TRUE COMFORT

The heart of a mother

A mother's heart is like the sea which does not get dirty with impurity. On the contrary, it purifies everything that comes in it. A child may have acted badly with his mother but at all times, the heart of the mother is somewhat vast like the sea in order to forget everything that her child has done to her and she is ready to welcome him with open arms as if nothing has happened.

The love of a mother for her child is an incomparable love. It is such a strong / an intense love that makes the mother bear all kinds of difficulties if this can bring about happiness to her child. A mother will never be satisfied with the comfort that she has if she knows that her child is not in well-being. Her greatest comfort is the well-being of her child.

The love and affection that a mother has for her child can give us a little idea of the love of Allah Ta’ala for His servants as Allah Ta’ala is filled with unlimited mercy and pity. It is through this minute percentage of this entire grace and pity that every creature in the universe feels and expresses affection for each other. And it is through this very source that affection will continue to exist in all its forms until Qiyaamah. Therefore, maternal love is like a mirror that can give us a little idea of the grace of Allah Ta’ala.

"And within your own selves (are Aayaat) as well. Do you not see?" (S 51: V 21)

Grace of Allah Ta’ala

Everything has a limit. It is only Allah that does not have any limit. The sea has a limit. A mother has a limit. Similarly, the love that she has for her child also has a limit where it ceases to exist. However, Allah Ta’ala does not have any limit. Similarly, the grace of Allah Ta’ala also has no limit. There is no adjective that can describe the dimension of the grace of Allah Ta’ala exactly. It is only Allah Ta’ala who knows how much He is filled with grace and kindness.

"O child of Adam! As long as you will ask me and have hope in me, I will continue to gratify you despite everything that could have happened from your side and I do not care. O child of Adam! If your sins reach (such an amount) that can reach the clouds in the sky and you ask me for forgiveness, I will forgive you and I do not care. O child of Adam! If you come to Me with an amount of sins that can fill the earth, and you come to Me in a state where you do not associate anything with me, I will come to you with that amount of grace." (Tirmizi)

True comfort

True comfort is a comfort after which there is no difficulty. Such comfort does not exist in this Dunya. It exists in Jannah only.

"... There you shall have whatever your heart desires, and you shall have whatever you ask for" (S 41: V 31)

The greatest gift that parents can give to their child is to enable him to get this comfort. Nowadays, all parents want the well-being of their child but very few among them are conscious and confident that real well-being and real comfort are found in Jannah. It is due to this lack of consciousness and trust or conviction that make parents think of the temporary well-being of their child only, without taking into consideration the real and eternal well-being of Aakhirah. That is why they are angry if the child does not go to school but it does not make any difference if their child does not go to the Masjid. They appreciate everything that they deem it to the advantage and worldly progress although it is very bad for his Aakhirah.

However, it is very rare and very few people accept to hold on to Aakhirah especially when this handicaps their worldly progress.

A person cannot get everything. He will have to lose something in order to get something else. Hence, he should see what he will lose to get what.

"The one who loves his Dunya, will have to cause harm to his Aakhirah and the one who loves his Aakhirah, will have to cause harm to his Dunya. So, give preference to what will remain eternally over what will end." (Musnad Ahmad)

For the one who has Imaan, he has no choice besides holding on to the Aakhirah even if it is not advantageous for him in the Dunya. This is because this Dunya, with all its riches and comforts, does not represent anything in front of the Aakhirah. This Dunya compared to Aakhirah is like a drop of water in the ocean. Therefore, it is the well-being and comfort of Aakhirah that we should choose for ourselves and for others. This is how we can show that we are sincere towards ourselves and our children.

[English version of "Vrai confort" – Al Jamiat – Vol.1 No.10]