Which two things are a trial for the Believers?

Many non believers or even believers of low faith often argue why there have been test and trials in this world? Why does God make one people happy and others unhappy? Why God could not create happiness for everyone and let everyone live in peace. Why test and trials??

Well the answer is very simple, yet people get into blaming God for every bad thins, yet are never thankful for good things that happen to them. If there were no tests and trials, how would God ascertain who is a better believer and loves Him more than others w=even when in difficult times and passing through hardships of life. 

Of the test and trials, love of man for two things stands out: His children and his wealth. One who prefers these two things to love of Allah is the one who reaches the finish line with rewards and blessings of Allah. Those who love these two worldly possessions more than Allah, remain far behind the finish line forever. Let us what are these two worldly possessions and why does Allah caution believers about these:

اِنَّمَاۤ اَمۡوَالُـكُمۡ وَاَوۡلَادُكُمۡ فِتۡنَةٌ ​ؕ وَاللّٰهُ عِنۡدَهٗۤ اَجۡرٌ عَظِيۡمٌ‏ 

(64:15) Your possessions and your offspring are nothing but a trial for you. And there awaits a great reward for you with Allah.

فَاتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ مَا اسۡتَطَعۡتُمۡ وَاسۡمَعُوۡا وَاَطِيۡعُوۡا وَاَنۡفِقُوۡا خَيۡرًا لِّاَنۡفُسِكُمۡ​ؕ وَمَنۡ يُّوۡقَ شُحَّ نَفۡسِهٖ فَاُولٰٓـئِكَ هُمُ الۡمُفۡلِحُوۡنَ‏  

(64:16) So hold Allah in awe as much as you can, and listen and obey, and be charitable. This is for your own good. And whoever remains safe from his own greediness, it is such that will prosper.

( Your possessions and your offspring are nothing but a trial for you. And there awaits a great reward for you with Allah. ) For explanation, see (E.N. 23 of Surah Al-Anfaal). Here one should also keep in view the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) saying which Tabarani has related on the authority of Abu Malik al-Ashari, saying: Your real enemy is not he whom, if you kill there is success for you, and if he kills you, there is Paradise for you; but your real enemy may be your own child who is born of your own loins, or the wealth of which you are the owner. That is why here as well as in Surah (Al-Anfaal, Ayat 28), Allah says: If you save yourselves from the temptation and allurements of worldly possessions and children and succeed in keeping love of them subject to the love of Allah, there are rich rewards for you with Allah.

Yusuf Ali  Explanation: Children may be a "trial" in many senses: (1) their different ways of looking at things may cause you to reflect, and to turn to the highest things of eternal importance; (2) their relationship with you and with each other may confront you with problems far more complicated than those in separate individual lives, and thus become a test of your own strength of character and sense of responsibility; (3) their conflict with your ideals (see n. 5494 above) may vex your spirit, but may at the same time search out your fidelity to Allah; and (4) their affection for you and your affection for them, may be a source of strength for you if it is pure, just as it may be a danger if it is based on selfish or unworthy motives. So also riches and worldly goods have their advantages as well as dangers.

Muhammad Asad Explanation: : For an explanation of 8:28 , which is almost identical with the present passage - reproduced herein under:

"and know that your worldly goods and your children are but a trial and a temptation, and that with God there is a tremendous reward." - (8:28)

Inasmuch as love of worldly goods and a desire to protect one's family may lead a person to transgression (and, thus, to a betrayal of the moral values postulated in God's message), they are described as fitnah - which, in this context, is best rendered by the two words "trial and temptation". This reminder connects with verse {8:25} above, "beware of that temptation to evil which does not befall only those who are bent on denying the truth," since it is acquisitiveness and a desire to confer benefits on one's own family which often tempt an otherwise good person to offend against the rights of his fellow-men. It is to be borne in mind that, contrary to the New Testament, the Qur'an does not postulate a contempt for worldly attachments as a pre-requisite of righteousness: it only demands of man that he should not allow these attachments to deflect him from the pursuit of moral verities.

Javed Ahmad Ghamidi Explanation: The implication is that family and wealth – all are a trial from God. If Muslims deal with them, considering them to be a trial, they will succeed; they should rest assured that the loss they suffer in this cause will be compensated in the Hereafter because great reward lies with God alone. 

