In the Qurʾān, Allāh does not commend the perfect believer. Rather, He subḥānah commends the faulty one—the one who errs (probably more times than he can count!). He errs and then he is remorseful, so he defeatedly turns to Allāh and sincerely repents and seeks Allāh’s pardon. ﴾Indeed, Allāh *loves* those who are constantly repentant.﴿ al-Baqarah:222 …
﴾So they journeyed on…﴿ al-Kahf:71 ﴾So they journeyed on…﴿ al-Kahf:74 ﴾So they journeyed on…﴿ al-Kahf:77 Prophet Mūsā faces several setbacks in his path to seek knowledge. But each time he continues on with an unshaken resolve until the journey ends following an agreement put forward by Prophet Mūsā.…
When you’ve been asking Allāh for something for quite a long time and due to a ḥikmah (wisdom) that only Allāh knows, your request has been delayed. Then when you see another be given a similar blessing — one that you have been pining for and praying for, it might be natural for a person to feel a burn in their heart. A bitterness. A jolt of sadness, mixed with jealousy and envy (perhaps?). Some might go to the extent…
He [Yaqūb] said, “I complain of my suffering and my grief only to Allāh Yūsuf:86 Anything that grieves a person, anything that deeply bothers them and that causes them to become anxious and stressed (out of ordinary stress) is a muṣībah – it is a calamity, whether others perceive it as such or not.…