Losers Can Be Gainers

This hadith is a stern warning to all those who treat others with cruelty, who commit acts of misappropriation and usurpation, and who indulge in calumny and defamation. Even the virtues of such individuals will not stand them in good stead on the Day of Judgement. And if, on that day, they can give no evidence of having performed good deeds, they will be fated to bear the burden of others’ sins along with their own. Conversely, this hadith gives consolation to the oppressed. Those who have been treated unjustly may live in the expectation that their sins will be transferred to their oppressors, while they themselves, rid of all that burden, will be allowed to enter heaven. But it should be borne in mind that this blessing will await only those who remained patient under oppression for the sake of God.