( So hold Allah in awe as much as you can, and listen and obey, and be charitable. This is for your own good. And whoever remains safe from his own greediness, it is such that will prosper. )

At another place in the Quran it has been said: Fear Allah as rightfully He should be feared. (Surah Aal-Imran, Ayat 102). At still another place: Allah does not burden any one with a responsibility heavier than he can bear. (Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 286) And here: Fear Allah as much as you can. When these three verses are read together it appears that the first verse sets an ideal which every believer should try to attain. The second verse lays down the principle that no one has been required to exert himself beyond his power and ability, for in Allah’s religion one has been made responsible only for what is within his power and ability. This verse enjoins every believer to try to attain piety and consciousness of God as far as he can. He should carry out His commands and avoid His disobedience as best as he possibly can. For if he shows laxity in this regard, he will not be able to escape punishment. However, one will not be held accountable for what was beyond his power and Allah alone can decide best what was really beyond a person’s power and ability.

" And whoever remains safe from his own greediness, it is such that will prosper. "  For explanation, see (explanation of verse 9 of Surah Al-Hashr - reproduced herein under).

The word used here means “is saved” and not “was safe”, for without Allah's help and succor no one can attain to the wealth of the heart (liberal-mindedness) by his own power and effort. This is a blessing of God, which one can attain only by God’s bounty and grace. The word shuhha is used for stinginess and miserliness in Arabic. But when this word is attributed to the self of man, it becomes synonymous with narrow-mindedness, niggardliness, mean spiritedness and small-heartedness, and not mere stinginess: it is rather the root cause of stinginess itself. Because of this very quality man avoids acknowledging even the good qualities of another, not to speak of recognizing his rights and discharging them. He wants that he alone should gather up everything in the world, and no one else should have anything of it. He never feels content with his own right, but usurps the rights of others, or at least wants to have for himself all that is good in the world and should not leave anything for others. On this very basis one’s being saved from this evil has been described in the Quran as a guarantee for success. The Prophet (peace be upon him) has counted it among the most evil qualities of man which are the root cause of corruption and mischief. Jabir bin Abdullah has reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Avoid shuhha for it was shuhha which ruined the people before you. It incited them to shed each other’s blood and make the sacred and forbidden things of others lawful for themselves. (Muslim, Musnad Ahmad, Baihaqi, Bukhari in Al-Adab). The tradition of Abdullah bin Umar contains the following words: It led them to commit wickedness and they committed it. It commanded them to commit sins and they committed sin. It urged them to break off all connections with the kindred and they broke off all connections with them. (Musnad Ahmad, Abu Daud, Nasai). Abu Hurairah has reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Faith and shuhha of the self cannot combine in one and the same heart. (Ibn Abi Shaibah, Nasa Baihaqi in Shuab al-Iman, Hakim). Abu Said Khudri has stated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Two of the qualities are such that they cannot combine in a Muslim: stinginess and misbehavior. (Abu Daud, Tirmidhi, Bukhari in Al-Adab). It is as a result of this very teaching of Islam that, apart from individuals, the Muslims as a nation are still the most generous and liberal minded people in the world.

Yusuf Ali  Explanation: "Fear Allah" combined with "as much as you can" obviously means: "lead lives of self-restraint and righteousness": the usual meaning of Taqwa: see explanation to ii. 2.

Charity is meant to help and do good to other people who need it. But it has the highest subjective value for the person who gives it. Like mercy "it blesseth him that gives and him that takes". It purifies the giver's soul: the affection that he pours out is for his own spiritual benefit and progress. Cf. Coleridge: "He prayeth best who loveth best all things both great and small, for the Great God Who loveth us, Who made and loveth all".

Cf. lix. 9. Our worst enemy is within ourselves,-the grasping selfishness which would deprive others of their just rights or seize things which do not properly belong to it. If we can get over this covetous selfishness, we achieve real Prosperity in justice and truth. 

Muhammad Asad Explanation: Cf. last sentence of 59:9 (reproduced herein under):

"... for, such as from their own covetousness are saved - it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!"

