Patience at the Onset of Affliction

[Authentic Sunnah]

Patience at the Onset of Affliction

The Prophet ﷺ passed by a woman who was weeping by a grave, as narrated by Al-Bukhaariyy and Muslim. She was weeping in a way that was sinful, she was exaggerating. So the Prophet said to her, "Fear Allaah and be patient," because if she was doing sinful things (specifically the way she was weeping in exaggeration), then she has to fear Allaah, and she is recommended to be patient with the affliction. She did not know who was talking to her, so she responded while not knowing it was the Messenger of Allaah ﷺ. She said, "Go away. You have not been hit with an affliction like mine."

Later, people who were witnessing told her, "That was the Messenger of Allaah," so she became scared because she was impolite. She immediately ran to the Prophet's place. As the hadeeth says, she did not find any doormen at his door, so she immediately went in to where the Prophet ﷺ was. She told him, "I did not know it was you," so the Prophet ﷺ said, "Surely, the (real) patience is at the onset of the affliction (i.e. at the moment/first stroke of the affliction)".

When it is hot, then it is very hard on the person to display patience, i.e. to refrain from something that it is not permissible to do. So the Prophet ﷺ told her "The perfect patience is displayed at the initial impact of the affliction".

And Al-Imaam Al-QurTubiyy said that when it is hot, this affliction is fresh and it is hard for many people to observe patience. However, when it is cold, or a few days later, everyone can display patience.

That is why it was said, "It is imperative that the intelligent person observes at the time of affliction what the foolish has no choice but to observe three days after the affliction".

I ask Allaah to make us among those who are patient for His sake. Aameen.