Pearls of Islam Reminder Series

Advice for Failure

By Samee Siddiqui
We need the winter frost to truly love the warmth of our
beds.
We need the hunger of Ramadan to appreciate the
tastes of Iftar.
We need the fear of being lost to rejoice at our new
found direction.
We need the heat of the summer to value that cool glass
of water.
We need the loneliness before marriage to adore our
new-found loved one.
Finally, we need the toils of this dunya to welcome our
place in Jannah (may Allah grant it to all of us).
Verily, with hardship, there is relief. (Surat Al Inshirah 5)
Thus ultimately, the nature of this world is that there are
no pure and everlasting joys. Similarly however, there
are no pure and everlasting pains. We endure our
hardships on earth but with them Allah provides a light at
the end of the tunnel that gives us more meaningful
success.
If the rst few scenarios were to be halted half way, the
impatient one would bewail the cold, the angry one
would lament their hunger, the lost one would curse their
iPhone, the dehydrated one would blame the sun and
the lonely one would lament the opposite gender.
Throughout life we experience these sorts of situations,
where we are in the middle of hardships and little do we
know that relief is around the corner. Our common
mindset is mentioned again in the Quran:
And as for man, when his Lord tries him and [thus] is
generous to him and favors him, he says, "My Lord has
honored me."
But when He tries him and restricts his provision, he
says, "My Lord has humiliated me." (Surat Al-Fajr 15-16)
Things do not always go according to our plans in life
and we lose hope in our Lord too quickly. You may have
set yourself for a buying a car, making a proposal,
attaining a distinction this year or a gaining a place in a
certain foundation school, all of which you have failed at.
We must realise though that we plan for the short term
but Allah knows the future, the unseen. Before you lose
hope in your current predicament, remember again that
Allah is the best of planners (Surat Ali Imran 54). Your
merit or distinction may have led you down a career path
which results in your depression. Your proposal may
have resulted in a marriage that ends in divorce. Your
new car may have caused a dangerous accident.
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 Allah
Knows, while you know not. (Surat Al-Baqarah 216)
We may not be able to see the wisdom in Allahs pre-
ordainment, however our knowledge, hope and trust with
him alone should be enough. Then, when events unravel
and we see the greater victory, our patience will never
have felt sweeter. Thus Allah gives glad tidings to those
who put their trust in him at the most difcult times:
And We will surely test you with something of fear and
hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give
good tidings to the patient, Who, when disaster strikes
them, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah , and indeed to
Him we will return." (Surat Al-Baqarah 155-156)
Your failure to achieve your targets may not be a failure
of you yourself, pick yourself up from the hardships of
the world as indeed with them there is relief.
THE PEARLS OF ISLAM
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Pearls of Islam Reminder Series
You Are Never Alone

By Aamir Shamsi

Times will come in the life of a
believer where we will be tested in
this world whether it is through a
"loss in goods or lives or the fruits
(of your toils)" [2:155] but we must
always remember that we are
never alone and that we should
and need to turn to Allah in these
times.

Trials and tribulations can not only
change the course of your life but
also make you feel very down and
lost. Nothing remains the same
and although an oxymoron, those
who have been in such a situation
like I have will understand when I
say life can be consumed by
emptiness. Although it is
important to understand the many
reasons why calamities befall us
and how to cope with them, we
must never forget that we will
always have the one that loves us
more than a mother loves her
child (Muslim) close by to bring
some solace to our hearts. In
order to bring about this comfort
we must make du'a, build a
connection with Allah and believe
that everything that happens is for
the best.

'XD

Du'a is the weapon of the believer
for it can change the fate of our
lives. And it is for this reason, as
well as the fact that it shows our
need for Allah, that it is highly
encouraged in Islam. So we
should ask our Lord to alleviate
our pain, to make things easier
and to grant us peace and
happiness with His decree, even
though in some situations it is
extremely difficult to accept what
has happened and to want to
move on from it, for it is only He
that has the power to make things
better.

Connect with Allah

As the creation of Allah, we are all
connected with our Lord through
our souls. He is our provider, our
sustainer and our support. But it is
our responsibility to nourish this
connection for "Verily in the
remembrance of Allah, do hearts
find rest" [13:29]. We can do so by
reciting Quran, reading our salat
with concentration and regular
dhikr. The stronger our connection
with Allah the greater the comfort
our hearts will receive for it is then
when we truly feel Allah's
protection over us and this will
make the difficult times that much
easier for us.

Everything that happens is for
the best

Allah loves us so much that
everything that happens that is
not a direct result of our own
actions is for the best for us - "but
it may be that you hate a thing
which is good for you, and it may
be that you love a thing which is
bad for you. Allah knows and you
know not" [2:216]. Having this
belief at all times and being
thankful for all that comes your
way is a real test of our faith but
also an undeniable fact. If
adopted in our mindset it will ease
our pain for we will understand it
is for our best and so the true
believer would not want it any
other way than what Allah sees
best.

All the above can be summarised
with my favourite du'a that one
should regularly recite:
"Hasbunallahu Wa'Nimal Wakeel"
Allah is enough for me and
there is no better to look after me.



"When you feel all alone in this world
And there's nobody to count your tears
Just remember, no matter where you are
Allah knows, Allah knows"
- Nasheed by Zain Bhikha
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Monday 31st October 2011 4 Dhul - Hijjah 1432 Volume 4 Issue 1


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