The Tremendous Virtues Of Patience

Patience (As-Sabr) In the name of Allah[1], the All-Merciful, the Ever-merciful. All Prayers and Blessings of Allah be upon our master, the most noble Prophet Muhammad. We praise Allah, thank Him, seek His help, guidance and forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil in our souls and the sinfulness of our deeds. “Whomever Allah guides, then he is right-guided, and whomever He leads away into error, then you will never find for him a right-minded patron” (TMQ, 18:17)[2]. The word ‘patience’, the topic of this khutbah, is incredibly practical. People forget that patience is one of the bases upon which rests the system of heavens and earth. Not only does it apply to humans, but it is also a cosmic rule; the whole universe is based upon the concept of patience. Think about the fetus in its mother’s womb and the different, consecutive phases of its development. Think how we grow up day after day. Therefore, scholars say that ‘Perfection in life and faith relies on patience.’ For example, bravery cannot be a trait of an impatient person. Construction of canals and dams cannot be carried out without patience, let alone building whole countries. The realization of economic development plans depends on patience. Being dutiful to one’s parents regardless of what they coerce one into is actually a sort of patience. In case they ask you to do things you are not keen to do, you will need patience. It is said that the soul is the mount upon which one rides to either Jannah (Paradise) or Hell, and that patience is its bridle. The literal meaning of patience is constraint. Being patient then means that one puts oneself under constraint in order to carry out righteous deeds, to abstain from sinful actions, and/or to accept without frustration times of affliction.

Patience in the Qur'an and Hadith Patience is mentioned more than 90 times in the Qur'an. No other moral value is mentioned as much, not even truthfulness or honesty. The word is mentioned in the imperative form in the Qur’an. For example, Allah (TWT) also says what can be translated as, “And seek help in patience and prayer” (TMQ, 2:45). Allah says what can be translated as, "Surely Allah is with the patient" (TMQ, 7:46), and as, "And indeed We will definitely try you with something of fear and hunger, and diminution of riches, and selves, and products; and give glad tidings to the patient" (TMQ, 2:155). Allah (TWT) says what can be translated as, "Surely (the) patient will only be paid their reward in full without reckoning” (TMQ, 39:10). Scholars of Qur’anic Interpretation explain, “Without reckoning” as endless rewards poured onto the patients’ scale. The reason why the patient receives such a reward is that they never complain about the hardships they face. It is because they never say, “O our Lord! Why have you done this to us?" that Allah gives them endless rewards. As they do not look for explanations for Allah’s qadar for us, Allah does not call them to account in return. Allah (TWT) says what can be translated as, "And indeed he who (endures) patiently and forgives, surely that is indeed (an act of true) resolve concerning His Commands" (TMQ, 42:43). It is an act of resolve then when you have patience over an offence and forgive those who hurt you. Allah urges believers and messengers to have patience. He (SWT) addresses the Prophet, saying what can be translated as, "So (endure) patiently, as the Messengers endowed with resolve (endured) patiently"(TMQ, 46:35). Addressing the Prophet (SAWS), Allah (TWT) says what can be translated as, "So (endure) patiently under the Judgment of your Lord, and do not be as the Companion of the Whale (Prophet Yûnus “Jonah”) as he called out, as he (was) made to choke (inwardly). Had there not overtaken him a favor from his Lord, indeed he would have been flung off upon the naked shore (i.e., the wilderness) (while) he was a reprobate" (TMQ, 68:48-49). Allah also teaches us that victory shall not be granted to the Muslims unless they persevere in following the right path. Allah describes in Surat al-Baqarah the

confrontation between Jalut (Goliath) with his army of non-believers and Talut (Saul) with his army of believers. At the end of the story, He says what can be translated as, “(But) the ones who expect that they will be meeting Allah said, “How often a little community has overcome a much (larger) community by the permission of Allah; and Allah is with the patient." (TMQ, 2:249). Patience has its due share of the

Prophet’s (SAWS) hadith[6]. He (SAWS)