Thus, greed, niggardliness and covetousness are pointed out here as the main obstacles to man's attaining to a happy state in this world and in the hereafter (cf. surah {102}). 

Javed Ahmad Ghamidi Explanation: The actual word is: شُحّ. It means “miserliness and stinginess.” In this verse, it is related to the soul. This is because miserliness is one of the inclinations found in the soul; hence like anger and lust, it too needs to be restrained. 

Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi has explained it He writes: … The only way to check it is that when a person starts to feel its domination, he should weaken it by spending for the cause of God until it becomes so weak that it is not able to impede virtuous deeds. It is evident from these words of the Qur’an that those who try to suppress this instinct succeed by the blessing of God, and only those who succeed in this effort are worthy of success in the Hereafter. For this reason, spending for the cause of God is the greatest thing which can earn His pleasure specially the spending which a person does by disregarding his own personal needs. (Amin Ahsan Islahi, Tadabbur-i Qur’an, vol. 8, 424) 

So let us beware of these two worldly possessions the love of which may fail us in the test Allah is given us and be always be ready to sacrifice our best of things to please Allah. We should pray Allah does not put us in any trial, specially with regard to our children. And for this we should give out charity as much as possible to extend a good loan to Allah to save us from any test in which may not be able to do justice to ourselves.

Please listen to explanation of the ayat by eminent Muslim scholar Nouman Ali Khan:

May Allah help us understand Qur'ān and help us to act upon the commandments of Allah contained therein. Aameen.

You may refer to more Selected Verses from Sürah 64. At-Taghābun - The day of Loss and Gain, already published.

For more Selected Verses, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.

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Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully.

An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs of the Qur'ān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that the exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi.  

In addition the references of other sources which have been explored have also been given above including ChatGPT. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites.

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Give Goodly Loan to Allah - He will increase it Several Fold

Giving loan to Allah? For some this may sound strange for it is we who are always in need of goodness from Allah and are always praying for increase in our blessings and wealth, both material and of health. Then why Allah calls us to give him a goodly loan? We need to understand the meaning and explanation of the following 17th verse from Surah 64. At Tagabun in the light of many other such verses mentioned in the Quran:

اِنۡ تُقۡرِضُوا اللّٰهَ قَرۡضًا حَسَنًا يُّضٰعِفۡهُ لَـكُمۡ وَيَغۡفِرۡ لَـكُمۡ​ؕ وَاللّٰهُ شَكُوۡرٌ حَلِيۡمٌۙ‏ 

"If you give Allah a goodly loan, He will increase it for you several fold and will forgive you. Allah is Most Appreciative, Most Forbearing."

This expression signifies spending one's wealth for the sake of God. Since God has promised to return to man every penny that he spends in His way along with His reward, which will be several-fold, the Qur'an characterizes this spending as a loan to God. This spending is considered a loan provided it is a 'good loan', that is, provided the money spent in the cause of God has been acquired by legitimate means and has been spent in accordance with the laws of God and with sincerity and earnestness.

Goodly loan' signifies whatever one gives to another person selflessly, and from absolutely pure motives. God describes whatever man spends in this manner as a loan made to none other than Him, and He undertakes to repay that loan and to repay it several-fold. The stipulation, however. is that the loan should be a 'goodly' one; that is, it should not he tainted with selfish designs and should be given for the sake of God, to be spent for purposes pleasing to Him

They said: 'And why would we not fight in the way of Allah when we have been torn from our homes and our children?' But when fighting was ordained for them they turned back, except a few of them. Allah is well aware of the wrong-doers.

How Generous and Beneficent is Allah that if a man spends the wealth granted by Himself in His way, He calls it a loan Himself, provided that it is a good loan, that is, a loan which in given with a pure intention, without any selfish motive of winning reputation and renown, or of doing favor to somebody, but only for the sake of Allah’s approval and to win His good-will and rewards. Allah makes two promises in this regard:

(1) That He will repay it increasing it manifold.

(2) That He will also give from Himself the best reward for it.

