Trials and tribulations

By Guest Author: Dr Fiaz Fazili

Trials and tribulations is part of this earthly life, and no nation or an individual can escape from them when Allah the Almighty tests by afflictions, whoever He wishes of His servants, with whatever He wishes, whenever He wishes and however He wishes.

A person’s life in this world is never uniform, periods of happiness and dismay, strength and weakness, wealth and poverty, health and sickness etc fluctuate.

An immediate depressed (sad) mood is a normal reaction to disappointments or losses, as sons of Adam are born weak.

Many of us think , “these afflictions”, “Why Me”? So time to hold your soul to account, review your slate; zakat ,sadaqas, prayers, fasting,mistakes , etc.

Syedna Umar ibnul khattab(RA) used to say,”call your souls to account before you are called to account and weigh your actions before you are weighed(on the day of judgment) for that will make the accountability easier for you tomorrow if you call yourselves to account today.”

When problems start afflicting any one of us, he is expected to, “seek aid in patience and prayer”, and “those who are patient will be given their reward in full, beyond reckoning.” (Quran)

The ignorant person due to lack of Imaan(faith) finds himself in misery, fear and grief and helplessness. He or she forgets Allah has decreed these matters to occur and the decisions are His, and His alone.

One can never feel completely at ease unless he has firm belief that whatever has afflicted him was already pre ordained.

” No misfortune can happen on earth or in your souls but is recorded in the book of decree – before We bring it into existence“(Quran 57;22).

And Allah (S) says (which means);

” Certainly, We shall test you with fear, hunger, loss of wealth, lives and fruits; but give glad tidings to the patient – those who, when afflicted with calamity say,

“Truly to Allah we belong, and truly to Him shall we return.” it is those who will be awarded blessings and mercy from their Lord; and it is those who are the guided ones.”

[ Quran 2:155-157 ]