Virtues of the Righteous
And may the sincere worshipper be on guard against his own irascibility, which emanates from the inner darkness of ignorance and selfishness and which so insistently demands the expression of retaliatory evil. Вe aware that a sea of harm from others will spill over onto whomever hastens to respond to evil with evil, even if he be of those oppressed. Such a slave will suffer spiritual perdition in both worlds. All this will serve as punishment for the fact that at a time of tribulation, the slave did not resort to the help of Almighty Allah.
But, if he humbly appeals to Almighty Allah in prayer, acknowledging all his own weakness and impotence, the Creator, without requiring a reason, will save him from all manner of evil on the part of people: after this, the slave will not encounter any difficulties at all for himself. Or, indeed, the Creator may occupy the oppressors with something else; so much so that they do not have time for any sort of oppression. Allah may also bestow upon those oppressed great grace and becoming patience, thanks to which a slave will worthily endure all the bitterness of misfortunes and tribulations until relief comes from Almighty Allah.
And then the slave of Allah will be honoured in both worlds. In the allotted world, he will receive a blessed outcome and the degree of his patience will be revealed to others, while in eternal life he will gain boundless blessings with which Almighty Allah endows those who are patient. The Creator said (meaning), “... and the gracious word of your Lord came true, which was given to the sons of Israel because they were patient.” (Sura Al-A`raf, ayah 137) [1]
The Almighty also said (meaning), “If you refrain from vengeance and endure, it will be better for those who are patient.” (Sura Al-Nahl, ayah 126) There are also many other ayat in the Holy Quran that talk of patience. Since not every person is capable of extracting an instructive lesson for himself from all that mentioned above, people face constant difficulty and torment in suffering harm done to one other. Great danger awaits such people of perishing in both worlds; with the exception of those slaves who are embraced by the Almighty’s care.
When evil overcomes them, ordinary people blame only their offender for all that occurs. All this stems from the fact that they are neglectful of and far from the remembrance of Almighty Allah and His wisdom. Such people will certainly attempt to rebel against evil that overtakes them by employing their own strengths and the cunning and power of their own nafs. As a consequence, they will be made to suffer all the malevolence brought on by others will remain long confined in the gloom of spiritual blindness and as a punishment.
As for the astute and wise person, he fully recognises that all evil caused by people is the predestination of Almighty Allah, whom no one has the power to oppose. Therefore, a submissive slave’s knowledge teaches and requires him to constantly turn in prayer for assistance to Almighty Allah only, while recognizing his own weakness and impotence. Thus, such a son of Adam firmly cleaves to the authority of Almighty Allah, which protects from all evil: there is no doubt that a slave of Allah without any difficulty will be able to repulse evil emanating from others when such evil occurs.
Be aware, that even if he were enflamed by evil emanating from others, this could not harm a slave who resorts to Almighty Allah’s aid. This is because no one and nothing has power over a slave who hopes only in the Creator. The need for patience tests everyone nowadays. But whoever constantly adheres to the correct path, as outlined above, will find happiness in both worlds.
But those who deviate from this path will be yielded over to their nafs at the dictate of Almighty Allah; after which such a person will counter evil emanating from others only with the help of his own strength and cunning, as a consequence of which he will ultimately perish in this and in the eternal world. Therefore, it is necessary to entrust all one’s affairs to Almighty Allah, even before people manage to commit evil. Such is the prescription of Almighty Allah applying to those who, at the very initiation of their affairs, turn to Him for help. Follow this path, for it is precious gold and quick relief. And, indeed, this is assisted by patience.
What assists in manifesting true patience
The Prophet has shown us prayers of remembrance that help a Muslim exercise patience. He said, “Whoever reads ten laudatory prayers following every dawn prayer will find Allah satisfied and solicitous of him. Five of these prayers relate to a person’s worldly life and the other five to the eternal life:
- “HasbiyaLlahu li dini” («Allah is sufficient for me in my religion»);
- «HasbiyaLlahu liman ahammani» («Allah is sufficient for me in that which cares for me»);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu lima bagha `alaiya” (“Allah is sufficient for me against someone who oppresses me”);
- «Hasbiya-Llahu liman hasadani» («Allah is sufficient for me against someone who is jealous of me»);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu liman kadani bisu’in” (“Allah is sufficient for me against someone who approaches me to commit evil”);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu `indal-mawti” (“Allah is sufficient for me when death occurs”);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu `indal mas’alati fil-qabri” (“Allah is sufficient for me during the questioning in the grave”);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu `indalmizan” (“Allah is sufficient for me when weighing my deeds on the scales on the Day of Judgment”);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu `inda ssirati” (“Allah is sufficient for me when crossing the bridge of Sirat”);
- “Hasbiya-Llahu lailaha illa huwa `alaihi tawakkaltu wahuwa rabbul `arshil `azim wa ilaihi unib” (“Allah is sufficient for me and there is nothing worthy of worship except Him and only in Him I trust, He is the Lord of the great `Arsh and I return to Him”).”
The Prophet conveys the words of Almighty Allah in the holy hadith, “I swear by His Might and Greatness that when one of My slaves resorts to My help sincerely and with conviction in his heart, I will certainly render him assistance, even though all the inhabitants of the earth and heaven may plot ill against him.» From the companion Anas , it is transmitted that the Prophet read the following prayer most of all: “Allahumma atina fi-ddunya hasanatan wa fil-akhirati hasanatan wa qina `azaba-nnar” (“O my Allah, bestow on us all that is good in this world and in the eternal world and save us from the fire of Hell»)».
The Messenger of Allah said, “Whoever reads the ayah al-Kursi and the last two ayat of the Sura alBaqarah while experiencing worries and affliction, Almighty Allah will help him.” The Messenger of Allah also said, “I know certain words the uttering of which will give relief to the sorrowful. These are words which my brother, the prophet Yunus , uttered while in deep darkness [2], “La ilaha illa anta, subhanaka, inni kuntu mina zzalimin” (“There is nothing worthy of worship except You, You are pure of all that is unworthy and I was from among those who oppressed themselves, for, getting angry with my people, I left them without Your permission).”
The Prophet explained this thus, “The Prophet Yunus , being in the belly of a whale, turned to his Lord with the prayer, «La ilaha illa anta, subhanaka, inni kuntu mina zzalimin.» The Almighty Creator will surely respond to every Muslim who feels need and turns to Him with this prayer.
[1] This refers to the promise of Almighty Allah to the Banu [sons] of Israel of victory over the enemy and of providing them with opportunities to live on earth (Sura Qasas, ayat 5-6).
[2] The darkness of night, sea water and the belly of a whale.
