al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn Abi al-Dunya

al-Hamm wa al-Huzn (Worry and Sorrow) is an ascetic and devotional treatise by the Baghdad-based traditionist Ibn Abi al-Dunya (208–281 AH / 823–894 CE), focusing on the spiritual nature of grief, anxiety, and distress in Islam and their role in expiating sins and refining the heart Husn al-Samt fi al-Samt+2.

Subject and Content

The work compiles prophetic traditions (hadith), accounts of earlier prophets, and sayings of the Companions and early ascetics (salaf) regarding grief (huzn), anxiety (hamm), and sadness (gham) al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn…+1. Among its principal themes are:

• Expiation of Sins: Narrations illustrating that sorrow and emotional distress serve as divine trials that remit transgressions, including the report: إذا كثرت ذنوب العبد ولم يكن له ما يكفرها، ابتلاه الله بالحزن ليكفرها عنه ("When a servant’s sins become numerous and he has nothing to expiate them, God afflicts him with sorrow to expiate them for him") al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn….
• Narratives of Prophets and Ascetics: Reports concerning Adam's grief upon leaving Paradise al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn…, as well as accounts of early pious figures—such as Al-Hasan al-Basri and 'Ata' al-Sulaymi—whose intense contemplation of death, the grave, and the Day of Judgment induced profound spiritual sorrow al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn…+1.
• Worldly vs. Otherworldly Sorrow: Maxims distinguishing between sorrow over missed religious deeds—such as missing congregational prayer—which brings reward al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn…, and worldly grief, noting that genuine sorrow for the Hereafter purifies action al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn….
• Quranic Exegesis: Explanations of verses addressing the removal of sorrow in the afterlife, such as the statement of the people of Paradise in Surah Fatir: الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي أَذْهَبَ عَنَّا الْحَزَنَ ("Praise be to God, who has removed from us all sorrow") al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn….
• Supplication and Tears: Narrations on the efficacy of prayers stirred by genuine distress and the spiritual relief brought by weeping out of reverence and fear of God al-Hamm wa al-Huzn li-Ibn…+1.

Transmission and Editions

The book was preserved and transmitted through classical chains of narration, most notably through Ibn Abi al-Dunya's student Abu 'Ali al-Husayn ibn Safwan al-Bardha'i, and documented in transmission bibliographies such as al-Mu'jam al-Mufahras by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani al-Mujam al-Mufahras = Ta…. Some later scholars also cited it under the shortened title Kitab al-Huzn Husn al-Tanabbuh lima war…. In modern print, the text has been edited by Majdi al-Sayyid and published by Dar al-Salam in Cairo Ujala al-Raghib al-Mutama….