said, "Patience is light."[7] The loss of a loved one or an organ can easily darken one’s view of the world. Moreover, the Prophet (SAWS) said, "Nobody can be given a blessing better and greater than patience."[8]. The Prophet also said, “Indeed amazing are the affairs of a believer! They are all for his benefit, and this not for anyone but a believer. If he is afflicted with a hardship, he perseveres; and this is best for him and if he is granted ease of living he is thankful; and this is best for him.”[9] The Prophet (SAWS) says, "None is more patient over offending words (he hears) than Allah. They ascribe a son to Him whereas He gives and provides them with sustenance."[10] Indeed, there is no god to be worshipped except The All-Patient (AsSaboor). Even the other creatures denounce what happens on earth and complain to Allah. No day passes in which the sea does not complain to its Lord, saying, "O my Lord! Allow me to drown the children of Adam since they eat what you provide them and worship other than You.” Likewise, the mountains say, "O our Lord! Allow us to collapse over the children of Adam since they eat what you provide them and worship other than You. The earth also says, "O my Lord! Allow me to swallow the children of Adam since they eat what you provide them and worship other than You.” Yet, Allah replies, "Be patient with them. If you had created them, you would have mercy over them.” Allah says what can be translated as, "Surely Allah holds the heavens and the earth (so) that they do not cease to exist; and indeed in case they cease to exist, decidedly no one would hold them both after Him" (TMQ, 35:41). The Prophet (SAWS) was completely right when he said, "None is more patient over offending words he hears than Allah." Scholars say

patience constitutes a major part, or literally half, of faith. Faith is

nothing if not perseverance in doing good deeds and abstaining from sinful ones. Life itself is a series of blessings and afflictions for which one thanks Allah. The other half of faith then must be gratitude. In times of blessing, people are required to worship Allah through their gratitude and compliance, whereas in times of

affliction, people should worship Allah through patience. In a single ayah (verse), Allah talks about the performers of both types of worship; "Surely in that are signs indeed for everyone (who is) most patient, constantly thankful" (TMQ, 14:5). Faith

is like a body whose head is patience. If the head is cut

off, then the body is dead. If we have no patience to pray and want to fulfill a desire instead, then do as we wish because for our faith then is headless! The type of patience Allah wants us to have is "The Becoming Patience;” Allah (TWT) says what can be translated as, "So (endure) patiently with a becoming patience" (TMQ, 70:5). Ya'qub (AS) (Jacob) says what can be translated as, "So, patience is becoming." (TMQ, 12:18). The becoming patience is one that is not accompanied with annoyance, worry, boredom, or complaint. Becoming patience is blemished with the slightest sigh or grimace. One’s face should show nothing but complete satisfaction, even if the heart is in pain, or the eyes are welling up with tears. We are only human and we cannot hide our sadness, but the least we can do is keep our hearts patient. Now, salaf define three types of patience: Patience in abstaining from sinful deeds Patience in performing good deeds Patience through afflictions People mistakenly think that patience through affliction is much more difficult than patience through blessings. However, patience through affliction is inevitable, while patience through blessings is optional. Yusuf’s (AS) (Joseph) affliction with imprisonment is, therefore, more difficult than Ayyub’s (AS) (Job) affliction with the loss of his money, health, and children. Yusuf (AS) chose to be thrown in jail in order to avoid sins, while Ayyub (AS) had no choice. Moreover, Yusuf’s (AS) patience through his affliction with his brothers’ envy, which landed him in the depth of a bottomless well, is not equal to his patience through his affliction with imprisonment for the same reason. Thus, perseverance in performing acts of worship and abstaining from sins is more sublime than withstanding affliction. Therefore, the ranks of patience in order are: Patience through performing good deeds, patience through abstaining from sinful deeds, and finally, patience upon afflictions. Patience through affliction and all predestined matters:

Afflictions include death of loved ones, illness, ill-treatment of others, poverty, children’s problems, and misunderstandings with spouses. Death of loved ones is the most difficult of these afflictions. The following ahadeeth are a source of inspiration to those who lose their loved ones. The Messenger of Allah (SAWS) said, "When a person's son passes away, Allah asks the angels, saying, ‘Have you taken the life of my worshipper’s son?’ The angels reply, ‘Yes.’ Then He says, ‘Have you taken the apple of his eyes?’” See how merciful Allah is even when He afflicts His servants! “They respond, ‘O our Lord! We have.’ Then, He says, ‘What was the reaction of My servant?’ They say, ‘O our Lord! He has praised You and said, ‘To Allah we belong and to Him shall be our return.’’ Then Allah (TWT) says to them, ‘Build for him a house in Jannah and call it the house of al-Hamd (the praise).’"[14] Those who lost loved ones-fathers, mothers, brothers, friends, or mentors–must be really encouraged and relieved by the hadeeth Qudsi, in which Allah (TWT) says what can be translated as, "I shall reward my slave whose best friend dies and who struggled with patience with nothing but jannah.” [15] Hence, patience over the distress of death can be a reason for one to go to jannah. Houses in jannah can be built with one’s patience. On the Day of Judgment, the children who died shall refuse to enter jannah without their parents. They shall say, “O our Lord! We shall not enter without our parents.” Allah (TWT) shall then reply, “Take your parents by the hand and enter jannah together.” This is a reason for us to reconsider our view of affliction. The beauty of patience lies in the place to which it directly leads—Jannah! The Prophet (SAWS) also says, “Allah may forgive the sins of a believer due to one night of fever he goes through.” All these ahadeeth are a reason for us to savor our pain, and not only endure it, as patience will only bring us closer to jannah. IbnMas’oud (RA) disappointed his listeners once when he said, “No one is rewarded when stricken by affliction”, however, he pleased them when he finished his sentence saying, “afflictions rather eliminate sins.” The Prophet (SAWS) used to pray for the ill saying, "It is purification if Allah Wills"[20] i.e. may Allah purge you of sins for enduring this pain. For this reason, it is of sunnah (the Prophet’s tradition) to say this when visiting the ill. Enduring the ill-treatment of people is another type of patience. When Allah (SWT) gathers the creatures on the Day of Judgment, a caller would say, “Let the people of

