In Surat Al ‘Imran, v. 120, Allah said: {“If a good thing befalls you, it grieves them. But if evil overtakes you, they are happy at it. But if you are patient and have taqwa, their plots will not do the least harm to you...”}

I could think of nothing to add but these words of Ibn al-Jawzi, from ‘Sayd al-Khatir’ (pg.118):

“Know that not all days are the same... Sometimes you are poor, sometimes you are rich. Sometimes you are honoured, sometimes you are humiliated. Sometimes you experience the happiness of your friends, and sometimes you experience the rejoicing of your enemies.

The happy one is he who sticks to a single principle throughout all of this, and that is to have taqwa (consciousness) of Allah.

If he is rich, it will beautify him. If he is poor, it will open for him the doors of patience.

If he is in a state of ease, it will complete the blessings he has. If he is in a state of hardship, it will beautify him, and it won’t matter to him if the days go up or down with him, if he is clothed or not, if he is hungry or not, because all of these conditions can disappear and change.

So, taqwa is the root of safety, a guard that never sleeps. It takes you by the hand in times of chaos, and stays awake at the borders. Stick to taqwa at all times, because you will see tightness as nothing but relaxation and sickness as nothing but relief...”

طارق مهنا
Tariq Mehanna
Plymouth Correctional Facility
Isolation Unit - Cell #108