Question

Assalamu Alaykum.

I am 28 years old and have problems learning and understanding things. I am physically weak, but I worked hard in education and reached the software engineering level and passed it. I have faced many diseases ever since childhood, but now I have no apparent disease besides the fact that I am still weak. I have undergone my medical tests, but doctors told me that I have no significant problem.

During my daily life, I have problems doing, understanding, and learning things. Due to these problems, I have spent plenty of time researching mental and psychological health issues, which causes me to feel exhausted besides the fact that it wastes my time. I feel depressed most of the time. The real problem is that when I compare myself with my fellows, I feel disappointed regarding my abilities. I also feel that my relatives also compare me with others and that they feel that I am not up to standard.

Now I want to ask: Did Allah Almighty create every person with equal abilities, or are some people born with problems?

How can I be satisfied with my present abilities?

Some doctors and other people told me that I have no problem at all and that I merely suffer from oversensitivity and that this makes me anxious.

I feel disappointed when I solve a problem in three hours while my fellow solves it in three minutes; I feel comparatively deficient then.

Please read my problems carefully and guide me according to Islamic teachings so that I may be able to live a healthy life.

Answer

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.

I ask Allah, the Most Merciful, to give you strength and guidance to keep you steadfast on the path of righteousness. According to your letter, you have no physical condition, which is a great favor from Allah, the Most High. Undergoing tests in this life makes it important for us to understand the nature of this life and why Allah created us. Allah, the Most Wise, stated in His final revelation, the Quran, that He created us to worship Him alone. When we read further in the Quran and look into the Sunnah of the Prophet, sallaAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and by asking the people of knowledge, we will understand the ways of Allah on earth. The worship of Allah in this life takes place during both ease and adversity.

Most people like to worship Allah in the state of ease and comfort, but the real test of servitude is when the person worships Allah at times of difficulties also. There are many different types of worship; being patient with whatever Allah chooses for us is a great act of worship that Allah praised in the Quran. What that means is that you, as a slave of Allah, see the wisdom of Allah in everything since He is the Creator of the Heavens and the earth, and your job is to fulfill your purpose, which is to worship Him in the most comprehensive way, the way of the Prophet, sallaAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. We all shall return to Allah, and everyone will be judged according to the fulfillment of our duties to Allah. If you understand that well, then you will focus on getting the most out of this life in order to worship Allah.

Your question: did Allah create people with equal abilities, or are some people born with problems? The answer, from the perspective of the revelation of Allah, and He is the owner of the truth, is that every person is born perfectly to establish the worship of Allah perfectly in order to reach the highest level of servitude to Allah, each according to his ability. If a person is born with a physical disability, he has equal opportunity with everyone else to be the best on earth in matters of servitude to Allah. He will worship Allah with patience more than others while they have to fulfill the duty of gratefulness in this life by increasing their obedience to Allah because of the health that they have. The people of health and strength in this life will envy the people with disabilities who went through trials in this life. They will envy them in the Hereafter when they see the Mercy of Allah and His reward being given to them.