The transformative power of patience in faith
There is a very beautiful verse in Surah Ash-Sharh of the Holy Quran that I want to start with today. In the same verse, Allah (SWT) says, “Undoubtedly, along with hardship, there is ease” (94:5). This verse is full of optimism, stimulating and instigating one, highlighting that there is always a bright light at the end of the tunnel. As the famous Kashmiri saying goes: “Wande chale, sheen gale, beyih bahar” (Winter will pass, snow will melt, summer will come again).
Life here is a place of hardships, labor, and ordeals; enduring hardship is a part and parcel of it. It is necessary for a Muslim to understand that complications and afflictions are inevitable. As Allah (SWT) clearly says in the Quran: “Do people think that they will be left (at ease) and will not be put to test?” (29:02).
In another well-known verse, Allah (SWT) says: “And surely, We will test you with a bit of fear, hunger, and loss in wealth, lives, and fruits. And give glad tidings to the patient” (2:155).
Since the Quran is the literal word of Allah, these tests are definite. Believers, especially the Prophets and the pious, have to go through these trials. Each one of us may have to experience pain, loss, fear, anxiety, and sorrow—be it not getting a job at the right time, losing a job, witnessing the death of loved ones, suffering from a disease, or facing failures. Life does not always go as planned; it takes all kinds of unexpected twists, turns, and bumps. In fact, there are times when it seems like life is knocking us down over and over again, and nothing seems to be going our way.
The supreme level of faith is to respond to these trials with beautiful patience. According to a famous Islamic scholar, patience means to thwart ourselves from dejection and fear, to prevent our tongues from complaining, and to restrain our hands from beating our faces or tearing our clothes in times of sorrow and stress. Conversely, when hardship approaches, we should respond with optimism and good assumptions.
The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said in a noted hadith: “How beautiful is the matter of the believer, for all his matters are good. If something good happens to him, he is grateful for it, and that is good for him. If something bad happens to him, he bears it with patience, and that is good for him” (Sahih Muslim).
The Prophet (PBUH) also said: “Know that there is much good in being patient with what you hate. Victory will come with patience, affliction will come with relief, and hardship will come with ease” (Musnad Ahmad).
When a Muslim realizes that the source of suffering is the same entity from which comfort and contentment come, he will surely endure hardships with trust in Allah—knowing that He brought the hard times and will surely bring ease as well.
Great rewards come with great trials. Patience and perseverance, combined with an unshakable belief in Allah, are the keys to success. Difficult times will end, and striving will bear fruit. Every craving, desire, longing, and waiting will be answered by Allah, In Sha Allah. Such should be our belief and certitude in Him.
It is apt to conclude with P.B. Shelley’s quote, which reflects the Kashmiri saying mentioned at the beginning:
“If winter comes, can spring be far behind?”
Indeed, after every hardship, there is ease.
The writer is a teacher
Masroof Manzoor
ma********@***il.com