“Perhaps you like something and it is bad for you, and it is possible that you dislike something but it is better for you.” (Quran, 2:216)
“Perhaps you like something and it is bad for you, and it is possible that you dislike something but it is better for you.” (Quran, 2:216)
Allah has blessed every person with countless ‘nemats’ (bounties) but due to our ingratitude, we are not always grateful and we lack the quality of ‘Shukar’. Similarly, due to our lack of understanding, we don’t always consider each bounty to be a bounty.
Sometimes we shun and despise things in our lives that Allah has given us, unaware that the very thing we dislike is actually a bounty and could be our saving grace. In other words, even things we don’t consider to be ‘nemats’ are often blessings in disguise.
Consider this scenario: a person is very handsome and has been endowed by Allah with very good looks, but later he suffers from a stomach ailment. In reality, both of these are ‘nemats’ in their own unique ways, but unfortunately this person perceives the good looks as a blessing and the illness as a calamity and curse.
Allah says in the Quran (2:216):
“Perhaps you like something and it is bad for you, and it is possible that you dislike something but it is better for you.”
Unfortunately, this person fell into sin in his youth; he began talking to girls, going on dates, ending up in nightclubs, and so on. All because of his looks and the confidence they instilled in him.
Later in life, when he was afflicted with the illness and the pain was unbearable, he would wake up in Tahajjud, having been unable to sleep due to the pain, and he would cry to Allah. In doing so, he developed a closeness to Allah which eventually led to a sincere repentance and his beginning the five daily prayers and giving up his various vices.
So, when we look at the two nemats in this person’s life, we must ask ourselves: which was more beneficial to him? The answer will invariably be; the illness, the nemat he disliked most!
This reminds me of the story of a vain stag who had very long and beautiful antlers. They were so tall and handsome that he used to talk about them all the time. But he also had extremely thin, spindly legs. He was very proud of his antlers and very embarrassed of his thin legs. He often asked himself, “How is it that I have the most beautiful antlers but the ugliest of legs?”
One day a lion chased him but he was able to get away thanks to his very fast legs. On that day, the thin legs that he despised about himself became his saving grace. On another occasion a lion pursued him again, this time too, due to the strength of the legs, he managed to escape leaving the lion far behind. But then he noticed an opening in some bushes and decided to go through them to escape into another field.
When he attempted to do so, his antlers became entangled in the shrubs, trapping him! Despite his best efforts, he was unable to escape. Subsequently, the lion approached and killed him.
The stag’s legs, which he considered an embarrassment, enabled him to save himself and escape. On the other hand, the antlers, about which he was so proud, became the means of his downfall and were useless ornaments in times of crisis.
The moral of this story is;
“We often make much of the ornamental and despise the useful.”
The lesson I want us all to take away from this article is to always be grateful to Allah for everything He, in His wisdom, has given us whether we consider it a blessing or not.
