The Divine Promise: With Difficulty There is Ease

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

فَإِنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا * إِنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا

The definition of ‘usur is difficulty, a hopeless condition, grief, pain. The definition of yusur is ease, happiness and relief.

Addressing Rasulullah SA, the Quran emphatically states that with every difficulty there is ease. History is, in a way, a succession of ‘usur and yusur. Allah’s awliya’, Imams and their Da’is, stand firm in their resolve during the time of ‘usur, unperturbed by the trials and tribulations, and confident that with every difficulty there is ease. Their faith in the divine promise is an inspiration for us.

In face of the incomprehensible difficulties that Amirul Mumineen Maulana Ali AS faced, his fortitude and sabar were iconic. In his munajat he states:

وكم يسر أتى من بعد عسر * ففرج كربة القلب الشجي

“Many a happiness (yusur) follows a hardship (‘usur). And God dispels the grief of the sorrowful heart.”

He advises in the munajat to take the waseela of Rasulullah SA and to keep faith in Allah’s promise, and in His divine grace. Amirul Mumineen AS personified this faith.

The trials and tribulations of Syedna al-Mu’ayyad’s RA life were such that no one except him could have faced them. As he reflects on these trials in his autobiography, he explains that just as Allah Ta’ala has ordained the cycle of night and day, He has also written in our destiny the oscillation of difficulty and ease. Syedna al-Mu’ayyad RA explains that in times of ease we offer thanks and shukur, and in times of difficulty we take refuge in patience and sabar.

Syedna al-Mu’ayyad RA begins his autobiography (Sirat) with these phrases:

الحمدُ للهِ الذي جَعلَ مَوضُوعَ المِقْدَارِ عَلى الجَمْعِ بَينَ الصَّفْوِ والاَكْدَار` واخْتِلافَ اللّيلِ والنَّهَارِ ضَمِينَ الاَيسَارِ والاَعْسَار`

'Praise be to Allah Ta’ala who made the foundation of destiny such that it combines corruption and purity, and He made the cycle of night and day such that it guarantees the oscillation of difficulty and ease.'

اَحمَدُهُ حَمدَ الشَّاكِرِينَ لآلائِهِ ، الَّذِينَ هُوَ لَهُم كَفِيلُ الجَزَاءِ ، بِقَولِهِ {وسَنَجْزِي الشَّاكِرِين}^(3:145)` والصَّابِرِينَ عَلى بَلائِهِ ، الاُولى حَبَاهُم مِن حُبِّهِ بِاَفْضَلِ الحَبَاءِ، فَقَالَ{ واللهُ يُحِبُّ الصَّابِرِينَ}<sup>(3:146)</sup> `

'I praise Him, with the praise uttered by those who are thankful for His bounties, those for whom He is the guarantor of reward by His statement, “we will reward those who offer thanks” (3:145), and [the praise] of those who are patient/steadfast upon His trials, those whom He has awarded the best of awards, so He says “and Allah loves the steadfast” (3:146).'

The 51^st Dai Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA ascended to the throne of Dawat at a very young age. His enemies, who were financial giants, waged a legal war against Dawat. Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA was strong, unwavering, and was victorious. Difficulty was followed by ease. In a qasida composed in the year of his Golden Jubilee, Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA states:

وقد كان طول الدهر في كل شدة * مع العسر لي يسر مع العسر لي يسر

“Indeed, for me during (my) whole life in every adversity,
With difficulty there has been ease, with difficulty there has been ease.”

Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA also foresaw this for his beloved son, Syedna Khuzaima Qutbuddin TUS, and as the nazaraat section of this issue describes in detail, the 51^st Dai, very unusually, instructed Syedna Qutbuddin RA to repeat the bayt that he recited in this context during a waaz. He foresaw the great challenges that his beloved son would face in the in the khidmat of Dawat and foretold that he would be graced with the bountiful ne’mats of Allah and his Wali.

Our Imams and their Dai’s, and the Da’i of our age - Syedna Khuzaima Qutbuddin TUS - teach us by example how to hold firm belief in the Almighty’s promise that, “with difficulty there will be ease; surely, with difficulty there will be ease.”

May Allah Ta’ala grant us the tawfeeq to keep faith in His promise of relief. May we learn from the examples of His awliya’ and take refuge in sabar and prayer (as in the do’a of Syedna al-Mu’ayyad RA presented with translation below). And may we stand firm with Imam uz Zaman’s AS Da’i in both times of difficulty and ease.