Surah Al-Baqara verse 286

 

^{رَبَّنَا لاَ تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِن نَّسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لاَ طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا أَنتَ مَوْلاَنَا فَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ}

<sup>Our Lord, please do not punish us,
when we forget or slip up.

Our Lord, lay not on us a burden like that which You did lay on those before us.

Our Lord, put not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear.

Please pardon us, forgive us, and show us mercy,
You are our Protector,
so support us against disbelieving folk!</sup>

How faithful are we to Allaah?

It is narrated that a qualified medical worker from India emigrated to Canada to live a better life. This Muslim brother had a beard. He applied to many different places for a job and was called for interviews. Though he was highly qualified for the jobs, the interviewers hesitated to hire him because of his beard. One by one, he was rejected from all the companies. One interviewer actually mentioned to him indirectly that his beard was an obstacle to getting the job.

Truly, it was a big test for him from Allah. Hopeless and exhausted, the brother decided to remove the obstacle, which was to shave off his beard. Then he returned to that company and requested for another interview. When the interviewer saw him without a beard this time, he refused to give him the job again. The brother became confused and asked to know the reason. The interviewer said “If you are not faithful to your God, how will you be faithful to us?”¹

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

من التمس رضا الله بسخط الناس رضي الله عنه وأرضى عنه الناس ومن التمس رضا الناس بسخط الله سخط الله عليه وأسخط عليه الناس

Whoever seeks the pleasure of Allaah on account of the people's displeasure, Allaah will be pleased with him and will also make the people pleased with him. But whoever seeks the people's pleasure on account of Allaah's pleasure, Allaah will be displeased with him and will make the people displeased with him."²

<sup>---

1) Adapted from Qisas.com
2) Reported by ibn Hibbaan in his Saheeh (275) and al-Qudaa'ee in his Musnad (471); see also Saheeh at-Targheeb wat Tarheeb (2250)</sup>

That path to happiness

One of the scholars once said: I pondered over what wise men strive for, and found that their endeavor is all for the same target, even if their ways of seeking it are different. I found them all striving to demolish worry and grief from their lives; one by eating and drinking, one by trade and earning a living, one by marriage, one by listening to songs and delightful sounds, and one by entertainment and playing.

So I said: this endeavor is the endeavor of wise men, but not all the ways (taken by them) lead to it. Rather, most of them probably lead to the exact opposite of their endeavor. I didn't find any of these paths leading to the (intended) goal except the path of turning to Allaah, caring about Him, and preferring His pleasure over everything else. If the one who takes this path misses his share of this life, he has still triumphed by attaining the highest share with which their is no loss (i.e. the Hereafter); whoever attains it has attained everything, and whoever loses it has lost everything. And if he, on the other hand, also gets his share in this life, he will attain it in the most comfortable way.

The servant, thus, has no better path to follow, from the available paths, (other than the path of Allaah) that can take him to the (intended) pleasure, delight, and happiness. And with Allaah is success.*