merit arise” They would be few and they would rise and hurry towards jannah. The angels would stop them and ask, “Who are you?” They reply, “We are the people of merits” The angels would then ask, “What is your merit?” They would say, “If oppressed, we would endure, if harmed we would forgive and if insulted we would be patient” The angels would then say, “Enter jannah, the best reward for good doers”. The Prophet (SAWS) says “A Muslim is not afflicted by hardship, sickness, sadness, worry, harm, or depression—even if pricked by a thorn—but Allah erases some of his sins because of that".[21] The Prophet (SAWS) also says, "Affliction may continue to befall a believer in his body, property, or family until he meets Allah burdened with no sins."[22] Ayyub (AS) (Job) led an opulent and vivacious life for 80 years. He had 14 sons and daughters and he was adored by his fellow villagers. In a glance, his sons and daughters died, he lost his property, and he was afflicted by a serious illness that forced him to stay at home as his skin started falling apart. People feared catching the disease so they deserted him. Only his loyal wife remained by his side. After eighteen years of grateful patience, during which the Prophet (AS) spent all the money he had left and his wife had to work as a maid to support them, the loyal wife asked him to pray to Allah to relieve them of their suffering. Ayyub (AS) said, “Allah filled eighty years of my life with blessings. I cannot ask him to deliver me from this unless I spend eighty similar years in patience and gratefulness”. Until now we have always associated Ayyub (AS) with patience. About Ayyub (AS), Allah says what can be translated as, “Surely We found him a patient (man). How excellent a bondman he was! Surely he was a constant resorter (to Us).”(TMQ, 38:44). His wife actually had to sell her long braided hair in order to make money. When Ayyub (AS) discovered that, he prayed to Allah to deliver him saying no more than what can be translated as, “Adversity has touched me, and You are The Most Merciful of the merciful” (TMQ, 21:83). He did not say that he has had enough, nor did he complain. Allah says what can be translated as, “Then We responded to him; so We lifted off the adversity that was upon him, …” (TMQ, 21:84). Yusuf (AS) (Joseph) is another famous affliction-forbearer. His brothers envied him so much that they almost killed him. They dropped him in a bottomless well in the middle of nowhere. The rescuer sold Yusuf, the descendent of the prophets, as a slave to an Egyptian minister. Yusuf (AS) was estranged from his family and

homeland for twenty years because he was too young to know the way back. The minister’s wife desired him and tried to seduce him. Then, he was thrown in prison for about nine years and finally, he was afflicted with the wealth and rank the king bestowed upon him. Moreover, his father was also afflicted by his loss. Observe the amount of affliction in their lives. Similarly, the story of Ibrahim (Abraham) and Isma’il (Ishmael) (AS) perfectly illustrates this kind of patience. =================================================== ======== Conditions of Patience: 1- One has to act with patience as soon as one is struck with bad news or afflicted with a trouble. 2- At that moment, one should say “Surely we belong to Allah, and surely to Him we are returning. O Allah, recompense us for our loss. One should say it when afflicted with the pettiest troubles even when losing a pen. 3- One should not complain or express annoyance when faced with troubles. We are of course allowed to express our grief to others and inform them of what happens to us, but beware of talking as if we are complaining from or about Allah. We should be patient at all times. Men in particular must always remember the following hadeeth as it talks about the way they should see their wives. The Prophet (SAWS) said, "A believer (a husband) should not dislike a believer (his wife), for if he saw some manners he disliked from her, he would see some other manners he would like"[25]. I would like to draw your attention to the importance of patience through the ups and downs of life. One of the companions (RA) says, “We were able to maintain our patience during affliction, but we could not do so when blessed with affluence.” This happens to many of us, unfortunately. The moment one has enough money to obtain what one wishes, sinning becomes rather trivial and we may even assume kibr. Let us analyze the well-known hadeeth in which the Prophet (SAWS) said, "Allah will give shade, to seven, on the Day when there will be no shade but His. (These seven persons are) a just ruler, a youth who has been brought up in the worship of Allah (i.e. worships Allah sincerely from childhood), a man whose heart is attached to the mosques (i.e. to pray the compulsory prayers in the mosque in congregation), two

