The Divine Grace Beneath Burden
O hasty and ignorant person, who cries out when a trouble befalls you, and inwardly complains to your Lord when faced with a calamity! Do you truly know what a trial is, what suffering means? Shaykh Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi (may Allah have mercy on him) explains the reality of calamity and pain to us in the ocean of Futuh al-Makiyya: The true calamity lies in the presence of pain and its awareness within the one experiencing it. All causes that give rise to psychological pains in the heart, such as loss of property, a calamity befalling family or children, being severely threatened, are, in reality, like an "ihram garment" in the spiritual journey. Just as comforts and enjoyments are forbidden for the pilgrim entering ihram, so too is calamity a barrier, an obstacle preventing the believer from becoming comfortable with the world and being deceived by transient blessings. Calamity is a harsh but merciful whip that pulls you away from the world and turns you towards Allah.
Two Types of Servants: The Patient and the Grateful
The shari’a advises those who encounter these pains to accept with resignation and be patient, for their apparent "punishment" is actually intended to mature the servant. The opposite of calamity is bliss (ni’ma). The causes of bliss are also external. However, a true believer, just as he expresses gratitude when he sees a blessing, recognizes the divine discipline behind the pain. Listen to the immense words of the great companion Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him): "Whenever a calamity reaches me from Allah, I ponder three blessings. The first is that it did not occur in my piety. The second is that it was not greater. And the third is the reward that Allah has promised for that calamity." This perspective is itself the very essence of insight that turns fire into a rose garden!
Are You Thanking the Giver of Grace, or the Grace Itself?
An ordinary person rejoices when he sees blessings and rebels when he experiences calamities. But one who possesses insight knows that both situations are part of Allah’s divine decree (taqdir). If you only remember Allah when sweet foods, beautiful clothes, and positions of power come your way, then you are worshipping yourself and your stomach, not Allah. Ibn al-Arabi (may Allah have mercy on him) makes this distinction: The patient one has been afflicted by calamity and endures the disappearance of the causes of blessings. But the true perfect one sees Allah’s blessing even in times of calamity and transcends patience to reach the station of "gratitude."
The Address of True Gratitude
See calamity not as a punishment, but as an "ihram" that Allah has clothed you with to exalt you in His presence. An ihram that forbids you from transient pleasures but opens the doors to your eternal Ka’bah (the beauty of Allah). Never forget this: Do not be among those who forget Allah by indulging in His blessings. Pain and pleasure are both in His hands. Whatever happens to you, find tranquility within the fire of that trial, saying, "There is a wisdom in this that my Lord knows." For fire only burns the chaff within, and polishes the gold (pure faith) even brighter.