Sins and Repentance

SINS AND REPENTANCE

Shahr bin Hawshab reporting from Abu Hurayra said: Hazrat Eesa (Jesus) was sitting with his disciples when an eagle whose wings were adorned with pearls and rubies landed near them. That eagle had a fascinating beauty that they had never seen before. Hazrat Eesa said, "Pay attention to that eagle; keep your eyes on it. It came here to teach us something.

Suddenly, the skin of the eagle began to be peeled and the fascinating beauty began to disappear. Soon, a terrifying black beast with almost no feathers appeared. Everybody became scared of it; they were disgusted with the animal that they had loved and admired a few minutes before. After a while, the animal went to the water nearby and cleaned itself with water and regained its former beauty again. It became an eagle with its feathers, dazzling wings with pearls and rubies again. The Hazrat Eesa told his disciples, “That was the lesson for you." When the disciples asked how, Hazrat Eesa stated the following: "If a believer does not commit sins and if he fulfills his worshipping, he becomes like the first state of the eagle; everybody likes him and wants to become like him. When he commits sins and disobeys Allah, his beauty disappears and he becomes ugly. If the believer washes his sins with the water of genuine repentance, he regains his former state and becomes beautiful just like that eagle. It is because Allah accepts the repentance of the people who repent."