Author: Dr. Khalid Sa`d Al-Najjar

In a shabby room atop the roof of one of the houses, a poor widow led with her young child a simple life in difficult circumstances. That family had lost much, but they were granted the blessing of contentment and gratitude. The winter season, with its heavy rains, was a constant worry for them, as the room consisted of four walls and a wooden door, but it had no ceiling!

Four years had passed since the child’s birth, during which the city had only experienced a few and scattered showers of rains. However, one day, the clouds gathered, and the sky over the city was filled with dark clouds. As the first hours of the night approached, the rain poured heavily across the entire city.

The child looked at his mother with a puzzled expression and threw himself into her arms and her wet clothes. The mother hurried to the door of the room, took off its hinges, and leaned it against one of the walls. She hid her child behind the door to shield him from the pouring rain. The child looked up at his mother, smiling and laughing, and asked, “What do the poor people do when they do not have a door, and the rain falls on them?”

The little boy, with his simplicity, had grasped the hidden truth: a person should enjoy what he has and thank Allah for what He has given him. They were rich because they had a door, while others did not!

Reflect on the blessings of Allah upon you and keep them in your consciousness. Let the sun of your life rise every day, praising the countless blessings that Allah has granted you. This world is really given to those who have an appreciation for blessings, deep understanding, and firm grasp of their value. The beloved Prophet () said, “Whoever wakes up secure in his home, healthy in his body, and has food for the day, it is as if the whole world has been gathered for him.” (Sahih al-Jami`, Hadith No. 6042)

Abdul-Hamid Al-Hashimi says in his book “Psychological Preventive Health”:  “The optimistic person finds happiness in three types of blessings: a blessing that one had and passed away, and he remembers it and thanks Allah for it; a blessing he is currently living and enjoying; and a blessing he hopes for and works to achieve through planning and effort, and all his hope is to attain it. On the other hand, the pessimistic person suffers with three types of blessings: a blessing that once was, and he laments it because he only recognized it after it was gone; a blessing he is currently experiencing, yet he does not see, acknowledge, or feel it; and a great blessing; the ‘daydreams,’ which he lives with without action because he is mentally preoccupied and emotionally drained by regrets over the past and complaints about the bitterness of the present.”

It is said that a Bedouin entered upon Harun Ar-Rashid and said, “O Commander of the Faithful! May Allah firmly establish the blessings you are in by continually thanking Him, and may He grant you the blessings you hope for through thinking well of Him and maintaining obedience to Him. May He make you aware of the blessings you are in, even those you do not recognize, so that you may give thanks for them.” Harun Al-Rashid was impressed by his words and said, “How beautifully you have divided them!”

Uncountable Blessings

The blessed servant is never unmindful of Allah’s blessings in every moment, scene, and situation. He remains constantly in praise and gratitude for Allah for the blessings he is endowed with such as faith, health, prosperity, and protection against evils. Allah, the Almighty, says, “And if you should count the favors of Allah, you could not enumerate them. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (Quran 16: 18) He, the Exalted, also says, “And He gave you from all you asked of Him. And if you should count the favor of Allah, you could not enumerate them. Indeed, mankind is [generally] most unjust and ungrateful.” (Quran 14: 34)

If you have a house to shelter you, a place to sleep in, food in your home, and clothes on your body, you are richer than 75% of the people in the world.

If you have money in your pocket and are able to save something for times of hardship, you are among the rich people who represent 8% of the world population. If you are in good health today, you have a great blessing. If you have not tasted the dangers of war, the isolation of prison, or the horrors of torture, you are better than 500 million people on the face of the earth. If you can pray in a mosque without fear of harassment, torture, arrest, or death, you have a blessing that three billion people do not know.

A man came to Yunus ibn `Ubayd complaining of his hardships. Yunus asked him, “Do you agree to exchange your eyesight with a hundred thousand dirhams?” The man replied, “No.” Yunus then asked, “What about a hundred thousand for your hands?” The man said, “No.” Yunus continued, “And a hundred thousand for your legs?” The man answered, “No.” Then, Yunus reminded him of Allah’s blessings upon him and said, “I see you possess hundreds of thousands, yet you complain of need and hardship!”

A man asked Abu Tamimah, “How did you wake up?” He replied, “I woke up between two blessings, and I do not know which one is better: the sins that Allah has concealed, so no one can reproach me for them, and the love that Allah has placed in the hearts of His servants for me, which my knowledge does not reach.”

One of the scholars wrote to his brother, “We have entered the day with more blessings from Allah than we can count, despite our sins are many. We do not know for which blessing we should thank Allah more: the beauty of what He has made known, or the ugliness of what He has concealed.”

Sallam ibn Abi Muti` said, “I visited a sick man who was groaning. I said to him, ‘Remember those who are cast on the road, those who have no shelter and no one to serve them.’ Later, I visited him again, and I heard him saying to himself, ‘Remember those who are cast on the road, remember those who have no shelter and no one to serve them.’”

Wahb ibn Munabbih along with another person passed by a man afflicted with blindness, leprosy, and paralysis, who was saying, “Praise be to Allah for His blessings.” The man who was with Wahb said to him, “What blessings are left for you to praise Allah for?” This afflicted man lived in a village known for its commitment of sins, and he replied to the man, “Look with your eyes at the plenty of the people of the town and what they do. Should not I praise Allah that none of them knows Him but me?”

