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In the Name of Allah, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful. We live in the times that trials are becoming rampant. It may be within our personal lives or within our community. It may also be anywhere in the world that are beyond our reach but we get affected by them. Additionally, impatience is being normalized by the society that we live in nowadays. The influence could be from some quotes in social media, our colleagues venting out at work, or from our relatives and friends that express lack of patience most of the time. In my personal life, I must admit that I do get affected and influenced. However, as a Muslim woman, it is a must that I possess the weapons to combat these enemies, and they are: holding on to what Allah the Most High prescribes, and following what Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) emulates in his life. In line with this, I am sharing two of my favorite verses from the Noble Qur’an, which are verses five to six of Surah Ash-Sharh that states, “Verily, along with every hardship is relief. Verily, along with every hardship is relief”. I know that in this activity, we are required to share only one verse, but these two verses for me, are twins. I believe that one should be attached with the other.
I would like to share that for the past years until currently, I have been experiencing some issues that have tested my patience. I cannot deny that I felt frustration, anger, sadness, longing, anxiety and the heaviest of them all that I have faced so far, the pain of losing a parent. I lost count how many times I have cried. It felt like darkness is surrounding me. Humans as we are, we are bound to face trials while we are here in this world and there are times we get paralyzed on what we should do. On the other hand, I am soothed with the knowledge that whatever I am experiencing, it will soon pass, and that everything that is happening is already predestined by Allah, Al-Mubdi’ (The Originator). His Pen has been lifted and the ink has dried. It is upon me to be patient and to accept what Allah has decreed for me. Then, Alhamdulillah (all praise and thanks are due to Allah), when some of the issues I experienced were resolved, blessings came with them as well. I have shed tears of joy when I realized and experienced the overwhelming relief. Indeed, Allah is true with His promises. And indeed, Allah does not burden us more than what we can carry.
This brings me to the tafsir of Shaykh As-Sa’di (may Allah have mercy upon him) where he explains that these two verses bring immense glad tidings. Whenever there is hardship and difficulty, relief follows and accompanies them, so much so that if hardship were to enter the den of a lizard, relief will follow it and expel it from the den. The shaykh also shared a similar verse which is: “Allah will grant after hardship, ease.” (65:7), and a Hadith where The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “There is reprieve with adversity, and there is relief with hardship.” (An authentic Hasan Hadeeth; Imam As-Sakhawi, Al-Maqasid Al-Hasanah [188]). In the two verses [94:5-6] under discussion, hardship is defined as if it is only one type, Al-‘Usr, the hardship, while relief is mentioned undefined, yusr [without ‘Al’ before it], indicating multiple kinds of relief [that follow the one type of hardship]. Therefore, one hardship cannot overcome two types of relief. Using ‘Al’ to define hardship makes it inclusive of all hardships and indicates that no matter how great a hardship is, in the end there comes [two types of] relief [to overcome the hardship] (end of tafsir).
Another point I would like to impart is the varied responses of the Muslims toward what are happening lately around the world, especially in Palestine. Indeed, what is happening to the Palestinians for how many decades truly breaks our hearts. However, we must keep in mind that in these matters, we must stick to our reliable scholars (May Allah have mercy on those that have passed away, and preserve those that are still with us.). We must listen to their verdicts and advises, and follow them. Despite our emotions and the urge to help and do something, it is important to note that whatever we do should be pleasing to Allah, and not just to follow our desires or emotions. This brings me back to my favorite verses (94:5-6). As much as it is painful to see our oppressed brothers and sisters in such conditions, Allah is reminding us that relief is near. Upon us is to be resilient for His sake, do a lot of supplications (as supplication is a powerful tool), obey what our scholars advise us to do, and hope for the reward from Allah.
To conclude, with all the hardships that I have encountered and have been encountering, and what our Ummah is facing, Surah Ash-Sharh verses five to six are the verses that I always keep with me. They remind me to be humble before Allah, to be firm with holding on to the deen despite the trials, to be patient to bear these trials for the sake of Allah and to be hopeful for the reward that I will be receiving in the hereafter if I have been patient in this world with beautiful patience. I am reminding myself that I should try my best to apply this knowledge and these realizations throughout my lifetime to please my Lord. Another point is that I should always ask Allah to grant me patience, as sabr is among the favors of Allah on His slaves. Also, it is vital that I share these learnings to my family and to other people, in hopes of helping the ummah. And lastly, it is essential to hold on to the Noble Qur’an, to the Sunnah of our Messenger (peace be upon him), the words of our pious predecessors (salafus-saalih), and the advices of our trusted scholars. These will be our weapons and shields in order for us to be upon the straight path and to avoid misguidance, while aiming for a good end in the hereafter which is Paradise. I ask Allah, The Almighty, to grant me and all the believing men and women success in this world and in the hereafter. Ameen.
Essence M., 26/9/2024
Note: For submitting the best essay, the student won a 25% scholarship discount to any program of her choice for the 2024-25 semester, Allaahumma baarik lahaa!