He caused some kittens to die – will his repentance be accepted?
Question I live in an apartment building and in my apartment I left one of the windows open. A cat gave birth to four kittens, and I spoke to my father about these kittens and he told me to keep them for a while until the kittens got a little bigger and could fend for…
Question
This happened although I knew the hadeeth of the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) about the woman who entered Hell because of a cat, but I still left them and went away from that place for three days.
What has happened now is that after I came back, I found that the kittens are not there, and their mother is looking for them. It seems that they fell into the drains of the building.
What is the ruling on me in this case, as I could have prevented that and saved these kittens, and that would not have cost me anything, and I also went against my father’s advice? Am I a sinner? What should I do to expiate for my sin? Please advise me, may Allaah have mercy on you and reward you. I feel very depressed and I cannot enjoy life. I am just waiting for death so that I can find some relief from these feelings. All the time I think about these kittens and I think they never harmed me but I killed them, so I will go to Hell like that women in the hadeeth.
I have become depressed and have no enthusiasm for anything I do. I do not find any joy in anything. I wish that I could turn back the clock. I feel so lost and helpless. I will never forget this incident and the pain it has caused me, in this world or in the Hereafter.
Praise be to Allah.
Allaah has
enjoined kindness in all things, as it says in the hadeeth: “Allaah is Kind
and He loves kindness in all things.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5678) and
Muslim (2165).
Muslim
(2592) narrated that Jareer (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: I heard
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “Whoever
is deprived of kindness is deprived of goodness.”
Remember
that whoever has any kind of animals must protect them and give them food
and water. It is not permissible for him to expose them to danger. In the
hadeeth that you referred to, the Messenger (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) told us that a woman entered Hell because of a cat that
she detained and did not feed it or let it eat from the vermin of the earth,
i.e., insects. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (2365) and Muslim (904).
It was
narrated that ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) said:
We were with the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) on a journey, and he went to relieve himself. We saw a bird with
two chicks and we took away her chicks, and the bird started flapping her
wings. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came and
said: “Who has upset this bird by taking her children? Give her children
back to her.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (2675); classed as saheeh by Shaykh
al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
The point is
that whomever Allaah has given any of these animals to look after, such as
if they are in his care or he is raising them and keeping them for some
need, then he must look after them and treat them kindly.
Based on
that, then you have to repent to Allaah for several reasons:
1 –
Disobeying your parents whom Allaah has commanded you to honour and obey so
long as there is no sin involved in doing so.
2 – These
kittens were in your care but you failed to look after them, and that led to
their death.
3 – You
upset their mother by separating her and her children, then her little ones
died.
Undoubtedly
the feelings of sin that you describe indicate that your heart is alive and
that you have sincere feelings of regret for what you have done.
But perhaps
that has gone too far, such that you feel despair, and this undoubtedly is
not permissible, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Say: O
‘Ibaadi (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves (by committing
evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of Allaah, verily, Allaah
forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”
[al-Zumar
39:53]
What about
the vastness of Allaah’s mercy, which encompasses all things? What about
Allaah’s acceptance of His slaves’ repentance, even from major sins?
The Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told us of a man who killed
ninety-nine people, then he killed a devoted worshipper, thus completing one
hundred, then he repented sincerely and Allaah accepted his repentance – as
is narrated in al-Saheehayn. What is your sin in comparison to his?
He killed one hundred people then repented, and Allaah accepted his
repentance. So you have no right to despair of the forgiveness and mercy of
Allaah. Do righteous deeds and always remember the words of Allaah , may He
be exalted: “Verily, the good deeds remove the evil deeds” [Hood 11:114].
And Allaah knows best.