The Best Remedy

Remembering the blessings is the best remedy for the ailments of arrogance and tyranny. When blessings flow upon a servant, he may become arrogant toward others and feel superior to them because of these blessings. This is why remembering the blessings and reminding others of Allah’s favor is an effective cure for such a state, just as Prophet Musa (peace be upon him) did with the Children of Israel when signs of tyranny began to appear among them. Allah, the Almighty, says, “And [recall, O Children of Israel], when Moses said to His people, ‘Remember the favor of Allah upon you when He saved you from the people of Pharaoh, who were afflicting you with the worst torment and were slaughtering your [newborn] sons and keeping your females alive. And in that was a great trial from your Lord. And [remember] when your Lord proclaimed, “If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor]; but if you deny, indeed, My punishment is severe.”’” (Quran 14: 6, 7)

Remembering the blessings is an effective remedy for the ingratitude of a servant and his dissatisfaction with his condition. When a person looks at what others have and overlooks Allah’s favors upon him, this can lead to discontentment with his own situation and a lack of satisfaction with his Lord. Remembering the blessings can help him break free from this negative cycle. The Prophet () said, “When one of you looks at someone who has been favored over him in wealth and appearance, let him look to someone who is inferior to him.” (Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim) In another narration, the Prophet () said, “Look at those who are inferior to you and do not look at those who are superior to you, for it is more likely that you will not belittle Allah’s blessing upon you.” (Reported by Muslim)

Look at the one whose ship was lost on the vast ocean, and the waves hurled it relentlessly until it was destroyed. He was left drifting for days, tossed by the waves, buffeted by the winds, and played with by the fish. But Allah willed that he would be saved. Later, when asked about the greatest lesson he has learned from this harsh experience, he responded, “If I possess fresh water and food, I have no right to complain about a hardship.”

A noble person once said, “I never complained about hard times or became dissatisfied with the decree of Allah, except when my feet became sore and I could not afford to buy shoes. Then I entered the mosque of Kufah, feeling depressed, and there I saw a man without legs. So, I praised Allah and thanked Him for His blessings upon me.”

Remembering blessings strengthens the motive for uprightness

Ibn Al-Munkadir once passed by a young man harassing a woman. He said, to him, “O my son, is this the reward for the blessing of Allah upon you?” It is indeed strange for someone to know that everything he possesses is a blessing from Allah, yet still does not feel ashamed to use these blessings to go against what He has forbidden.

Psychologist William James said, “We, as humans, often think about what we do not have, and fail to thank God for what we do have. We focus on the dark, tragic side of our lives, ignoring the bright side, and we lament what we lack instead of being grateful for what we possess.”

Finally, a Bedouin was asked, “Do you know how to supplicate to your Lord?” He replied, “Yes.” They said to him, “Then, supplicate.” He said, “O Allah, You have granted us Islam without asking for it, so do not deprive us of Paradise while we are asking You for it.”

Sayings of some wise persons

Abu Ad-Dardaa’ (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “Whoever does not recognize the blessings of Allah upon him except in his food and drink, then he has a little knowledge, and his punishment is near.”

Ibn `Aqil said, “The blessings are guests, and showing hospitality to them is through gratitude. The trials are also guests, and showing hospitality to them is through patience. Strive to make the guests leave declaring their gratitude for your hospitality, bearing witness to what they hear and see.”

Talq ibn Habib () said, “The rights of Allah are too heavy for the servants to fulfill, and the blessings of Allah are too numerous for the servants to count. However, they should begin their day in repentance and end it in repentance.”

Mujahid commented on Allah’s saying, “…and amply bestowed upon you His favors, [both] apparent and unapparent?” (Quran 31: 20) that it means the testimony of ‘There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah.’” Ibn `Uyaynah said, “Allah has not granted the servants a blessing greater than that He has made them recognize ‘There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah’” Ibn Abi Al-Hawari said, “I said to Abu Mu`awiyah, ‘What a great blessing we enjoy Tawhid (monotheism)! We ask Allah not to take it away from us.’”

`Aaishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said, “The servant who drinks pure water easily without pain and urinates easily without pain should offer thanks for this blessing.”

Imam Ash-Shafi`i () said, “Praise be to Allah Whose blessings cannot be thanked except through a new blessing that obligates the person to thank Him for it.”

Al-Fudayl ibn `Iyad said, “It was said, ‘Talking about Allah’s blessings is part of thanking Him for them.’” One night, he and Ibn `Uyaynah kept on counting the blessings until morning.

“O Allah, we thank You for every blessing You have bestowed upon us, both those that only You know and those that we know, countless thanks as many times as the grateful ones have thanked You in every tongue at every time.” (Imam Al-Shawkani in Zad Al Masir)[h1] 

`Umar ibn `Abdulaziz said, “O Allah, I seek refuge with You from being ungrateful to Your blessings, denying them after recognizing them, or forgetting them without praising You for them.”

The last of our call is "Praise to Allah, Lord of the worlds.”