Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: (And enjoin upon one another patience)
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Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: (And enjoin upon one another patience)]
Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Asr: 3] And patience is restraining the self from what should not be done.
And the scholars divided it into three categories, saying: Indeed, patience is patience in the obedience of Allah, patience from the prohibitions of Allah, and patience with the decrees of Allah.
Patience in obedience: Many people are lazy about praying in congregation,For example: they do not go to the mosque,He says: saying, "I will pray at home and I have fulfilled the obligation,"If he is lazy, we say: O my brother, restrain your self, hold it back, and make it accustomed to praying in congregation.
Many people, when they see that the zakah due on their wealth is large, become stingy and miserly,And he began to hesitate: asking, "Should I give out this large amount of money or keep it?" and the like of that,We say: O my brother! Restrain your self, force it to pay the zakah, and so it is with the rest of the acts of worship. For the acts of worship, as Allah the Exalted said regarding prayer: [Al-Baqarah: 45] Most of Allah's servants find that the acts of worship are heavy upon them, so they enjoin patience upon one another. Be patient in obedience, do not get tired, and do not be lazy.
Likewise, patience from sin: Some people are led by their selves to forbidden earnings: either through riba (usury or interest), or through deception and lying, or through concealment of defects, or through other types of what is forbidden,So we say: Be patient, O my brother! Restrain your self so that you do not deal in a forbidden manner.
Some people are also tested by looking at women; you find that when he is walking in the market, whenever a woman passes by, he follows her with his gaze,We say: O my brother! Be patient and restrain your self from this thing.
Also, patience with the decrees of Allah: A person may be struck with an illness in his body, a person may be struck with the loss of some of his wealth, a person may be struck with the loss of his loved ones, and he becomes despondent, complains, and suffers,So they enjoin upon one another: Be patient, O my brother! This is a decreed matter, and despondency does not benefit anything, and continuing in sadness does not remove the sadness. Be patient. It was decreed that this thing did not exist in the first place,For example: A person lost a million riyals and grieved over it and suffered from it. What do we say to him?We say: Be patient, O my brother! It was decreed that this million did not exist. Did you not come out of your mother's womb without any clothes on you? It was decreed that this was not what was.Likewise, for example, the children: A person was tested with the death of his son,We say: O my brother! Be patient. It was decreed that this son was not created. Then, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to one of his daughters: (Tell her to be patient and to seek reward, for to Allah belongs what He takes and what He gives) The whole matter belongs to Allah and not to you. So if Allah the Exalted takes His property, how can you complain to your Lord? How can you complain?! So these are the types of patience: The first: Patience in the obedience of Allah.
And the second: From the disobedience of Allah.
And the third: With the decrees of Allah.
Which of these is the most difficult for the souls? This varies. For some people, performing obedience is difficult and is very heavy upon them. For some people, the opposite is true: obedience is easy for them, but leaving sin is difficult and arduous; it is very hard for them. And for some people, patience in obedience and patience from sin are easy, but they cannot bear patience with calamities; they are unable to cope, to the point that their condition may reach such a level that they become apostates, may Allah protect us from that.As Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Hajj: 11] .
Therefore: We take from this verse that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, emphasized with the confirmed oath by "In" and the "Lam" that all of the children of Adam are losers. Indeed, the loss of loss surrounds them from every side,Except for those who are characterized by these four attributes: except for those who have faith, do righteous deeds, enjoin upon one another truth, and enjoin upon one another patience.
Al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If Allah had not sent down upon His servants any proof except this surah, it would have been sufficient for them.
Meaning: It would have been sufficient for them as a warning, not as legislation; because there is nothing in it of legislation. There is no ritual purity, no prayer, no zakah, no Hajj, and no fasting in it. But it was sufficient for them as a warning. So the rational person knows that he is in loss, unless he is characterized by these four attributes. Then he will try, to the best of his ability, to be characterized by these four attributes.
We ask Allah to make us and you among the successful and the guided.
Allah the Exalted said:
And enjoin upon one another patience
وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِAnd the scholars divided it into three categories, saying: Indeed, patience is patience in the obedience of Allah, patience from the prohibitions of Allah, and patience with the decrees of Allah.
