Acceptance

السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته 

Acceptance

It's weird how I'll use a George Orwell quote to start of a blog related to Islam but this quote is perfect to begin the topic of this post; Acceptance. To truly be accepting of people and situations that have befallen you will you find a sense of peace and in return happiness. Someone once told me you will never be truly happy in this world, only in the akhirah. I guess that is true but to truly strive for happiness in the next life you have to spread your knowledge, perform good deeds, have a well-mannered character, show compassion and mercy, (and obviously perform the obligatory duties) in this life to build up thawab and aim for the best in the akhirah. No point in being unsatisfied with your position in life (especially if you're doing nothing about it) or being depressed dwelling on the past or constantly comparing your former situations with present ones, or being judgmental or a hypocrite etc. Be accepting. With acceptance of calamities and of people will you benefit in your character and in return find happiness; spread it and you will be rewarded in the next life ان شاء الله

"Verily with hardship comes ease" Or "Indeed with difficulty comes ease" (Quran 94:5)

I’m sure as Muslims of the of this generation you've seen the above Quranic quote scattered over a environmental backdrop probably with a tree, maybe a sea or even a mountain which you’ve seen on someone’s what’s app DP, Instagram, tumblr etc.  Allah tells us this; it’s a direct promise/ message as written in the Quran. It’s not "You may" or "might", and it’s not "temporarily" or "a little bit". It’s straight forward. With acceptance as a Muslim you trust the word of Allah; so is any calamity worth being sad over? Furthermore if that one thing (or many things) that put you through hardship brought you closer to Allah then isn't that pain worth it in the end? Of course it is, put your trust in Allah. “Allah loves those that trust [in Him]”. (Quran 3: 159). This is Tawakkul in Allah. 

You as a Muslim have accepted this life as temporary. Am I saying nothing matters? No of course not. This is a depressive thought. In fact it’s the opposite. Everything matters. Every good you do in this life will benefit you here and most importantly in the akhirah. Be grateful! For every drawback, for every improvement, or for the position you are in life even if it feels like a standstill. Expanding on that, sometimes your life feels at a halt or you want more out of it, but trust Allah and accept this is better for you "Allah knows while you know not" (Quran 2:216) but that doesn't mean not doing anything about your current situation, take risks, don't be lazy, be productive, plan when you aim for your goals, and I say this again take risks and trust Allah; if you're aiming for a goal and its halal it will always work out somehow no matter what the situation is because "Allah is the best of planners" (Quran 3:54). To be grateful you have to be accepting; there’s a blessing in everything, something I truly believe.

"No calamity befalls on earth or in yourselves but is inscribed in the Book of Decrees – before We bring it into existence." (Qur'an 57:22). It’s written for it to happen, and what’s meant to happen will always be the best for you. I personally believe that. Whatever happens, even a small annoyance is a blessing to me; and being the person I am, I try working out how its benefitted me; some things are obvious whilst others keep me guessing. A loss of something (a job, loved one, wealth, a sentimental possession etc.) in return can give you the most because your loss can bring you closer to god if you truly believe. "Allah guides whom He wills. And He is most knowing of the [rightly] guided." (Quran 28:56) So I guess it was Allah's plan to guide you to him. What a magnificent blessing.

 

"This [Qur'an] is a clear statement to [all] the people and a guidance and instruction for those conscious of Allah. So do not weaken and do not grieve, and you will be superior if you are [true] believers." (Quran 3:138-139). If you truly believe in the word of Allah do not be upset, I know it can be hard not to [be upset]. We all go through hardships but remember the trials we are put through are trials which we can personally bare. "Allah does not impose upon any soul a duty but to the extent of its ability; ... Our Lord do not impose upon us that which we have not the strength to bear" (Quran 2:286) Someone out there is most likely going through something way worse than what you can imagine. But they can bear it and so can you. "...Bear with patience whatever befalls you...." (Qur'an 31:17). With acceptance being patient becomes much easier.

Now the reason for this post wasn't about patience or tawakul (I'll save those for my later blog posts). It is to do with acceptance. An acceptance of all hardships; which I have touched on. But it was also to discuss acceptance related to people which I'd like to start off by dwelling on forgiving others. 

