Satisfaction with Afflictions
Allāh Almighty has made this worldly life the home of tests and trials. And made the hereafter the home of recompense and permanence.
Al Anbya (21) 35: And We test you with evil and with good as trial; and to Us you will be returned.
And people were commanded to be patient through afflictions. And the reward of the patient is without limit or account as Allāh Almighty said:
Az Zumar (39) 10: Indeed, the patient will be given their reward without account [i.e., limit].
And there are certain matters that if one is attentive to help the afflicted in being patient, satisfied and steadfast. And from them, is being conscious that the sins are the reason for what befalls a person. And His Lord Most Glorified does not wrong them at all. Allāh Almighty said:
An Nisa (4) 79: What comes to you of good is from Allāh, but what comes to you of evil, [O man], is from yourself.
And Allāh Almighty said:
Ash Shura (42) 30: And whatever strikes you of disaster – it is for what your hands have earned.
For this is the case for every affliction, big and small. And this should occupy the person with seeking forgiveness which is the biggest means of removing the affliction. Ali, may Allāh be pleased with him, said:
An affliction does not befall except because of a sin, and an affliction is not lifted except through repentance.
And one should realize that what afflicts them is by the decree of Allāh Almighty. Allāh decreed it upon him as He the Almighty said:
Al Hadid (57) 22: No disaster strikes upon the earth or among yourselves except that it is in a register before We bring it into being – indeed that, for Allāh, is easy
That is, before Allāh created the creation. Then Allāh said in the next verse:
Al Hadid (57) 22: In order that you not despair over what has eluded you and not exult [in pride] over what He has given you. And Allāh does not like everyone self-deluded and boastful
And the Prophet ﷺ said:
Allāh decreed the measures of the creation fifty thousand years before He created the heavens and the earth. [Muslim 2653b]
And Ubaadah bin As Saamet, may Allāh be pleased with him, instructed his son saying:
Oh my son, you will not find the real taste of iman (faith) until you know what befalls you could not have passed you. And what passed you could not have befallen you. I heard the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ say: The first thing Allāh created was the pen. He said to it: Write. It asked: What should I write, my Lord? He said: Write what was decreed about everything till the Last Hour comes. Son! I heard the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ say : He who dies on other than this does not belong to me. [Sunan Abi Dawud 4700]
A person’s anxiety over what afflicts them in addition to them objecting and being displeased increases them with calamity over calamity. And being patient and satisfied increases them in reward.
And along these lines, the Prophet ﷺ said:
The greatest reward comes with the greatest trial. When Allāh loves a people He tests them. Whoever is satisfied will have His satisfaction but whoever is discontent will have His displeasure. [Sunan Ibn Majah 4031]
And one should be conscious of the right of Allāh Almighty during an affliction. And the person’s obligation in it is patience and acceptance for his knowledge that Allāh Almighty accepted and chose and decreed it for him. And servitude of Allāh necessitates being pleased with what their Lord and Master is pleased with for them. For if one is unable to realize being pleased, one should not go below being patient. And patience is realized by restraining oneself from anxiety and displeasure as well as restraining the tongue from complaining and the limbs from the blameworthy. For one’s servitude of Allāh Almighty while afflicted is not realized except through that.
And being conscious of Allāh’s graces upon oneself, family, children and wealth. And in all their affairs and conditions. For if one is afflicted in something, they have been relieved in many other things. And if a blessing is taken from someone, they are basking in many other blessings. Allāh Almighty said:
Ibrahim 34: And if you should count the favor [i.e., blessings] of Allāh, you could not enumerate them.
‘Urwah bin Zubayr was afflicted in his foot and it had to be amputated. Also, he had a son pass away. He, may Allāh have mercy on him, said, Oh Allāh I had seven sons, then You took one and left six for me. And I had four limbs, then You took one and left three for me. Although You inflicted, You alleviated, and although You took, You kept.
And one should realize that the afflictions and calamities are expiations for sins. As was narrated by Aisha, may Allāh be pleased with her that the Messenger of Allāhﷺ said:
No calamity befalls a Muslim but that, because of it, Allāh expiates (some of ) his sins, even a prick from a thorn. [Bukhari 5460, Muslim 2572e]
And one should be aware of the reward of patience during the affliction. And that the reward with Allāh is without limit.
