Wisdom and Mindset in Times of Trial ( Abdullah Cheng)
Dear brothers and sisters,
Allah has made this life not to be a comfortable one, and He didn’t design this life so that we become happy and satisfied. Allah said in the Qur’an:
وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُم بِشَىْءٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلْخَوْفِ وَٱلْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلْأَمْوَٰلِ وَٱلْأَنفُسِ وَٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ ۗ وَبَشِّرِ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ
We will certainly test you with a touch of fear and hunger and loss of property, life, and crops. Give good news to those who patiently endure— [2:155]
That’s why when calamities happen or things don’t go according to our way, we should firmly accept this as part of the Qadr of Allah, and that whatever we plan, Allah’s plan is always greater than ours.
Sometimes due to unexpected circumstances or things that are beyond our control, many of us may have had certain plans, things that we have prepared for a long period of time, that end up being cancelled or delayed. And indeed, it can cause much distress and sadness to many of us.
But when we take a look at how a believer and a disbeliever react to this, we can see a fundamental difference in our attitudes. When a person doesn’t believe in Allah or the Qadr of Allah, they would blame external factors like the weather or natural disasters for breaking up their plans, their anger is targeted at the world around them, and they would consider themselves as just having 'bad luck'.
When a person believes in Allah and His Qadr, they also feel disturbed and sad, but they will also try to find another solution and go with another plan, because they understand that these worldly matters don’t happen by chance, but it is Allah who is ultimately in control.
And that’s why we as Muslims should not feel that we have been wronged by the sudden change in weather or any natural disasters like typhoon or earthquakes, because they are happening completely according to the commandment of Allah.
The Prophet ﷺ also taught us in a Hadith:
لاَ تَلْعَنِ الرِّيحَ فَإِنَّهَا مَأْمُورَةٌ وَإِنَّهُ مَنْ لَعَنَ شَيْئًا لَيْسَ لَهُ بِأَهْلٍ رَجَعَتِ اللَّعْنَةُ عَلَيْهِ
Do not curse the wind, for it is merely doing as ordered, and whoever curses something that doesn’t deserve it, then the curse returns upon him. [at-Tirmidhi 1978]
So even though these unexpected trials might cause difficulty, or damage to our lands and crops, or disruption in our lives, these events have no independent power at all, but rather it is Allah who commanded them them to occur. All commandments and creations of Allah are done in the most perfect manner, as Allah says in the Qur’an:
ٱلَّذِىٓ أَحْسَنَ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ خَلَقَهُۥ ۖ وَبَدَأَ خَلْقَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنِ مِن طِينٍۢ
[It is He] Who has perfected everything He created [32:7]
Therefore it is the wisdom of Allah when these obstacles appear to block our way. Perhaps it is to protect us from something evil that we cannot see. Perhaps it is to teach us a lesson. Perhaps it is to train us to have better patience so that we can endure an even bigger test in the future.
وَعَسَىٰٓ أَن تَكْرَهُوا۟ شَيْـًۭٔا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌۭ لَّكُمْ ۖ وَعَسَىٰٓ أَن تُحِبُّوا۟ شَيْـًۭٔا وَهُوَ شَرٌّۭ لَّكُمْۗ
وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
Perhaps you dislike something which is good for you and like something which is bad for you. Allah knows and you do not know. [2:216]
Whatever the wisdom may be, we should have Husn Al-Dhann, to be optimistic about Allah and His Mercy, that what He has prepared for us is ultimately for our own good. And even in such calamities, there is some khair that are brought forth.
The Prophet ﷺ said: “No fatigue, nor disease, nor sorrow, nor sadness, nor hurt, nor distress befalls a Muslim, even if it were the prick he receives from a thorn, but that Allah removes some of his sins for that.” [Bukhari 5641]
We should take it as an opportunity for ourselves to have our sins forgiven through these calamities. Perhaps because of the distress we experience, we become humbled and are reminded about our own weaknesses, so that we turn back to Allah with a stronger Iman. There are countless of blessings that we can find even in such circumstances, so we should be thankful that Allah allows us to benefit and have the ability to appreciate from these blessings.
Lastly, we can also follow the Sunnah which the Prophet ﷺ would do whenever he experienced a windy and stormy weather, by saying this Du’a, narrated in Sahih Muslim:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ خَيْرَهَا وَخَيْرَ مَا فِيهَا وَخَيْرَ مَا أُرْسِلَتْ بِهِ
وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّهَا وَشَرِّ مَا فِيهَا وَشَرِّ مَا أُرْسِلَتْ بِهِ
“O Allah! I ask You for what is good in it, and the good which it contains, and the good of that which it was sent for. I seek refuge with You from what is evil in it, what evil it contains, and the evil of that what it was sent for.” [Sahih Muslim 899]
This is something that we can recite not only for strong winds or storms, but for any natural disaster or sudden hardship, so that we remind ourselves that all forces of nature are under Allah’s command.
May Allah protect us from the trials of hardship and the calamities of life, may Allah grant our hearts contentment with His decree, and may Allah replace our lost plans with what is better for our Dunya and Akhirah