Purification of the Heart
Signs, Symptoms and Cures of
the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart
Translation and Commentary of
Imam Mawlud's Maášharat al-Qulub
by Hamza Yusuf
Displeasure with Divine Decree
POEM VERSES 106-107
Displeasure with the Divine decree occurs when one resists
God, the Majestic and Exalted, in what He has decreed.
For instance, saying, "I did not warrant this happening to
me!" or "What did I do to deserve this suffering?"
Discussion
The Imam speaks next of "displeasure with the Divine Decree," a phenomenon that should ring familiar. We have heard many times a person bemoan, "I do not deserve this!" or "Why me?" or similar declarations. Many people live with rancor in their hearts because of what they have been dealt with in life. This attitude toward trials stems from a denial of God's omnipotence and that God alone decrees all things. We cannot choose what befalls us, but we can choose our responses to the trials of life, which are inevitable. His decree is but a command from Him: "'Be' and it is!" as repeated in the Quran. Imam Abu Hasan said that there is a quality in people that most are unaware of, yet it consumes good deeds—displeasure with God's Divine Decree (Qadar).
God-conscious people, when asked about what their Lord has given them, say that all of it is good. They say this out of knowledge of the nature of this world, as a temporary crucible of trial and purification. Because of this elevated understanding, they are patient with afflictions and trials. For worldly people, there is only this world, and this understanding creates a blind spot to the wondrousness of God's creation and the signs strewn throughout.
There are only four possible states in which the human being can live, according to revealed sources. A person is either receiving blessings (ni'ma) or tribulations (bala') from God; or is either living in obedience (taa'a) to God or in disobedience (ma'siya). Each condition invites a response. When God gives a person blessings, the response is gratitude in all of its manifestations. According to Sacred Law, gratitude is expressed first by performing what is obligatory (wajib), then going beyond that by performing virtuous, recommended acts (mandub). Gratitude is an awakening of appreciation in one's heart, an acknowledgement of what one has received. Abusing one's material assets (hoarding them without consideration of the needy or applying them toward forbidden matters) is a flagrant act of ingratitude. The response to tribulation is patience (sabr), as well as steadfastness and resolve. This is what God demands from people in times of trial—a beautiful patience, as close as possible to what Jacob pbuh exhibited in response to the disappearance of his beloved son Joseph and the machinations of his other sons (QURAN, 12:18), or the patience of Job pbuh during his afflictions.
As for obedience, one must recognize that obedience is a blessing from God. If a religious person starts to believe that he is better than other people—even if these "other" people are in the state of disobedience—he invites haughtiness. This is the danger of obedience and, in fact, the danger of religion—self-righteousness. Imam Ibn 'ata'illah said, "How many a wrong action that leads to a sense of shame and impoverishment before God is better than obedience that leads to sense of pride and arrogance!" In this is the secret of wrong actions. (The New Testament relates the story of the pride of the righteous, Pharisee and the contrition of the humble tax collector. Jesus remarks, "Those who make themselves great will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be made great.") Sidi Ahmad al-Zarruq said that the goodness in obedience is in its essence and the evil in obedience is what it can result in. Sidi Ahmad al-Zarruq does not mean to say that there is evil in obedience and goodness in disobedience. Rather, he points out the danger of obedience leading to vanity in one's heart, an aura of sanctimony and condescension. On the other hand, when one indulges in wrongdoing and is overcome with feelings of shame, this can inspire him to hasten to repentance. The Prophet pbuh said that he feared for his people the vanity of self righteousness.
The Prophet pbuh once said that whoever has a mustard seed of arrogance in his heart will not enter Heaven, a sentiment shared with Christianity. What God asks from obedient people is simply acknowledging that their obedience is a gift from God. The Prophet pbuh said, "Do not find fault in others. If you find fault in them, God may take their faults away and give them to you." It is unbecoming for a believer to look with scorn at those in tribulation, exhibiting a loathsome disdain toward others who seem unguided. It is better to come with compassion toward them and gratitude to God. When the Prophet pbuh saw people severely tried, he made the supplication: "Praise be to [God] who has given me well-being such that I was not tried like these people. And He has preferred me over so much of his creation." Compassion for those in tribulation and gratitude for well-being is how the Prophet pbuh responded when he witnessed people in difficulty.
When it comes to disobedience (ma'siya), the response is repentance to God (tawba), seeking His forgiveness, pardon, and mercy, feeling remorse for the past, and having the resolve never to sink into disobedience again.
Everything that can happen to a person falls into one of these four categories, and each invites an appropriate response. What comes to a person in his or her life may help a person move closer to God when the response is right: It may be that you dislike something, though it is good for you. And it may be that you love something, though it is bad for you. And God knows, and you do not know (QURAN, 2:216). Ibn Abbas said that if a person is tested with a tribulation, he will find in it three blessings: first, the tribulation could have been worse; second, it was in worldly matters and not in spiritual ones; and third, it came in the finite world and not the infinite one. All three are reasons to thank God even for tribulations.
It is important to look at the life of the Prophet pbuh and know that no one faced greater tribulation. The Prophet phub lived to see all of his children buried, except for Fatima. How many people experience that in their lifetime? Out of six children, he saw five of them perish. His father died before his birth. His mother died when he was just a boy. His guardian grandfather then died. When he received his calling, he saw his people turn against him with vehemence and brutality. People who had once honored him now slandered him, calling him a madman, liar, and sorcerer. They stalked him and threw stones at him until he bled. They boycotted him and composed stinging invectives against him. He lost his closest friends and relatives, like Hamza, who was killed on the battlefield. His beloved wife Khadija after 25 years of blissful marriage died, during the Prophet's most difficult moment. Abu Talib, his protecting uncle, also died. The Prophet pbuh was the target of 13 assassination attempts. How many people have faced all of that? Not once in a single hadith is there a complaint from him—except when beseeching his Lord.
To be displeased with God's divine decree is to plunge into heedlessness (ghafla). Imam al-Qarafi distinguishes in his book al-Furuq the difference between a divine decree and being content with the decree itself. Should people be happy with all that comes their way, even the bad things? God has decreed that evil exist in the world in order to test humankind and for reasons that accord with His wisdom. We should not be displeased with His choice in allowing this. But when one sees societies plunged into immorality, it is not something to be pleased with or even feel indifferent. On the contrary, God requires that we dislike it. But never should we resent or be displeased with the fact that God has created a world wherein such things exist, however unpleasant they may be. As Ibn Abbas reminded, every trial could have been worse; it involved one's worldly affairs and not religion; and it came in this world and not the Hereafter, which lasts forever.
Imam al-Qarafi gives the example of a physician who amputates the arm of a patient who has gangrene spreading out of control. One day, the physician overhears the patient complaining that the physician was ignorant for amputating his arm. The physician is offended, for he saved the man's life. Had the physician heard the patient praising him—despite the fact that he lost an arm and is discomforted by pain—the physician would feel compassion for the man. So if one speaks about God's decree, saying, "God is testing me, but it is His will and there is wisdom in it," this differs greatly from the remarks of one who complains about the perceived injustices in the world.
Source: Purification of Heart
to be continued ....
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