As this life is a trial for man, he
has to face circumstances of varying nature designed to test the veracity
of his claim that he believes in God and also to cleanse him of undesirable
immoral characteristics. The meticulous details of this trial for each
person are undeniably prefigured. This should ensure us that the trial
in question would be carried out in the most appropriate and befitting
manner. In other words, since the scheme of this trial is designed by the
Most Wise, it can never be unfair. Being engulfed by adversities—an essential
element of this trial—man is, however, prone to forget this indisputable
reality i.e. the trial of life is fair no matter how tremendous the adversities
that befall us. He needs to know that this trial presupposes certain immutable
facts that conform to sense and reason and accord with perfect justice.
Losing sight of these facts means to lose strength and courage to fight
trying circumstances. What follows is a brief note meant to elucidate these
facts so that we refresh our knowledge in this respect and thus consolidate
our faith in order to combat adverse circumstances.
Allah is not our Enemy
The foremost thing we must bear in
mind is that Allah does not harbor hostility against us. He does not raise
obstacles in our way because—May Allah forgive me—He bears grudges or strong
resentment to us nor is it that He despises our very existence so much
as to do away with it.
He has presented Himself as a friend
of mankind; and as good friends usually do, He warns us of our foremost
enemy, Satan, lest we should let ourselves be carried away by his illusive
promises. Similarly, it is evidently clear that Allah does not take any
step without giving respite to His servants. He has asserted the fact that
if He were to catch everyone guilty of committing sins right on the spot,
none from the progeny of Adam (sws) would remain protected. He has indeed
devised the law of giving respite to the sinners. He in fact awards reprieve
to each wrong doer in order to allow him to repent for his sins and mend
his ways. If it were not for this allowance, we would have been punished
as soon as we erred.
Allah is our well-wisher and great
friend too. However, He should not be taken as a friend who maintains unprincipled
friendship and continues to support His friends even when they do mischief.
On the contrary, He is a sincere friend; instead of helping us transgress
moral limits, He is always there to guide us to the right path. In addition
to sending us various Prophets and awarding us Divine Books, He has designed
a world of comfort and difficulty to teach us and help us remain steadfast
on the right path.
We must also know that Allah is not
how the Jews endeavored to portray Him. They suffered from the illusions
that since they were the descendents of the righteous Prophets of Allah;
they were entitled to cross the threshold of Paradise no matter how immoral
life they would lead. And if, in all probability, they were cast into Hell,
they would not stay there but for a few days. The Almighty has rebutted
their misconception and has termed this: Al-Had Fi Al-sifat (denying
the essential attributes of the Lord)—a term which implies that this is
as heinous a crime as associating partners with Him.
Allah does not burden us beyond our Capacity
The second fact we ought to always
keep in view is that Allah burdens us with only those responsibilities
that we can easily discharge; they are never of such high intensity as
to make us lose our faith. The Holy Qur’an has elucidated this fact
in the words that follow:
We task not any soul beyond its capacity. (7:152)
Obviously, if this sublime principle had
been overlooked, the entire scheme of test and trial would have become
an act of tyranny and oppression. Keeping this premise in mind about the
Shari‘ah, we can safely conclude that Allah will adhere to this
principle regarding other tests of life as well. His attributes definitely
negate the very notion that He overburdens us just to shake our strength
and shatter our hopes. Therefore, the underlying purpose behind every seemingly
astronomical adversity is to test us; the Almighty never aims at exasperating
us through adversities.
Adversities are not meant to deprive us of our Faith
As an offshoot of the principle delineated
above, what comes to light is that Allah does not create troubles for us
in order to divest us of our faith. The Holy Qur’an has also shed
light on this principle: it was put forth before the Muslims and the Jews,
at the time when the directive regarding change of Qiblah (i.e.
the direction toward which Muslims stand and offer prayer) was given, that
Allah did not want that their faith should go in vain.
And it was not Allah’s purpose to divest you
of your faith. He is full of pity, merciful toward mankind. (2:143)
Kindness is hidden under the Veil of Troubles
The fourth fact that we must be very
clear about is that hardships indeed bring to our life many promising opportunities
as well. Sometimes, we encounter these opportunities along with the hardships;
and sometimes, after the tough period of trial is over.
Allah, on the basis of His all embracing
wisdom and sagacity, has fashioned this world in pairs. We may observe
this phenomenon in everything that we come across. Without night, the mere
idea of daylight is not only inconceivable but meaningless as well. Similarly,
many potential opportunities come to our way only after we face various
hardships. For instance, a woman has to endure excruciating labor before
she is blessed with a beautiful baby; a student acquires his degree after
working hard for a considerably long period of time; an exhorter to the
path of truth only succeeds after investing his best efforts in his mission
for a long period of time.
