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After the Trauma - What next?
Bismillah
Respected sisters and brothers,
Assalaam O'Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.
ALLAH SWT says in the Qur'an:
'We shall surely test you with fear and
famine, with loss of property, life and produce. Give good news to
those who endure with patience. Who, when afflicted with calamity
say : We belong to Allah and to Him we shall return'. (Al
Baqarah:155-6)
One such calamity was the earthquake that shook
Pakistan in October this year. It was indeed an overwhelming and traumatic period for the
entire nation. Now, we find ourselves confused and swamped with
questions, wondering as to how and why it happened?
The fact is, behind Allah SWT's every decision is
His great Wisdom, the reasons for which cannot always be fully
comprehended. The believer, however, should be certain that Allah (SWT)
has intended betterment for him in whatever has been inflicted on
him. He should, therefore, never remain indifferent but rather
strive for improvement on every level. At this critical point in
time, when we, as individuals as well as a nation, have been shaken,
we must search for some line of action. Instead of reflecting and
questioning 'why', we must consider 'what next'?
For
oneself:
Sudden calamities remind us of the
unpredictability of our fragile lives. They remind us about the fact
that anything can happen any where, any time and we could be the
possible victims. How can a believer, whose aim is seeking Allah SWT's
pleasure and attaining
Paradise, not take life seriously
and avail of its every moment? We never know when our life's
countdown will tick its last. We must reassess ourselves and see the
level of our obedience to Allah SWT, the commitment if any, that we have
with our deen, and our efforts in seeking Allah SWT's pleasure. We
should also do tawbah and a lot of istighfar for all our sins and
shortcomings.
At the same time we must not forget our
responsibility of taking others along with us. A hadeeth explains
that we must command good and forbid evil in order to be worthy of
Allah SWT's help. The time and opportunity that we have now been left
with must be availed. Life is too short for regrets.
For the
lost victims:
Those whom we have lost in this calamity are
indeed in need of our prayers. We must keep positive hopes for those
victims who passed away in a state of fasting, that Allah The
Merciful will resurrect them on the Day of Judgment on their faith,
as martyrs.
May Allah SWT recompense them with goodness in the
Hereafter for what they have suffered in this world. Indeed, it is a
sorry state; but we as believers should be more concerned for their
eternal and much intense Akhirah. What helps the deceased most is
prayers. So, pray for their forgiveness and success.
(Masnoon Duas for the dead are given on page
6, 7 of the book "Akhri Safar ki Tayyari")
For the
survivors:
People of all ages, from various walks of life -
who were playing different roles until the day fate struck them -
students, shopkeepers, housewives - every imaginable individual!
These are the people who may now still be under the rubble crying
for help, severely injured, orphaned and the homeless - who have
nothing left except what is in their stomachs and what covers their
bodies.
They are in need of our care and concern - both
financial and moral. A hadeeth explains that on the day of judgment,
Allah SWT will remove the hardships of those who, in the dunya, removed
hardships of others. It becomes incumbent upon us as believers to
extend our helping hands to the ones who have been affected.
With Allah's help Al-Huda relief team has
formulated a two-step rehabilitation program, details of the relief
effort can be viewed on the official website:
http://www.alhudapk.com/relief/
Wassalaam,
Dr. Farhat Hashmi 5th Nov.
2005 |