According to a Hadith reported by Abdullah bin Masud, when this verse was revealed and the people heard it from the Prophet (peace be upon him), Abud Dahdah Ansari asked: O Messenger (peace be upon him) of Allah, does Allah want a loan from us?” The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied: Yes, O Abud-Dahdah. He said: Kindly show me your hand. The Prophet (peace be upon him) extended his hand towards him. He took his hand in his own hand and said: I give away my garden in loan to my Lord. Abdullah bin Masud says that the garden had 600 date palms and also his own house in which his family lived. Saying this to the Prophet (peace be upon him) he went straight back home, and calling out to his wife said: Come out, O mother of Dahdah, I have loaned this garden to my Lord. She replied: Dahdah’s father, you have made a good bargain, and she immediately vacated and left the garden with her children. (Ibn Abi Hatim). This incident throws light on the conduct of the sincere believers of that time, and from this one can also understand the kind of the good loan that Allah has promised to return increasing it manifold with a rich reward in addition.

Ibn Kathir Explanation:

whatever you spend, then Allah will replace it, and on Him will be the reward of whatever you give away in charity. Allah considered giving charity as if it is a loan to Him, just as Allah said in a Qudsi Hadith, ("Who will give a loan to He Who is neither unjust nor poor'') This is why Allah the Exalted said in Surat Al-Baqarah, (So that He may multiply it to him many times) (2:245) 

Allah said; (and will forgive you.) meaning, He will erase your mistakes, (And Allah is Shakur) meaning, He gives abundantly in return for what was little, (Halim) means, He forgives, pardons, covers and absolves the sins, mistakes, errors and shortcomings.

Yusuf Ali Explanation:

Cf. ii. 245. Our Charity or Love is called a loan to Allah, which not only increases our credit account manifold, but obtains for us the forgiveness of our sins, and the Capacity for increased service in the future.

Cf. xiv. 5, and xxxv. 30. Allah's appreciation of our service or our love goes far deeper than its intrinsic merits or its specific expression on our side. His reward is beyond our deserts, and passes over out defects. He judges by our motives, which He can read through and through.

May Allah help us understand Qur'ān and help us to act upon the commandments of Allah contained therein. Aameen.

You may refer to more Selected Verses from Sürah 64. At-Taghābun - The day of Loss and Gain, already published. For more Selected Verses, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an. 

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.

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Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully.

An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs of the Qur'ān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that:

• The plain translation has been taken from the Qur'ān officially published by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. [1]
• The exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi. [2]  

In addition the references of other sources which have been explored have also been given above including ChatGPT. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites.

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

Follow @IslamUltimate

Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Qur'ān - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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Selected Verses: No misfortune ever befalls unless it be by Allah's leave

The world is passing through testing times these days due to the widespread pandemic of the Corona Virus or the Covid-19. Thousands of virus affected patients have perished while more than half a million people have been affected by the virus and are under treatment. No day passes when there are no news of deaths or of fresh cases. 

Such calamities and widespread diseases are not new as their have been severe epidemics in the past history. No one for sure can say why such calamities occur, but these befall on people when there is excess of bad things - things and actions that have been strictly prohibited by Allah. Yet people in general continue to disregard the Divine Prohibitions and indulge in actions most detested.

In such times, one is reminded of the 11th verse of Surah 64 At Tagabun of Holy Quran:

مَاۤ اَصَابَ مِنۡ مُّصِيۡبَةٍ اِلَّا بِاِذۡنِ اللّٰهِ​ؕ وَمَنۡ يُّؤۡمِنۡۢ بِاللّٰهِ يَهۡدِ قَلۡبَهٗ​ؕ وَاللّٰهُ بِكُلِّ شَىۡءٍ عَلِيۡمٌ‏ 

"No misfortune ever befalls unless it be by Allah's leave. And whosoever has faith in Allah, Allah directs his heart along the Right Path. Allah has knowledge of everything."

The same Divine message also appears in Surah 57 Al Hadid verses 22,23):

"No misfortune ever befalls on earth, nor on yourselves but We have inscribed it in the Book before We make it manifest. Surely that is easy for Allah. (57:23) (We do so) that you may not grieve over the loss you suffer, nor exult over what He gave you. Allah does not love the vainglorious, the boastful,"

This means that afflictions and hardships do not descend of themselves, nor has anyone in the world the power to cause an affliction to descend on anyone he may like by his own authority. All calamities wholly depend on Allah’s leave. He may allow an affliction to descend upon someone or may disallow it. And Allah’s leave in any case is based on one or other wisdom, directed to some ultimate good, which man neither knows, nor can understand.