persons who love each other only for Allah's sake and they meet and part for Allah's sake only, a man who refuses the call of a charming woman of noble birth for illicit intercourse with her and says, ‘I am afraid of Allah’, a man who gives charitable gifts so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given (i.e. nobody knows how much he has given in charity), and a person who remembers Allah in seclusion and his eyes are then flooded with tears." [26] It is quite clear that all of the above are examples of patience with obedience. Patience can also be in befriending the pious. Allah says what can be translated as, “And (suffer) yourself to (endure) patiently with the ones who invoke their Lord in the early morning and nightfall, willing to seek His Face, and do not let your eyes go past them, (i.e., overlook them) willing (to gain) the adornment of the present life; (Literally: the lowly life, i.e., the life of this world)” (TMQ, 18:28). Allah (SWT) says what can be translated as, “And command your (extended) family to (observe) the prayer and constantly (endure) patiently in it.” (TMQ, 20:132). Omar Ibnul-Khattab used to wake up to pray qiyam half and hour before fajr (dawn) prayer. He used to wake his wife and children up every time, saying, “And command your (extended) family to (observe) the prayer and constantly (endure) patiently in it” (TMQ, 20:132).

[1] The word Allah is the Arabic term for God. Although the use of the word "Allah" is most often associated with Islam, it is not used exclusively by Muslims; Arab Christians and Arabic-speaking Jews also use it to refer to the One God. The Arabic word expresses the unique characteristics of the One God more precisely than the English term. Whereas the word "Allah" has no plural form in Arabic, the English form does. Allah is the God worshipped by all Prophets, from Adam to Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. (the translator) [2] TMQ=Translation of the Meaning of the Qur'an. This translation is for the realized meaning, so far, of the stated (Surah:Ayah) of the Qur'an. Reading the translated meaning of the Qur'an can never replace reading it in Arabic, the language in which it was revealed. [3] Tabaraka Wa Ta`ala [Most Blessed Most High]) (the translator). [4]Salla Allah alayhe Wa Salam [All Prayers and Blessings of Allah be upon him] [5]Hijab: literally “cover”. It describes the self-covering of the body for the purposes of modesty and dignity. Broadly, it should be regarded as a prescribed system of attitudes and behavior regarding modesty and dignity. (the translator) [6] The Prophet’s actual sayings or actions as narrated by his companions. [7] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 556 and narrated by Abu-Malik al-Ash’ary (RA). [8] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 1492 and narrated by Abu-Sa’eed al-Khudry (RA). [9] Reported by Muslim in Saheeh Muslim number 7692 and narrated by Suhayb (RA).

[10]Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 7467 and narrated by Abu-Musa al-Ash’ary (RA). [11] Hadeeth Qudsi: Allah’s (TWT) words narrated by the Prophet (SAWS). [12] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 3230 and narrated by Abu-Huraira (RA). [13] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 101 and narrated by Abu-Sa’eed al-Khudry (RA). [14] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 1037 and narrated by Abu-Musa al-Ash’ary (RA). [15] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 6500 and narrated by Abu-Huraira (RA [16]Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 5712 and narrated by Ibn-‘Abbas (RA). [17] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 5714 and narrated by Anas Ibn-Malik [18] A person from the generation following the generation of the Prophet’s (SAWS) Companions. [19] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 3668 narrated by Jundab al-Bajly (RA) and it is a good authentic Hadeeth. [20] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 3659 and narrated by Ibn-‘Abbas (RA). [21] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 5701 and narrated by Abu-Huraira (RA). [22] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 7270 and narrated by Abu-Huraira (RA). [23] Reported by at-Termedhy in Sunan at-Termedhy number 2578 and narrated by Abu-Mus’ad Ibn-Sa’d (RA). [24]Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 1295 and narrated by Anas Ibn-Malik (RA). [25] Reported by Muslim in Saheeh Muslim number 3721 and narrated by Abu-Huraira (RA). [26] Reported by al-Bukhary in Saheeh al-Bukhary number 663 and narrated by Abu-Huraira (RA SOURCE: Amr- Khaled website