How Sura
Ad-Duha Can Change Our life
Many of us
know surah ad-duha off by heart and have probably read its meaning many times
as well, which seems quite straightforward. How many of us, though, have
actually gone into the reason behind its revelation and derived the lessons and
implications this surah has in our lives?
This surah was
revealed to Prophet Muhammad (saw) at a time when he had not received any
revelation for six months, not even in the form of a dream! The Prophet (saw)
was in a very disturbed state of mind, feeling negative and depressed and
believing that Allah was displeased with him, had forgotten him, and did not
want him as a Nabi anymore.
Don’t we have
similar feelings in our lives? Times when our level of imaan is low, our
khushoo insalah wavers and we feel a drop in our connection with Allah? We feel
like our duas are not being answered, our salah is not having a positive impact
on our hearts, and worst of all the feeling that we’re horrible human beings,
that Allah doesn’t love us or doesn’t care about us anymore.
Surah Ad-Duha
was revealed to the Prophet (saw) to relieve him of these negative feelings and
to give him hope, positivity, and the assurance that Allah is with him no
matter what. From it we too can find peace, hope, and a renewed faith in Allah
when we go through similar states of depression, sadness, and hopelessness.
So what does
this surah say?
Wad duhaa— By
the morning brightness
This is the
first thing you need to hear when you’re depressed: Wake up, look at the
sunshine! Everything in life is not doom and gloom– you just have to look up!
Wal laili iza
sajaa— And [by] the night when it covers with darkness,
Why is this
aayah immediately talking about darkness? As a reminder to us that the night is
meant to cover and give us comfort and rest.
Generally when
we’re depressed, we tend to get into a very bad sleep pattern by staying up at
night and sleeping all day, thereby worsening our state of mind. This aayah
reminds us to use the night as a comfort to ease our distress.
Ma wad da’aka
rabbuka wa ma qalaa— Your Lord has not taken leave of you, [O Muhammad], nor
has He detested [you].
This is a very
powerful verse from Allah telling us that He doesn’t hate us and hasn’t
forgotten us– reminding the depressed person that He is always by his or her
side!
Walal-aakhiratu
khairul laka minal-oola— And the Hereafter is better for you than the first
[life].
Many times
when we’re depressed we think: Is this all my life is going to be? Is it never
going to get better?
This aayah
serves as a perfect answer to those questions, reminding us that life in this
world is temporary and that Aakhira is certainly a better, more permanent place
for us than this world could ever be.
This makes us
look forward to attaining our place in Jannah and helps us look at any problems
in our lives as temporary tests of our faith from Allah.
Wa la sawfa
y’uteeka rabbuka fatarda— And your Lord is going to give you, and you will be
satisfied.
A promise from
Allah that very soon he will give us a massive reward (Jannah) and we will be
happy! Subhanallah!
Isn’t this the
best thing to hear when you’re depressed and fed up with this worldly life and
the problems you’re facing?
Alam ya jidka
yateeman fa aawaa – Did He not find you an orphan and give [you] refuge?
From this
verse onwards, Allah gives us reason to believe His declarations and promises
in the first half of the surah.
Now many of us
may think: how would this aayah about orphans relate to the majority of
us?Think about it– weren’t there many times in your life when you were sick or
lonely and felt like you had nobody who cared about you? Who was the only one
by your side at that time? Allah! It was He who took care of you and guided you
out of that stage in life.
Wa wa jadaka
daal lan fahada— And He found you lost and guided [you].
How many of
us, despite being born Muslims, have found ourselves misguided and straying
away from Islam in the past? It was Allah who gave us that hidaya and brought
us back to the straight path and to Him and made us practicing Muslims.
Alhamdulillah!
Wa wa jadaka
‘aa-ilan fa aghnaa— And He found you poor and made [you] self-sufficient.
Many of us
have probably gone through many periods in our lives when we have been short of
money and wealth. Now when we look back we realize that it was only Allah who
gave us thatrizq in some form and got us through those tough financial times.
When a person
is depressed, giving him or her examples of how Allah has helped them in the
past will strengthen their conviction and belief in the promises Allah makes in
this surah for their future.
Fa am mal
yateema fala taqhar — So as for the orphan, do not oppress [him].
This aayah is
the ultimate antidote to depression!
Depressed
people are mostly consumed with their situation and feel that nobody could
possibly be in a worse situation.
This aayah
reminds us to look at people who are in far worse situations than ourselves
when we’re feeling hopeless and depressed— Look at the orphans, who have no
family or loved ones and nobody to care for them. We have families and parents
who love us, a roof over our heads and food on the table and we still think
we’re in a bad situation? Subhanallah!
Wa am mas
saa-ila fala tanhar— And as for the petitioner, do not repel [him].
Another
example is of the beggar – to once again remind us of the many material
blessings that Allah has given us that we take for granted – food, clothing and
shelter. How many of us have ever gone to sleep hungry? How many of us don’t
have clothes to wear? Or don’t have a home to go to?
These examples
of the orphan and the beggar are ones we should constantly remind ourselves of
to be thankful for the numerous blessings Allah has given us, get over our depression
and feel connected to Allah again, out of gratitude.
Wa amma bi
ne’mati rabbika fahad dith – But as for the favor of your Lord, report [it].
This final
aayah is about maintaining that renewed faith and bond with Allah – by
pondering, glorifying and talking about the blessings of Allah! Either in terms
of halaqas, discussions with family and friends or even da’wah! Dhikr, reading
quran and listening to lectures are also great ways to keep the remembrance of
Allah close to your heart!
So the next
time you feel disconnected, disheartened or depressed with your level of Imaan
and your connection with Allah – read Surah Ad Duha and ponder over its
meanings – Inshallah it will restore your faith and increase your belief in the
greatness and power of Allah.
by Amani Iqbal
http://understandquran.com/
