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Variations in our Eman (faith)
By Michelle Al-Nasr
In each of our lives, our
eman can vary to several different levels. It goes from its
highest peak, when things seem as if they couldn't be better, to
times when we feel down-in-the-dumps, at an all-time low.
It is an aspect of our deen (religion) that we all should
anticipate at one point or another, and it is something we
should also prepare ourselves for. By understanding and
acknowledging the phases of our eman (faith), we will ready
ourselves for our own inner struggle when the time comes. It
will, insha'Allah, give us strength, endurance and patience to
ride out the storm.
It is a fact that at one point or another we will all struggle
to fulfill our daily obligations, most hard hit are usually the
voluntary elements. Sometimes we may feel it's not sufficient
for someone to simply give us a pep talk, encouraging us to be
patient. At times of sorrow, or during trials in our lives, we
need true guidance, but not only true guidance. We need hope. We
need to see the light at the end of the tunnel, to affirm that
there is a way out of our depths of despair. We need to be
assured that in time, things will change.
When we feel as if we have hit a low point in our eman, we must
understand what has gotten us feeling this way to begin with. If
we take a step back, most of us will agree that what usually
causes our low points is sins. Big or small, sin will eat away
at our eman. But it really doesn't only stop there. Sin leaves
us feeling empty, depressed and quite frankly disappointed in
ourselves. Those bad feelings will bankrupt our self-confidence
and our self-esteem. It is like a snowball effect, but there is
a way out of it.
Sin is like a trap. When you realize how to break out of that
trap, you will be set free. The way to break out is to begin
asking for forgiveness. When you're feeling really down, you may
feel so depressed you may think that you don't even deserve to
be forgiven, considering all of the sin you have committed. Our
enemy, Shayttan, palaces those types of thoughts in our minds.
He is the one who has set the trap for us to become entangled
in.
Whether or not we deserve forgiveness is not in our hands. Our
fate is simply not ours to judge, it is only up to Allah. Allah
has given us the tool to break out of the trap of Shytaan, for
Allah is The Protecting Friend and He is The Just. He is also
the Most Forgiving. He gave Himself that those names for a
reason, so His followers would know Him. So we would know
without a shadow of a doubt that there is hope.
Abu Huraira reported that Allah's Messenger, sallallahu alayhe
wa sallam, said, "By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if you were
not to commit sin, Allah would sweep you out of existence and He
would replace (you by) those people who would commit sin and
seek forgiveness from Allah, and He would have pardoned them."
(Muslim)
We should not forget that Allah knows the things we do publicly
and privately. Even Allah's Messenger, sallallahu alayhe wa
sallam, used to ask for Allah's frogiveness in the following dua:
"O Allah, forgive me my faults, my ignorance, my immoderation in
my concerns. And Thou art better aware of my affairs than
myself. O Allah, grant me forgiveness of the faults which I
committed, seriously or otherwise and which I committed
inadvertently and deliberately. All these failings are in me. O
Allah, grant me forgiveness from the fault which I did in haste
or deferred, which I committed in privacy or in public and Thou
art better aware of them than myself. Thou art the First and the
Last and over all things Thou art Omnipotent." (Muslim)
This is a beautiful example of how to ask for forgiveness, even
for the sin we commit unintentionally. Allah knows that we all
will commit sin, and He knows if we are sincere in our
repentance. Actions will always speak louder than words. If we
are to be truly repentant of our sin, we must do everything in
our power to stop committing it. Once we take steps to cease
committing sin, our eman will increase, as will our
self-confidence and self-esteem. "Allah
brings about ease after difficulty."
(65:07)
We must recognize that the only true guidance and real hope will
come from Allah and His Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wa sallam.
And we are again given even further reassurance:
"So verily, with the hardship, there is
relief. Verily, with the hardship, there is relief."
(94:5-6)
Finally, we must acknowledge that we will all experience low
points in our eman, but understand that it is only a phase. It
is like the sun that has been blackened with a dark cloud. Even
the most violent storms only last for a short time. Ask for
forgiveness, and soon the dark clouds will move on and the sun
will shine brightly again.
[From: Al-Jumuah - Vol. 12, Issue: 11]
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