A Law of Nature
Al-Risala (English), November-December 1994, p. 31
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is named as the default author of the periodical; a piece that carries another writer’s byline is credited to that writer.
A Law of Nature
(203:9)
1994 11-12 November-December 31 A Law of Nature (293)
Every misfortune that befalls the earth, or your own persons, is ordained before We bring it into being. That is easy enough for God; so that you may not grieve for the good things you miss, or be overjoyed at what you gain. God does not love the haughty, the vainglorious; nor those who, being niggardly themselves, enjoin others to be niggardly also. (57:22-23)
These words of the Qur’an tell us a law of nature. For those who have learned this law, loss becomes as meaningful as gain.
This world – in which everyone is free – has been devised by God for the purpose of testing mankind. Here, everyone is passed through different situations, favourable as well as unfavourable, so that he can be tested from every aspect, and so that his reactions and performance may be seen in different sets of circumstances. It must be borne in mind that the ups and downs of circumstances are a law of nature, which never changes for anyone.
One will be faced in this world with both kinds of experience – of loss as well as gain; at the individual as well as at the national level. But neither is gain success in this world nor is loss deprivation. Both situations serve the purpose of the divine test. Man should, therefore, not lose heart at his losses, taking them as deprivation, and similarly, his gains should never make him proud and arrogant by his taking them as matters of honour and prestige.
Man must in both sets of situations react with moderation. Apparent success should give him food for thought and apparent failure should increase his spirituality. None of these happenings should disturb his mind in such a way as to render him incapable of positive thinking.
