Sunday, January 18, 2015

Crystals of Patience

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

In The Name of Allah, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful.

So well, I know it’s already the end of the week and for this post to come ever so at the end of the week can give two indications of why it was written so late:

1.       I am too lazy to write
2.       I am having writer’s block
3.       I am far too busy juggling many other things happening until I can’t find a proper time to write
4.       I am waiting for the week to summarize itself before I start to put anything in black and white

Now, the first two would be the most common reason I would give followed by the third one which more or less becomes a preferable answer I would give to allow myself to be forgiven. Though it’s not about these reasons that I would like to discuss in my writing this time around – as you can see from the title, it’s about patience and I am more than keen to write about how Allah is The Most Patience. 

Thus, my story begins.

Disclaimer: This will be quite a long post, though I am not sure if I can do enough justice to you in explaining this asma’ of Allah properly because as said before in the promo post that most of my writings will be just my mere experience of how I feel that asma’ applies to my situation.

Alhamdulillah

First and foremost I’d like to express my gratitude for this life; a life that is not perfect, but nevertheless is far more sufficient than I have ever imagined it to be.

This week has been a challenge (like every other week, every other day, every other hour) and the challenge that Allah designated for me is of patience. The test of patience that Allah gave me this time around, encircles about so many aspects it gave me an even deeper insight on the meaning of patience and how in it should I apply it to daily life.

As-Sobru.

A name so common, a concept so repeatedly mentioned in the Quran it is almost one of the main characteristic of what a Mu’min should be. And yet, many of us still fail to grasp the gist of what this really means including yours truly - although I am gifted with the name bearing the meaning ‘Patience’.
“By time.
Indeed, mankind is in loss.
Except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience.”
(Surah Al-Asr,103: 1-3)

Living through the first few days of this week had thought me how much my anger have actually resided within me that when it does re-surface about recently, I have nearly a minimum control of it. And thinking that I have got it covered, thinking that I am used to the fact that these people around me do behave like this, I have actually miscalculated the proportion of the anger that I can withstand inside. This had crucially caused one of my closest ukht to bear the consequences of my unbearable rage. I will not say that it is of an extreme degree, but it did cause some feelings to be hurt by the actions I made.

Another side of which I was tested was of my previous jahiliyah in which I have made a daring promise to myself and Allah during the beginning of winter break; that of which I have yet to fully hold on to. Thus, as a follow-up, I decided to take up further measures in safeguarding that promise and to safeguard my imaan. This, at first was very challenging, because the initial pull to continue committing that jahiliyah is heightened due to reasons I feel would not give any extra input if stated here.

I knew and fully understood that whatever I might desire now, inshaAllah will be gifted in the near future if I had patience.

Credits

Though despite knowing, I can’t really help myself from being slightly distraught of my decision.

The next day, Allah granted us living in Galway, snow.

*smiles*

Something so unexpected to happen in Ireland, happened. It wasn’t only in Galway, other places like Letterkenny, Cork and Dublin also experienced the same event and my roommate was more than rejoiced with this occurring because she had yearned for snow to rain down on Galway for the past whole month. I was happy for her and in this happiness, I was ashamed of myself. I was ashamed that I couldn’t even bear a short period of waiting when I myself claim that life upon this world is just 1.5 hours only. The snow breeze came to remind me that all I need to have is patience, because if Allah wills, it truly will happen in His accordance.

“And seek help through patience and prayer, and indeed, it is difficult except for the humbly submissive (to Allah)”
(Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:45)

Soon after, Allah tested me again about my stand in Dakwah and Tarbiyyah. Because this road and path is a long one, filled with many thorns, threading uncharted regions and paving a pathway against the current trend of syaitan’s footsteps, it definitely does not sound like an appealing journey to take. Plus, you’re having to take it with balancing all the anatomical region of the skull, mean arteriole pressure, cardiac output, OSCE, nutrient metabolism and everything else that comes into the picture of being a medic student. It really is no easy task, let alone is it bearable by a normal conscious mind that lives for the sake of this world.

‘Will I have patience to go through all that comes my way?’

“O mankind, indeed the promise of Allah is truth, so let not the worldly life delude you and be not deceived about Allah by the Deceiver.”
(Surah Fatir, 35:5)

Allah answered me again through the findings I found this weekend while browsing through a book.
He answered me about having patience with the people around me as they all deserve to be treated with the proper akhlaq of a Muslim.
He answered and helped me go through the enduring pain of my feeble jahiliyah but cutting the ties to what attracts me to it.
He answered me about having patience on this long path finding meaning to Dakwah and Tarbiyyah by just being earnest and focus more on my relationship with Him, which then will help me to display it by my actions.

And it is in His nature to yet test me again.
It’s surprising to me how Allah can be so patient with me despite all the questions I ask Him in my wake, in my sleep, in my prayers, in my sujood. I find it impossible to be patient towards others when He has never stopped teaching me in my every step, always answering my prayers in a subtle way by giving His most powerful signs, Nature.

He has been patient to still guide me no matter how many times I fall into the same pit, always picking me back up and showing me the same path again though sometimes with a new method to combat my problem. Allah has always been so patient. All I needed to do was to really delve into my prayers and ask Him earnestly because this world is full of confusion even Rasulullah seeks for Allah’s guidance, what more the sahabahs, what more my own self.

A sister once asked the question about ‘al-Haq’; The Truth. We were speechless at that time because honestly, we had little to zero knowledge of it. We didn’t learn about the message inside the Quran by truly deciphering the Arabic language nor do we go to classes by Muslim scholars to claim that we know of what the True message by Rasulullah is. In fact, all we have to prove that this road of being a practicing Muslim is our five senses and the urge to learn more about Islam. By the small efforts we take to learn about Quran and Hadith, Seerah and Fiqh Dakwah, we are trying to find that answer. Sometimes, it’s not all about the destination that we’re heading for, it’s also about the journey we’re taking and I’m most definitely sure that to endure that, it takes a great amount of patience. And who can grant that ability of being patient other than The Most Patience?

*smiles*

“And be patient, and your patience is not but through Allah..”
(Surah An-Nahl, 16:127)


Credits


To read about Allah's other asma' click on the links below
Al-Haq
As-Sami'
Al-Qawiy
Al-Jabbar
Al-Wasi'

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