Patience in the Time of Loss

Let me take you to a time back in history. There is a battle field infront of you where there are dozens of dead bodies… unrecognizable, worstly crushed by the enemies. The left soldiers of defeated army have lost their spirits and have heavy hearts… filled with guilt (for not obeying the Leader) and grieve for the loss of loved ones… and above all the pain of defeat. Almost everyone has lost someone dearest to his heart. In this hard time what do you imagine will be the response of the defeated army? What would you have done in that time of toughest trial? Well… most of us would propably lose patience and start blaming each other, seeking isolance or not willing to do anymore…. See what happened actually… Prophet Muhammad S.A.W, the leader, gathered companions, sent troops to follow the enemy till borders and made arrangements to burry the martyrs. This was Ghazwa-e-Uhud, an event no Muslim should forget when he/she is through hard times of his/her life. And Allah sent these verses to console the Muslim Army:

“If a wound hath touched you, be sure a similar wound hath touched the others. Such days (of varying fortunes) We give to men and men by turns: that Allah may know those that believe, and that He may take to Himself from your ranks Martyr-witnesses (to Truth). And Allah loveth not those that do wrong.” (3:140) 

Victory and defeat are tied to every human who chooses not to sit idle but to fight in any walk of life. An ordinary person will lose balance of emotions either in success or in loss. A person, emotionally intelligent, is required to be humble, dignified and kind always and in every situation.

•••To bear defeat with dignity•••
•••To accept criticism with poise•••
•••To receive honors with humility•••
•••Are marks of maturity and graciousness•••

Let us jot down all the possible situations that require a man to be patient and when it is very hard as well to be patient. Interestingly we can’t find any such moment which was not faced by atleast one Messenger of Allah Almighty be it death of a loved one, defeat, desease, loss of wealth, loss of power, being dismissed from land, imprisonment and so on… And what these pious people uttered at the time of test was not words of complaint but they said “Fa Sabrun Jameel” (so patience is most fitting).
Patience or Sabr is the gift from Allah in which He has put refuge for us. He says:

“O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.” (2:153)

Dear friends: Patience requires us to seek future aspects and do not get indulged totally in today. It requires us to be disciplined when there is a state of crisis or turmoil. Patience helps us grow despite worst conditions and heals us for the wrong done to us. We must never forget the patience of Companions of Prophet Muhammad S.A.W when they were treated brutally for embrassing Islam. Let us again enter past,… there is Hazrat Bilal R.A…, having rope in his neck like an animal’s collar, notorious boys are dragging him down the way and look at the patience of our dear Hazrat Bilal R.A. Can we still blame for having bad times in our lives? Probablly all our miseries combined cannot equal those of the Sahaba or even a single Companion of Prophet S.A.W.

Hence dear all: Patience, as a symbol of dignity and as a quality of the believers, must be a desire of each one of us. Next time when we are faced with a challenge, it is prayed that we remain among those termed “Sabiroon” and seek victory without lossing patience.
We would love to hear from you the time when you had hard moments in your life and you had been firm and patient….. Share with your friends as well.