It is only belief in Allah which keeps man on the right path even in the face of an onslaught of afflictions and does not let him waver under the most trying circumstances. The one whose heart is devoid of belief either looks upon afflictions as a result of mere chance, or thinks they are brought or prevented by worldly powers, or considers them to be the work of such imaginary powers which human superstition regards as potent in bringing good and causing evil, or believes that God is the real Doer of everything but does not believe so truly and sincerely in all these different cases man degenerates. He endures the affliction, but then yields and bows to every false god, accepts every humiliation, is ready to do any mean thing and commit any wrong act he does not hesitate to abuse God, even commits suicide.

On the contrary, the heart of the person who knows and believes sincerely that everything is in the hands of Allah. He alone in the Master and the Ruler of the universe. That only by His permission can an affliction befall and only by His command can it be averted. Such a person is blessed by Allah with the grace of patience and submission and of acquiescing in divine will, and is granted the power to face every circumstance with determination and courage. Even under the most straitened circumstances the candle of the hope of Allah’s bounty lights up his way. No affliction, however severe and trying, can dishearten him as to cause him to swerve from the right path or bow to falsehood, or invoke others than Allah for the redress of his grievances. Thus, every affliction opens up for him a new door to well-being and happiness and no affliction remains an affliction for him. In fact, it becomes, in the final, a blessing in disguise. For whether he falls a victim to it or passes through if safely, in each case he emerges successful from the trial set for him by his Lord. 

This same thing has been stated by the Prophet (peace be upon him) in a Hadith which has been reported unanimously by all the reporters, saying: Strange is the affair of the believer! Whatever Allah decrees for him is good for him. When an affliction befalls him, he endures it patiently, and this proves good for him. When he is blessed with prosperity, he thanks his Lord, and this too proves good for him. Such a good fortune only falls to the lot of a believer.

In this context this verse has two meanings: First, that Allah knows who really believes and what is the measure of his belief. So, on the basis of His knowledge, He grants guidance only to that heart, which has belief in it, and grants it guidance precisely in accordance with the measure of belief. Another meaning can also be: That Allah is not unaware of the condition of His believing servants. He has not left them alone after having invited them to faith and subjected them at the same time to severe trials and temptations of the world. He knows exactly what hardships a believer is passing through in the world, and under what circumstances he is fulfilling the demands of his faith. 

Therefore, O believers, you should rest assured that whatever affliction descends upon you by Allah’s leave, in Allah’s knowledge it must be directed to some ultimate good, which must be for your own well-being. For Allah is well-wisher of His believing servants. He does not will to subject them to afflictions and hardships without good reason.

Summing up, what we consider calamities may be blessings in disguise. Pain in the body is often a signal of something wrong, which we can cure by remedial measures. So in the moral and spiritual world, we should in all circumstances hold firmly to the faith that nothing happens without Allah's knowledge and leave; and therefore there must be some justice and wisdom according to His great universal Plan. Our duty is to find out our own shortcomings and remedy them. If we try to do so in all sincerity of heart, Allah will give us guidance.

So let us beyond this calamity and hope for better days yet. This is in fact reminder for those whose faith wavers when difficult times befall on them. In such trying times, one must not lose hope of good days ahead but also to take stock of one's deeds and if these have been at tangent to the divine teachings and commandments, one must leave the faulty paths and get back to the right track after sincerely repenting and asking for forgiveness from Allah.

May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى‎) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door. 

وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ‏ 

(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”

That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.

May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.

Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.

An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the Sūrahs of the Holy Qur'an from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that:

• The plain translation has been taken from the Holy Quran officially published by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 
• The exegesis of the chapters of the Holy Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi. 

You may refer to more Selected Verses from Sürah 64. At-Taghābun - The day of Loss and Gain, already published. 

You may also refer to our exclusive reference page: Selected verses from selected Surahs of Al-Qurʾān for compiled verses from other surahs.

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Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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