-Bukhari 3470, Allah commanded the land of the righteous to come closer and the other land to move away, and then told the angels to measure. The man was found to be closer to the land of the righteous by a hand span, and he was forgiven. Another narration in Sahih Muslim mentions the same hand span and says he was counted among the people of that village.

What the hadith does not tell us

The hadith does not give the man's name, the names of the lands, the period in which he lived or the way he committed his crimes. We should not add such details. The hadith teaches the great mercy of Allah toward the one who turns to Him with a sincere heart, and the Quran says in the meaning of 39:53: Do not despair of the mercy of Allah, Allah forgives all sins.

Lessons from this story

  • The door of repentance is wide. The scholar said that nothing stands between a person and repentance when he sincerely turns to Allah.
  • Do not despair of Allah's mercy, whatever the past was. Quran 39:53 tells those who have wronged themselves not to lose hope.
  • The words of a person without knowledge can harm. The monk told the man there was no repentance, and he was wrong.
  • A scholar helps a person return to Allah. The knowledgeable man gave kind and clear advice and a practical way forward.
  • Good company supports repentance. He was told to go to a land where people worship Allah and to worship with them.
  • Leaving the place and the circle of sin helps a person stay firm. He was told not to go back to his own land, because it was a land of evil.

General information for learning, not a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar.

Sources