Monday, August 11, 2014

A story of hope vs desperation

Sometimes, life brings us to a point of utter desperation, when every thing seems to be going wrong. It is not only a perception but Murphy's law becomes a reality. I read about it in "Peer-e-Kamil" as well when Salaar Sikander was completely and truly humiliated, frustrated and desperate when he asked Allah for mercy. I have seen it in real life many times. I know well enough that such times are tests, severe in intensity, hard to bear but they inevitably end and happier times follow. In fact, the happiness that follows is much bigger in intensity. I know all this and it's a very strange feeling; this knowledge that whatever is happening is due to a reason and is a test, not a punishment, not an aazmaish. I find solace in the Quranic verse "Verily, after hardship is relief". I know that Allah takes great tests of the people He loves; the stronger the faith, the greater the trial. I know precisely the bigger reason of such instances: God testing our faith and increasing it; looking at our patience and seeing if we complain or accept. Still, sometimes despite all such knowledge, it becomes hard to bear and desperation sets in and starts killing hope.
Losing hope is one of the worst things that can happen to human beings. It takes every thing away with it and everything appears bleak. What I love about Islam is its inherent message of hope, always hoping for Allah's mercy, always asking for His forgiveness, always thinking that He knows us and looks inside our hearts. I have a firm belief that Allah never turns away one who seeks Him and asks Him. I firmly believe in a God that loves. Allah's mercy overpowers His anger and in times of hopelessness when nothing makes sense, this makes perfect sense to me. I feel Him looking into my heart and overpowering me with His mercy.
We, humans, have ups and downs, passions and failures and a life that is not always fair. I have stopped wondering long ago about the apparent inequality of hardships borne by good and not so good people. I have long accepted that sometimes, it is better to let go and not try to understand. One day, it all makes sense. Allah jo chahta hai, us me raazi ho jana chahiye, is me bara sukh hai. It is not giving up; it is just putting down our burden and giving it up to God.I have long since learnt that the road to achieving Deen lies through terrible hardships and there is just no shortcut. The best way to is through it. Pain and suffering have the ability of bringing out the best in us. Like a washing machine wrings and spins clothes, hardships shuffle us and clean us through and through, provided we look at it this way.
I find no other way of looking at it. This is the only perceptive that offers hope and redemption. True, it is hard but when did calm seas ever make skilled sailors?
So, keeping my faith and love for Allah in my heart, I walk with closed eyes on a path full of stones, believing that I will come out in light sooner or later.

Faroha Liaqat
http://avoiceforislam.blogspot.com

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