Attaining Goodness of God

بسم اللہ الرحمن الرحیم

In verse 92, from the Chapter of the Family of Imran, God says:

لَن تَنَالُواْ ٱلۡبِرَّ حَتَّىٰ تُنفِقُواْ مِمَّا تُحِبُّونَ‌ۚ

None of you [believers] will attain true piety unless you give out what you cherish

The son of Omar ibn al-Khattab (ra), Abdullah ibn Omar (ra) was extremely fond of fish. His wife, aware of her husband's favorite viand, saved up, little by little, with the hopes of treating him to a pleasant surprise. After days of saving, she was able to buy and prepare the fish. And just as Abdullah ibn Omar (ra) sat down to eat, there was a knock at the door- a needy man stood there, asking for some help. So, Abdullah ibn Omar (ra) asked his wife to give the fish away.

His wife was perplexed. She asked, "But you loved the fish?". He replied with the verse, "None of you [believers] will attain true piety unless you give out what you cherish".

Not one to give up, his wife ran after the man and bought the fish back from him so that her husband could enjoy it. But as Abdullah ibn Omar (ra) sat down to eat for the second time, there was a knock at the door, and the same man wanted some help. So, Abdullah ibn Omar (ra) gave the fish away once again.

But, his wife wasn't one to give up. She loved her husband dearly. And the same thing happened, not once, but two more times. Except, after the third time, his wife made the man promise not to return for help.

At the end of the ordeal, Abdullah ibn Omar (ra) was able to enjoy the fish with his wife in peace.

Numerous lessons can be derived from this incident. Perhaps, the love that Abdullah ibn Omar's (ra) wife had for her husband is the most striking and heart warming.

The generosity and selflessness they had as a couple is something we can learn from.

But what is even more profound is that despite their act of selflessly giving what they cherished, they still managed to eat the fish. God says in the Qur'an, "Who will give God a good loan, which he will increase many times over?". Often times, people think that the rewards can be had only in the hereafter, but this incident proves that, God does indeed reward you in this world too.

Difficulties in life

بسم اللہ الرحمن الرحیم

In verse 286, in The Cow, God says,

...لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا 

God does not burden any soul with more than what it can bear...

Among the many reflections of this segment of this verse, revealed to the Prophet (upon whom be peace) when he made the night journey to the seventh heaven, are that our problems, our trials and our tribulations are custom tailored to us, they are like our fingerprints, they shape our identity. This segment of the verse is not dissimilar to the adage, only the wearer knows where the shoe pinches, except that instead of focusing on the negatives, this segment should, in itself be a source of hope to the God-conscious. 

The other interesting thing about the understanding of this verse is that there are things which each of us are equally responsible for, and that is an ability, a blessing bestowed upon all of us. These are the obligatory acts, acts which are the pillars of one's faith. These favors granted to us- to make a distinction between right and wrong, to perform 5 daily prayers no matter what the circumstances are, should be a motivation, a reminder of sorts for us, that we are capable of making it to the Garden.

The verse goes on, 

...لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا اكْتَسَبَتْ

Each gains whatever good it has done and suffers its bad...

There is an interesting usage of words in this segment of the verse, because ease is associated with good deeds and difficulty is associated with bad deeds. And when one thinks about it, on the face of it, it makes little sense. Sins may be easier in the short term; in the long term, they become difficult and cause unease. Stealing may be easy money, but spending even a day in the gaol, with the humiliation and other socio-economic implications is difficult. The alternative is pretty easy, and this is the view God wants us to have when we look at a choice between what is good and what seems easy.