CORONA VIRUS: BETWEEN FEAR AND HOPE IN ALLĀH

By

Ibn Abdillah As-sudaisiy Al-Iloori

It takes Allāh nothing much to deal with all of us in this world. There are many verses of the Qur'an and hadiths on this. There is no evil that would befall us except that we are the ones who brought it upon ourselves. But Allāh is so kind towards us and He is merciful. Allāh says in Suratut Shura:

وَمَا أَصَابَكُمْ مِنْ مُصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ وَيَعْفُو عَنْ كَثِيرٍ

And whatever strikes you of disaster - it is for what your hands have earned; but He pardons much. [Surat Ash-Shura 30]

In the same vein, as Muslims, we believe that the emergence and spread of Corona Virus is by the decree of Allāh. We believe in qadar (predestination). Everything is by the decree of Allāh. Nothing happens without His knowledge and permission. Then, we accept the decree of Allāh (good or bad) over us, we trust His judgement and rely on Him for assistance. Some people think every good decree is from Allāh, while evil decrees are from Shaytān. This kind of belief is erroneous. The popular Hadith of 'Umar Ibn Al-Khattab رضي الله عنه has made it clear that we must believe in qadar, whether the good or the bad.

To Allāh, everything He decrees is good, even if it appears bad to us. Allāh knows what He does and He is capable of doing all things. If we have the opportunity to know why Allāh does His things, we would not feel sad over any misfortune in our lives. We would have every reason to thank, praise and glorify Allāh because He knows the best for us. Allāh says:

مَا أَصَابَ مِنْ مُصِيبَةٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَمَنْ يُؤْمِنْ بِاللَّهِ يَهْدِ قَلْبَهُ ۚ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ

No disaster strikes except by permission of Allah . And whoever believes in Allah - He will guide his heart. And Allah is Knowing of all things.[Surat At-Taghabun 11]

May Allah forgive us and have mercy on us. May He rescue us from the deadly (Corona) virus and make it easy for us turn towards Him with sincere repentance and good deeds.

The 'aqeedah of a Muslim in this kind of situation is to stand between the fear of Allāh's punishment and hope of his forgiveness and mercy in this world and the hereafter. We should not be too confident that the pandemic disease cannot reach here. Who are we? We can only hope and pray that it doesn't reach us here.

When it first started, no one thought it would get to Europe or Saudi Arabia. Some people were even mocking China over it. Before they knew it, it got to their doorsteps and even claimed the lives of those around them. Places of worship have been deserted. Airports, seaports, land borders have been closed. Oh Allah, have mercy on us.

Just like I read from Sheikh Abdur-Raafi Al-Imaam حفظه الله recently, this is not the time to joke with this issue. We should rather turn to Allāh in repentance and seek His mercy over this virus that has brought the world economies to their knees. Even the super powers are powerless and confused. We all need to know our levels.

Allāh can deal with anyone no matter how powerful he thinks he is or any nation no matter what they think they are. He can do it and nothing would harm Him or affect His sovereignty. This is a confirmation of His statement in Suratut Tawbah:

إِلَّا تَنْفِرُوا يُعَذِّبْكُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا وَيَسْتَبْدِلْ قَوْمًا غَيْرَكُمْ وَلَا تَضُرُّوهُ شَيْئًا ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

If you do not go forth, He will punish you with a painful punishment and will replace you with another people, and you will not harm Him at all. And Allah is over all things competent [Surat At-Tawba 39]

In a poem that brings tears to the eyes, one of the scholars said:

وإياك وامان من مكر ربنا 

                   ولو فقت أترابا بكل فضيلة                

فللنفس من عيب ونقص وخسة

                      نظير كما لآت الإله ورفعة              

فمحض الرجا أمن ومحص مخافة

            إياس توسط تنج من قبح خصلة          

فبين الرجا والخوف كن مثل طائر

      وخف من عذاب وارج من وسع رحمة.       

May Allāh have mercy on us.