Qur'anic Reflections

How to deal with failure (part1)

Assalamu alaikum! It's been so long since I posted and I sincerely apologise for that. I've just been crammed with exams and yeah, life happened, but that's no excuse. The things that we love, we need to make time for them. It is a proof, a testimony that you want to do it. You fight, you stay up and you do the things you love to do. 

My life has been erratic recently with changing sleep patterns and stress levels. It's my final year and I guess it's only natural. Alhumdulillah, this is my favourite year and I love that I'm finally learning all the cool stuff now, so it's not so bad. 

But amidst all this, my Qur'an lessons have taken a hit. I know you're not supposed to put your mistakes on display, but I'm only doing it to drive the point home--the fact that we will always be busy.

With our studies, our families and jobs, there isn't much time for ourselves to take a break, grab a quiet moment and reflect at the intricacies of life.

The world will keep moving on and you will keep running to keep pace with it.

It's fine.

It's okay.

Islam teaches us to be the best in everything that we do. 

That doesn't have to mean that you neglect the Qur'an and its study. Take it from someone who experienced it, there is nothing that boosts your iman and your life more than a good old lesson of Tafsir.

There had come a time when I just kept postponing things till I realized that I was going nowhere. A word of advice-- when you think that you'll do something later, DO NOT LISTEN TO YOURSELF. The "later" is never going to come. It's Shaytan's trick. Don't fall for it. 

So back to the story, I was behind on my study schedule, my Qur'an schedule and everything else (I'm kidding, those are the only two. I don't have much of a life tbh) then I realised that I needed an Iman boost because my productivity was slowly plummeting down the virtual cliff. 

And oh my goodness, I can not tell you how relevant the lesson was! It's from Surah Aal-e-Imran verses 130 - 155. They discuss how to cope with failure in the context of the battle of Uhud and it's my most favorite lesson now (I say that about every other lesson but what can I do Allah is too beautiful *.*) 

So without further ado, let's begin. 

It is essential that you know about the battle to understand the lesson completely. Read up, people. You can find it in any of the Seerah books. 

But for some of you lazy bums (I gotchu) I'm gonna summarize a little. 

The Makkans faced a scathing defeat at the hands of 313 Muslim men in Badr and the humiliation led them to plan for another war not more than a year later. 

The battle of Uhud took place in the 3rd AH on the 7th of Shawwal.  The Muslim army was of a 1000 men with meagre war supplies. They marched towards Uhud despite the opinions of Abdullah ibn Ubayy and his squad who voted to stay inside Medina and fight if need be.

The Sahabah who had missed Badr did not want to miss another chance of fighting for Allah's cause so they pleaded to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) to leave Medina and meet the Makkan army at Uhud. 

While on their way, Abdullah bin Ubayy left with 300 of his men claiming he didn't want to stay if his opinion wasn't regarded (He is termed the leader of hypocrites because of this) 

The Muslim army's morale falls and Allah reassures them that if they showed Sabr and Taqwa, Allah would send His help down in the form of angels. 

A fully charged Muslim army of 700 met the polytheist army at Uhud. Prophet (Peace be upon him) was concerned about an enemy attack from behind them so he ordered 50 archers to take their places on a hill behind the army. They would attack the enemy from the front and protect the army from any surprise attacks. He emphasized that they must not leave the place regardless of the outcome of the war, unless he calls them to come back. 

The first half of the war saw the Muslims give the Makkans a crushing defeat yet again. The polytheists had begun retreating to their camps and the war booty was wide open for everyone to loot from. Some men on the hill saw that their share would be taken away by the ground soldiers and ran from their places. Abdullah bin Jubair, their leader reminded them of the Prophet's special instructions to not leave their spots even if the Muslim army won. 

But the fitnah of wealth was too great and they left, leaving the army unprotected from behind. Khalid bin Waleed, being a military genius took advantage of this and led a portion of the polytheist army and did the unthinkable. 

The Makkan army attacked the Muslim army from behind, made 70 warriors martyrs and proceeded to spread chaos among the Muslims by raising the rumor that Prophet (Peace be upon him) had died. 

The Muslim army was scattered, broken in the harshest sense,  stuck between the advancing enemy from the front and behind and heavy with the grief of the supposed loss of their leader. 

They faced heavy losses, including multiple injuries to the Prophet himself. Some showed great valor in the face of such hardship notably Talha bin Ubaidullah RA, Saad bin Abi Waqqas, Umm Amarah RA (Nusaibah bint a Ka'ab-- yes, a woman! Take that, feminism!) among many others. Seriously, read them all up. They're amazing. 

Finally the Muslims managed to retreat with the Prophet safe but injured. They were at their lowest, shaken with their injuries and the loss of their brothers and the polythesists taunting them with derisive poetry. At such a stage, Allah sent them what they needed the most--a revelation that was every bit the motivation they needed.

It's an amazing game plan to work one's way through failure. It's a lesson for all of us and I'm so excited to share it with y'all! 

Look for part 2 for the lesson. 

And read up the details of Uhud and the bravery showed by the Sahabah for sure! Beats Game of thrones any day :D