Likewise, a person only becomes eligible
to enter Paradise after facing full-blown adversities and troubles. The
Holy Qur’an says:
You think that you will enter Paradise while
there has not yet come to you the like of [that which came to] those who
passed away before you? Affliction and adversity befell them; they were
shaken as with earthquake, till the Messenger [of Allah] and those who
believed along with him said: ‘when comes Allah’s help?’ Now surely Allah’s
help is near. (2:214)
In short, it is the established practice
of the Almighty that He, before blessing a person with another bounty or
instilling within him new ability and skill, tries him by testing him with
hardships and adversities. However, the implied objective evidently is
to make him eligible to receive divine favors.
Allah helps us during Hardships
The fifth fact which should be deep-rooted
within our heart and soul is that Allah does not forget His servants after
they are engulfed by troubles. On the contrary, He keeps watching over
them and comes forward to help them with all His armies when they call
upon Him. When Zulaykha tried to captivate Joseph (sws) by her ravishing
beauty, the Almighty hastened to help him. Similarly, the Ever Merciful
helps His servants whenever troubles envelop them. However, the provision
of this help hinges upon one divinely ordained clause: a believer must
try his utmost and spend his last particle of energy to fight tough circumstances,
then the help of Allah will descend down upon him and he will be sifted
out of the tough situation.
The Holy Qur’an has unveiled
the emotions of the Prophet Moses’ (sws) mother when she cast him into
the river. If she had failed to compose herself and then refused to undertake
the great task, it would have been eventually disclosed that Moses (sws)
was among the slaves of Israelites. Consequently, he would have been put
to death. But Allah helped his mother demonstrate perseverance. He, in
addition, consoled her that His help was meant to fortify her heart so
that she might be of the believers. (28:10)
Allah is Merciful
One after the other, a series of egregious
mistakes emanates from us but He, the Merciful, keeps ignoring them. Like
a true mentor, He reprimands us such that He creates some hardships for
us in order to save us from going completely astray. He, sometimes, reveals
our mistakes to others as well. The objective is to teach us that we had
better mend our ways. This retribution continues to take place; if the
person pays heed to the calls of his conscience, he feels contrite and
seeks the forgiveness of the Almighty, which is readily granted by the
Ever Merciful. In case, the person neither feels remorseful nor does he
turn to His Lord for forgiveness; then his reins in the realm of evil are
let loose. He is given a further period of respite. This respite provides
him with two opportunities: he may of his own volition turn back to His
Lord or may prefer to move further ahead on the evil route that he has
selected for himself. For the extent of his transgression, Allah however
has marked a manifest line. In case, he becomes as daring as to touch the
borderline, he is deprived of the essence of his hearing, seeing and reasoning
faculties; so no admonition would now make way to his heart.
This does not happen in a day or two.
Allah decides this matter adhering to the virtues of tolerance. The decision
is actually arrived at after taking into account the special circumstances
of the criminal, his capabilities, the contribution of the society toward
his character building etc. In short, everything that can be done under
the head ‘justice’ is taken properly into consideration. Hence, the criminal
is not declared an outlaw after he has overruled just one instruction of
the Shari‘ah.
Tests are an Integral Part of this Life
Allah has created this world so that
we could enter Heaven by following the path of truth. This is why the present
life will never be devoid of tests. The very purpose behind the trials
is to take us to Paradise. This world is analogous to an examination hall
where lack of seriousness will cause the candidates to meet a drastic failure.
No inhabitant of this world should
suffer from the illusion that he will not be tested since this is against
the very objective of his creation. The entire scheme of the Almighty is
that He will undoubtedly try His servants here in order to select those
who will dwell in the blissful place called Heaven. Any attempt to escape
from this trial would also culminate in complete failure.
Are Blessings/Adversities the Criteria to judge People?
Such criteria have somehow found general
acceptance just like in the days of ignorance. It is perceived that Allah
is pleased with those who are blessed with a comfortable life and displeased
with those who are living in penury. Under this concept, some criminals
involved in bribery and smuggling business choose to have the following
phrase inscribed on the facade of their palaces Hadha Min Fadal-i-Rabi
(it is a blessing upon me from my Lord). Such perception is nothing but
a mere fallacy.
Poverty and affluence are two aspects
of the test and trial that we are put through. Allah tests some people
by showering them with His bounties and some by straitening their means;
Allah is however not displeased with either of them. It is very likely
that the affluent person, who is not burdened with troubles—like the owner
of grand treasures, Karun (Korah)—is disliked by the Almighty. The
comfort of the present world may be the result of what Allah decided for
him—he would be given everything in this world and deprived of everything
in the Hereafter. Likewise, if the period of difficulty prolongs for a
servant, it is not improbable at any rate that the victim be the handpicked
selection of the Almighty. Perhaps, Allah wants that this servant should
be rid of all his sins in order to become eligible to enter Paradise.
(Adapted from Sajid Hameed’s ‘Hum Par
Mushkalayn Kiyun Ati Hayn’ by Jhangeer Hanif)
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