 "Kind speech and forgiveness is better than charity followed by injury; and Allah is Self-sufficient, Forbearing" (Quran 2:263) Sometimes forgiving someone is hard to do. Could you do it for Allah's sake? For your own mental state? Sometimes it's pride that keeps us from doing this. "And Allah does not love him who is proud" (Quran 4:36). Forgiveness is a part of acceptance. By forgiving another person for what they've done, no matter what it is, you've accepted it's happened. You're not dwelling on the situation and instead you're moving forward. Your accepting what has happened is Allah's will and although it could be the worst of things you were able to bear through it and with acceptance and a positive mind-set you could get over whatever is thrown your way. You can. And you will. Sometimes striving for patience is a test itself. I would like to discuss the importance of patience (or better yet Sabr) in Islam but I'll do that in a later post. 

Islam promotes peace. This cannot be stressed enough so for all the clerics/critics that quote verses from the Quran related to war never take into account the context or for what period it was revealed, I guess it's convenient for them to prove their stubborn irrelevant points. But none the less we know what Islam is and instead of shouting back at those people instead implement the characteristics of a good Muslim and human being to your everyday life and show them how you're a peaceful and an accepting person and you do not wish to force anything upon them. For people to be accepting of Muslims we have to be accepting of them as humans. "let not hatred of a people-- because they hindered you from the Sacred Masjid-- incite you to exceed the limits, and help one another in goodness and piety, and do not help one another in sin and aggression; and be careful of (your duty to) Allah; surely Allah is severe in requiting (evil)." (Quran 5:2). I think you yourself should dwell into the significance of that verse even though they (the unbelievers) hindered the Ummah from Makkah the Ummah were told not to lead themselves to transgression  سبحان الله‎‎. And upon saying that, a short surah we are all familiar with, I'm sure, Surah Al Kafiroon "You shall have your religion and I shall have my religion" (Quran 109:6). This doesn't mean we should not be giving dawah. We should always strive to teach and call people to success in this life and in the hereafter. The point is people will have their beliefs and you will have yours so do not force it and do not get aggressive when someone doesn't understand you or curses your views. (Another idea for a future post, ‘the characteristics of a good Muslim’ but I won't expand on that now.) 

 

Islam and the knowledge of it and in it are as deep as the ocean. You may never touch its depth. And I’m sure there's many verses I could use and also hadiths and continue on this topic but I'm still learning just like you and I should dive deeper and deeper in the future       ان شاء الله but I'll avoid making this a massive first post and I shall leave you with this short story which shows how goodness in action can change a unbelieving person into a believer or at least show that with good action a person will see the true side of what we are taught in Islam; peace. 

One day Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) was going somewhere at noon and it was  too  hot in the desert when He (S.A.W) saw an old woman carrying her  luggage  on her head. Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) helped her and took the luggage from the woman and carried it for her.
Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) asked the woman that where she was going and why? She said that I am leaving this town as I have heard that a magician named Muhammad (S.A.W) is in town.

As Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) was very patient and kind, He (S.A.W) didn't say a word and kept listening. The old lady kept complaining that why she was leaving the town.
In short the basic reason of her to leave the town was her misconception about Muhammad (S.A.W), who was walking beside her and she didn't knew it.

While walking with the Holy Prophet (peace is upon Him), that old women noticed that this young man has brightness on his smiling and humble face. And she also noticed that His sweat is perfumed. She was very impressed.

When they reached the destination, Muhammad (S.A.W) put down the bag and was about to leave when the old woman said,"O, kind person! At least tell me your name!” Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) replied,” I am the person   because of whom you left the town. “The old lady was amazed to listen   that and said that such a kind, helping and true person can never be   wrong and therefore she also accepted Islam. 

*I Would like to add there is no origin to this story other than the Fatwa date Rabee' Al-Aakhir 18, 1435 / 18-2-2014. However the famous Islamic scholar Imam Ghazali  from the information he collected in the hadith regarding our Prophet (PBUH) expressed a compassionate attitude to all those around him and wrote as follows:

“He was far from knowing anger and quickly showed compassion for things. He was the most loving of men toward other people. He was the most auspicious of men and did the most good to others, and the most useful and beneficial to others.” (Imam Ghazali, Ihya’u Ulumiddin, Vol. 2)

May Allah forgive me if I have written something displeasing to him. If I've written anything wrong please feel free to message me and I shall correct it in due time ان شاء الله 

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A little reminder for the day 

"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." (Quran 2:216)