Along these lines the Prophet ﷺ said:
For whom Allāh wills good, He afflicts. [Bukhari 5645]
And the Prophet ﷺ said:
Indeed greater reward comes with greater trial.[Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2396]
And one should be conscious that they do not know what will come after the affliction. For they may denied something that they wanted as a mercy for him. And they may be afflicted with something that is a mercy for him. Allāh Almighty said:
Al Baqarah (2) 216: But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allāh knows, while you know not.
And one should be aware that Allāh cultivates His servant through prosperity and adversity and through blessings and afflictions. So Allāh obtains servitude from the person in all situations. For the servitude of ease and relief is gratitude to Allāh Almighty, and the servitude for hardships and afflictions is patience and satisfaction and supplication and seeking forgiveness and returning. The Prophet ﷺ said:
How wonderful is the case of a believer; there is good for him in all his affairs and that only applies to a believer. If prosperity attends him, he expresses gratitude to Allāh and that is good for him; and if adversity befalls him, he endures it patiently and that is better for him.[Muslim 2999]
And one does not realize the complete servitude except if they worship Allāh in all cases and at all times. And the one who worships Allāh in prosperity and good health, but turns away from servitude in hardship and affliction, is blameworthy. As Allāh Almighty said:
Al Hajj (22) 11: And of the people is he who worships Allāh on an edge. If he is touched by good, he is reassured by it; but if he is struck by trial, he turns on his face [to unbelief]. He has lost [this] world and the Hereafter. That is what is the manifest loss.
Oh Muslims:Being pleased with Allāh Almighty as Lord necessitates one being pleased with Allāh’s decrees, even if it was something they did not want. And thinking well of one’s Lord necessitates that one thinks that Allāh will not choose for them except what is best for them, even if it appears to them that it is the opposite. For a person does not know what will happen next. And if the decree was revealed to a believer, they would not deviate from Allāh’s choice for them.
And what helps a believer in being patient and pleased during an affliction is consciousness of what Allāh Almighty has given them of strength to be patient and content when they are making an effort to endure and be patient. Allāh Almighty said:
At Taghabun (64) 11: No disaster strikes except by permission of Allāh. And whoever believes in Allāh – He will guide his heart.
For Allāh delivers help according to the need, and grants patience in accordance with the affliction. The Prophet ﷺ said:
And whoever makes an effort to be patient, Allāh will grant him patience, and no one is given a blessing better and more encompassing than patience. [Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2024]
So if one endures during an affliction and meets it with satisfaction and submission and arms themselves with patience and conviction, then the help of Allāh Almighty will come faster than they think. They will find tranquility and reassurance in their heart, and solace within themselves. They will find a joy and not know its source. And it is only their Lord Almighty who sent it down to them as a reward for their patience and satisfaction. And the reward of the hereafter is better and more enduring.
Among the great blessings of Allāh – the Most High – on the believer is that Allāh Almighty grants them quick adaptation to the affliction and the ability to live with it. So it is eased for them, no matter how great it is. Then, if a person is pleased and entrusts the matter to Allāh Almighty, before they know it they are compensated in a manner that they did not expect. For from the perfection of the beneficence of the Lord Almighty is that He gives people the taste of the bitterness of injury before the sweetness of healing, and Allāh acquaints them with the extent of His grace by afflicting them with the opposite.
And the afflictions of this worldly life are a blend of difficulties and ease. For a believer is not broken, except to be mended, and Allāh does not withhold from someone, except to give them, and Allāh does not afflict someone, except to relieve them, and Allāh does not constrict someone’s worldly life, except to make them eager for the hereafter. And Allāh does not try a person with the callousness of others, except for them to steer the person to Him.
And one should be conscious that a hardship is followed by joy, and that ease comes after difficulty and that a hardship can not overcome two eases. Allāh Almighty said:
Ash Sharh (94) 5-6: (5) For indeed, with hardship [will be] ease [i.e., relief]. (6) Indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.We ask Allāh Almighty for forgiveness and wellbeing and for gratitude during ease and hardships and for patience and satisfaction in afflictions. Indeed Allāh is All Hearing, Answering.
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