PATIENCE
All praise is for Alláh, He is the Lord, the Merciful and the Judge. We praise Him for what He decrees in every age. He is Gracious and Kind to His slaves, especially when they are inflicted with grief and worries. He has promised those who are patient to receive their full reward without reckoning. I testify that there is no god worthy of worship except Alláh Alone, having no partners. I testify that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger, the one who was patient with what Alláh had afflicted him with, on obeying Allah’s commandments, and on the harassment by the people. May the peace and blessings of Alláh be upon him, his family, his Companions and any one who follows in their footsteps until the Day of Judgement.
O people! Fear Alláh, the Most High, and know that the status of patience compared to the religion is like the head to the body. He who has no patience has no faith, and he who tries to be patient, Alláh(swt) will help him to be patient. No one has been given a grace better than the grace of patience. Patience is the quality by which one can distinguish between strong and courageous people and weak and cowardly people. It is the quality of all the Messengers, and the ornament of the pious and righteous people. Describing the slaves of the Most Gracious, Allah(swt) said:
“Those will be rewarded with the highest place (in Paradise) because of their patience. Therein they shall be met with greetings and the word of peace and respect.” (25:75)
About the dwellers of Paradise, He(swt) said:
“And angels shall enter unto them from every gate (saying): “Salámun ‘Alaikum (peace be upon you) for you persevered in patience! Excellent índeed is the final home!” (13:23,24)
Patience is of three types. The first is patience under adversity encountered when obeying the commandments of Allah(swt). The second is patience upon resisting the temptation of succumbing to the forbidden deeds, and the third is patience with the afflictions that Allah(swt) tests His servants with, whether by their being harassed by people or being exposed to pain and sicknesses.
A man is patient upon obeying Alláh’s commandments when he devotes himself entirely to worship Allah(swt) in the exact way the Messenger of Allah(pbuh) instructed to follow, without complaining, neglecting or failing to do any of the worship practices. Ceasing to do so will lead to his ruin and misery. On the other hand, once he realizes the great reward he can have for worshipping Allah(swt) sincerely, all the practices of worship will become easy to perform even with pleasure. If he does one good deed in good faith and out of pure intention, he shall be rewarded as if he has done ten good deeds. That will also multiply to seven hundred times as many, and to even a multitude of times as many. Allah(swt) multiplies the reward for whomever He wills, and His favors and graces have no limits.
Patience upon resisting the temptation of sin is refraining from falling into doing what Alláh has prohibited, whether it is related to Alláhs rights or to people’s rights. However, once the Muslim realizes the punishment in this life and the Hereafter for disobeying Allah(swt) and defying his orders and prohibitions, he will refrain from being defiant and sinning, and will be willing to be patient and resist the temptation.
A Muslim should also realize that some of the punishments in this world do not only befall the sinner himself, they may also be collective punishments that befall the entire society, like catastrophes. Therefore, the sinners may be few, but the consequences of their sins may encompass the whole community. Yet, when they all die in a collective punishment, each one of them will be resurrected and dealt with according to his intention.
Patience upon the afflictions that Alláh(swt) has decreed upon a Muslim is to surrender to these afflictions whether they are sicknesses, grief, or any other tribulations, without displaying discontent, anger, or any of the practices of Jahiliyya (the pre-Islamic ignorance). Furthermore, a Muslim should know that there is wisdom behind such tribulations, which only Alláh(swt) knows, A Muslim must learn that there is one way out of these afflictions, and that is to resort to Alláh praying to him, in total submission and humility, to alleviate these pains and tribulations. Allah decrees these afflictions upon his servants to elevate their position in the Hereafter, if they are patient, to erase their sins and disobedient behavior off of their records, and finally to induce them to
return to Him in submission and content. We should say: “O Alláh! We have no objection to your decrees, We acknowledge that You do with Your creatures whatever You will. To You belongs all the dominion and for You shall be all praise. You are the Creator, and up to You are a1l the matters. In Your hand is all good, and You are able to do all things.”
Allah(swt) says:
“And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much.” (42:30)
He also says:
“No calamity befalls, but by the Leave [i.e. Decision and Qadar (Divine Preordainment)] of Allah, and whosoever believes in Alláh, He guides his heart [to the true Faith with certainty, i.e. what has befallen him was already written for him by Allah from the Qadar (Divine Preordainment)]. And Allah is the All-Knower of everything.” (64: 11).
Man could be afflicted in himself, in his family, in his friends, or in other related departments of life. Yet, if he responds to these afflictions with patience, while waiting for Alláh’s merey for his relief, these afflictions will become a means of atonement for his sins, thus an elevation of his position in the Hereafter. Many verses from the Qur’ án and Hadíth has stressed this fact. Allah(swt) says:
“But give glad tidings to As-Sábiriin (the patient). Who, when afflicted with calamity, say: ‘Truly, to Alláh we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.’ They are those on whom are the Salawat (i.e. who are blessed and will be forgiven) from their Lord, and (they are those who) receive His Mercy, and it is they who are the guided ones.” (2:155-157)
The Messenger of Alláh(pbuh) said:
“Alláh drops the sins and bad deeds of the Muslim that is afflicted with pain of sickness, or any other calamity, like the tree dropping its leaves.”
The Prophet(pbuh) also addressed one of the women from the Companions saying:
“Receive great tidings! Alláh removes the sins of a Muslim who is sick, like the fire that removes the impurities from the iron and silver.”
“Whenever a Muslim is pricked by a thorn or anything bigger, Alláh will forgive some of his sins and elevate his status.”
“A headache that a believer may get, a thorn that may prick him, or any other thing that may harm him, will be a cause for Alláh to raise his status on the Day of Judgement and remove some of his sins.”
The Messenger of Allah(pbuh) said: “Alláh said, if I afflict one of my servants with the loss of his two dearest friends (his eyes) and he is patient with that, I shall compensate him with Paradise.”
“Alláh would prepare a certain status for aman and yet that man would not be able to reach that status with only his deeds. So Alláh would afflict him with what he hates in order to enable him to achieve that status.”
“If a Muslim dies and leaves three children behind that had not reached puberty, Alláh will let him enter Paradise for being merciful to his children.”
“Any woman that loses three children, will have them as a shield for her from the Hellfire.” A woman said: “How about two.” And He answered: “And two.”
All the aforementioned Hadith give the great tidings of great rewards to the believer who is patient on handling the afflictions that befall him as being a test from Alláh(swt), looking forward to the rewards he will have. Moreover, while being afflicted, a believer must realize that he is only afflicted for what he has done or erred in, as stated in the following Verse:
“And whatever misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much.” (42:30)
O Alláh! Help us be patient when afflicted, be grateful when favored, and seek Your forgiveness when sinful. Forgive our sins and wrongdoings and have mercy on us. You are indeed the Merciful and the Oft-Forgiving. With this I conclude my speech and ask Alláh to forgive my errors.
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