GUARANTEE OF GOD’S SUCCOUR
Patience and Piety
THE greatest and surest guarantee for the protection of the
believers in this world, according to the Quran, lies in their
adherence to the path of patience and piety. The Quran has made
this quite clear at various places. On one occasion, while referring to
the opponents of Islam, the Quran speaks in absolute and conclusive
terms:
If you persevere and fear God, their designs
will never harm you in the least. (3: 120)
There is nothing mysterious about the point
made in this verse. This is a simple and natural
truth, which is illustrated by everyday events.
If you stand by truth and justice, no adversary
will be able to oppose you. It is against human
nature and conscience to oppose truth. The
voice of his conscience will speak out against
such opposition precisely because it is directed
against a truthful person. An antagonist will
indulge in negative activities against you only
so long as haughtiness and wilfulness prevail
over his conscience, thus producing in him
an abnormal state of mind. The moment his
thinking returns to normal, he will lose the courage to act against you.
The greatest and
surest guarantee
for the protection of
the believers in this
world, according to
the Quran, lies in
their adherence to
the path of patience
and piety.
Adherence to the path of patience (restraint in the face of another’s injustice) and piety (humility and modesty before God’s greatness) form the best formula to bring an antagonist back to a reasonable frame of mind.
The possession of these two virtues is the surest guarantee of keeping one’s opponents cool. When faced with this superior code of ethics, they will soon lose their arrogance and ill feelings and will return to a normal state of mind. It is this return to normalcy which makes it possible for human nature to provide effective checks to the perpetration of injustice. Once this correct psychology has been established, there is no further need for the police or the army to enforce the laws.