The Obligation and Reward of being Patient

[Authentic Sunnah]

The Obligation and Reward of being Patient

Patience was mentioned in the Qur'aan about 70 times, because we, O fellow Muslims, need patience in our lives.

It is an obligation to have patience in three forms:

-patience to fulfill the obligations
-patience to refrain from the sins, and
-patience to endure the afflictions and hardships and calamities

Many people change when hit with calamity, but successful are those who remain patient for the sake of Allaah.

Allaah promised those who are patient, while seeking the reward from Allaah, plenty of reward. Allaah said in the Qur'aan what means, "Those who are patient will be rewarded greatly by Allaah without limits."

And the hadeeth of the Prophet ﷺ is full of praise for those who are patient for the sake of Allaah. The Prophet ﷺ said in one hadeeth, "There is nothing as a reward for patience except Paradise."

This is because it is hard for one to be patient, especially when a calamity hits.

The believer believes, without a doubt, that everything that happens in this world happens by the will of Allaah, whether good or evil, gain or loss, health or sickness, happiness or sadness, sweet or bitter; everything that goes on in this universe happens by the will of Allaah, i.e. by the decree of Allaah. And that is why when the Muslim is afflicted with calamities, he accepts it.

The Muslim accepts what Allaah willed for him/her because they know that whether they accept it or not, whether they like it or not, it will happen anyway, so the intelligent one will accept what happens to him and will remain patient, while seeking the reward of Allaah. And the one who objects to the Will of Allaah has lost this life and the Afterlife, i.e. he has blasphemed (left Islaam), may Allaah protect us.

When the Muslim accepts what Allaah has willed to happen to him, this acceptance will lessen the effect of the affliction on the heart of the Muslim.

Our Master ^Umar Ibnu-l-KhaTTaab, the great khaleefah (Caliph), may Allaah raise his rank, and Companion of the Prophet ﷺ said, "I have not been afflicted with an affliction except that I was given four blessings along with it: The first is that it was not in my Faith (I was not misguided because of this calamity), the second is that it was not greater than it was (and had Allaah willed, it would have been), the third is that I was not deprived of accepting this affliction, and the fourth is that I hope to get reward from Allaah from being afflicted with it."

So you can see that our Master ^Umar moved from the domain of being afflicted—which requires patience, to the domain of being blessed—which requires gratitude. He changed the way he dealt with his afflictions and made it four blessings instead of one affliction. May Allaah raise his honorable rank and make us follow in his footsteps.

I ask Allaah to have mercy upon you and us, and to keep us firm and steadfast when afflictions hit. Aameen.