A believer’s (mumin) trials and agonies serve to be a recompense for his sins.
Hazrat Abu Sayeed Khudri narrates that the Prophet of Allah, peace be upon him, said : When a believer (Mumin) suffers some agony or gets into any difficulty, or falls sick or is afflicted with some kind of pain, or something causes him worry, all such trials serve as a recompense for some of his sins.
(Sahih Bukhari, Kitabul Marzi)
Life is a ride on a roller coaster with its highs and lows, turns and twists and sweet and bitter moments. Every individual passes through a variety of circumstances which are never constant. Sometimes he has joys and jubilation coming his way. On other moments, he may be facing trials and tribulations. Life is full of challenges. Successes alternate with failures. A believer should remain patient through them all. Just as moments of happiness should not make him arrogant and self-centred, the pain and agony, failures and disappointments, losses and difficulties, should not cause him dismay. The Prophet of Allah assures the faithful that all his travails and tribulations will erase his sins and will serve to tilt the balance of account towards virtues. This is a special favour for the believers.
The life for a believer is bound to be tough, a path full of thorns, for he never tries to buy the life of ease and comfort and refuses to succumb to temptations. The constant struggle to protect his integrity, avoid the haram and earn the halal livelihood, behave justly with others, poses challenges. Far from siding with the vicious, he is even circumspect in claiming what should rightly and justifiably belong to him. This puts him into a constant conflict between satanic temptation and the call of the conscience.
A life of uprightness is not a bed of roses. Even more difficult is a life in a community where upholding justice and fair play earns enemies and sycophancy fetches rewards. A believer’s sense of discretion is constantly tested. Consequently, a believer routinely attracts pain and discomfort, dismay and despondency and worry and concern. Those who face them with steadfastness, they earn rewards in the form of their sins being deleted from their account of deeds thereby enhancing the weight of virtues in their account. Some Hadith even go to the extent of telling the believers that even if a thorn pierces the believers, it becomes a compensation for some of their sins. Thus the believer’s constancy and patience in his hour of trial, serves as a cleansing agent for his records of deeds.
A believer should therefore never get impatient when in trouble. He should withstand it and face it with fortitude. Even in his moments of joy and happiness, he should never turn arrogant and haughty. The remembrance of God should keep his company in all circumstances. Such of the servants of Allah get elevated in the Divine estimation.
(MAS)
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