Patience in obedience: Many people are lazy about praying in congregation,For example: they do not go to the mosque,He says: saying, "I will pray at home and I have fulfilled the obligation,"If he is lazy, we say: O my brother, restrain your self, hold it back, and make it accustomed to praying in congregation.
Many people, when they see that the zakah due on their wealth is large, become stingy and miserly,And he began to hesitate: asking, "Should I give out this large amount of money or keep it?" and the like of that,We say: O my brother! Restrain your self, force it to pay the zakah, and so it is with the rest of the acts of worship. For the acts of worship, as Allah the Exalted said regarding prayer:
and indeed, it is difficult except for the humbly submissive [to Allah]
وَإِنَّهَا لَكَبِيرَةٌ إِلَّا عَلَى الْخَاشِعِينَLikewise, patience from sin: Some people are led by their selves to forbidden earnings: either through riba (usury or interest), or through deception and lying, or through concealment of defects, or through other types of what is forbidden,So we say: Be patient, O my brother! Restrain your self so that you do not deal in a forbidden manner.
Some people are also tested by looking at women; you find that when he is walking in the market, whenever a woman passes by, he follows her with his gaze,We say: O my brother! Be patient and restrain your self from this thing.
Also, patience with the decrees of Allah: A person may be struck with an illness in his body, a person may be struck with the loss of some of his wealth, a person may be struck with the loss of his loved ones, and he becomes despondent, complains, and suffers,So they enjoin upon one another: Be patient, O my brother! This is a decreed matter, and despondency does not benefit anything, and continuing in sadness does not remove the sadness. Be patient. It was decreed that this thing did not exist in the first place,For example: A person lost a million riyals and grieved over it and suffered from it. What do we say to him?We say: Be patient, O my brother! It was decreed that this million did not exist. Did you not come out of your mother's womb without any clothes on you? It was decreed that this was not what was.Likewise, for example, the children: A person was tested with the death of his son,We say: O my brother! Be patient. It was decreed that this son was not created. Then, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to one of his daughters: (Tell her to be patient and to seek reward, for to Allah belongs what He takes and what He gives) The whole matter belongs to Allah and not to you. So if Allah the Exalted takes His property, how can you complain to your Lord? How can you complain?! So these are the types of patience: The first: Patience in the obedience of Allah.
And the second: From the disobedience of Allah.
And the third: With the decrees of Allah.
Which of these is the most difficult for the souls? This varies. For some people, performing obedience is difficult and is very heavy upon them. For some people, the opposite is true: obedience is easy for them, but leaving sin is difficult and arduous; it is very hard for them. And for some people, patience in obedience and patience from sin are easy, but they cannot bear patience with calamities; they are unable to cope, to the point that their condition may reach such a level that they become apostates, may Allah protect us from that.As Allah the Exalted said:
And of the people is he who worships Allah on an edge. If he is touched by good, he is reassured by it; but if he is struck by trial, he turns on his face [to the other direction]. He has lost [this] world and the Hereafter. That is what is the manifest loss.
وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يَعْبُدُ اللَّهَ عَلَى حَرْفٍ فَإِنْ أَصَابَهُ خَيْرٌ اطْمَأَنَّ بِهِ وَإِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ فِتْنَةٌ انْقَلَبَ عَلَى وَجْهِهِ خَسِرَ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةَ ذَلِكَ هُوَ الْخُسْرَانُ الْمُبِينُTherefore: We take from this verse that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, emphasized with the confirmed oath by "In" and the "Lam" that all of the children of Adam are losers. Indeed, the loss of loss surrounds them from every side,Except for those who are characterized by these four attributes: except for those who have faith, do righteous deeds, enjoin upon one another truth, and enjoin upon one another patience.
Al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If Allah had not sent down upon His servants any proof except this surah, it would have been sufficient for them.
Meaning: It would have been sufficient for them as a warning, not as legislation; because there is nothing in it of legislation. There is no ritual purity, no prayer, no zakah, no Hajj, and no fasting in it. But it was sufficient for them as a warning. So the rational person knows that he is in loss, unless he is characterized by these four attributes. Then he will try, to the best of his ability, to be characterized by these four attributes.
We ask Allah to make us and you among the successful and the guided.