|
Patience, the focus of about
two hundred verses of the Qur'an, and referred
to indirectly in many others, may be termed
the core subject of the scripture. The verses
directly relating to patience are quite
explicit in their content. For instance, Allah
Almighty says:
(And
seek help in patience and prayer.)
(Al- Baqarah 2:45)
(And
endure patiently whatever may befall you.)
(Luqman 31:17)
(And
exhort one another to be patient.)
(Al-Asr 103:3)
(And
heed not their annoyance, but put thy
trust in Allah.)
(Al-Ahzab 33:48)
A very pronounced and direct
instruction to behave with patience and
endurance is apparent in these verses.
The majority of the other
verses are also intensely concerned with
patience. The very first verse of the Qur'an
begins with (Praise
belongs to Allah)
(Al-Fatihah 1:1). This shows that Allah
expects mankind to express its gratitude and
admiration to Him. But this is a very trying
expectation! We know that this world is full
of unpleasant experiences and that nobody can
be insulated from them. According to the
Qur'an, man is created in affliction (Al-Balad
90:4). Indeed, it is not possible for anyone
to create a life of absolute bliss for
himself.
How then can a person become
grateful and appreciative of Allah's grace in
the real sense? The only way to be so is
through patience. It is only when a man
patiently endures worldly problems that it is
possible for him to express his feeling of
gratefulness to Allah. It is for this reason
that the Qur'an associates gratefulness with
patience (Luqman 31:31).
Patience makes a person
capable of finding a positive and successful
solution to any problem. When someone explodes
with anger while facing his adversary, he
loses the faculty to respond effectively or to
think of well-planned action. But when he
applies patience and tolerance, he finds
himself competent to make a rational move
instead of an impulsive reaction. History
testifies that one who acts on impulses and
emotional reactions, invariably fails; and one
who responds rationally, always succeeds.
Patience is undoubtedly the superior solution
to all problems.
|
