Are you Forgiving enough to let go?

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. 

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

I dedicate this note to our beloved Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w). Indeed, He (s.a.w) was the most sublime (in character) and the most generous among people.   He (s.a.w) was the humblest even at the zenith of his achievements. The Holy Qur’an tells us-

There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern for anyone whose hope is in Allah and the Last Day and [who] remembers Allah often.   [Al-Qur’an 33-21] 

And Most Certainly, thou (O Muhammad) are of most sublime and exalted character.   [Al-Qur’an 68-4] 

 Doesn’t it take great courage to forgive someone who has treated
you really badly?

 Even thinking about the ways to “Give it back” makes some of us feel excited, and if something bad happens to the one who has hurt us, it pleases us. One of the greatest qualities of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) was that he never took revenge on anyone for personal reasons and always forgave even his firm enemies. Let’s see how the greatest person in the history of mankind acted when he encountered hatred and mischief.

In the tenth year of his prophethood, Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) visited the city of Ta’if, which is situated in a valley between great mountains. Until then, he had found very little success in preaching the message of God to the leaders of Makkah, who were not welcoming this message and were making life miserable for the few who did become Muslims. Therefore, Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w), with his companion Zaid, decided to spread the message to other places and made Ta’if their destination.

The people of Ta’if were very happy with their lives; they had a beautiful valley to live in, enjoyed good food and passed their time in ease and comfort. They also were not willing to listen to this newcomer who was telling them to give up their evil ways and to listen and bow to this One God who they couldn’t even see.

When Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) and Zaid reached Ta’if, the leaders of the city made it impossible for the two of them to preach the message of God, and treated Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) in the worst possible manner. They made street boys run after our beloved Prophet and his companion and throw stones at them. These boys were merciless and they pelted Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w)  to such an extent that his shoes filled with blood. They took refuge in a garden and laid down to rest.

God, the Exalted, the Mighty, sent down angel Jibril (Gabriel) to tell Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) that if the Prophet so wished, God would crush the whole valley of Ta’if along with its non-believers under the mountains surrounding them.

And what do you think our dear Prophet said? Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) was such a compassionate and forgiving person that instead of asking for revenge on the people of Ta’if, he asked God, the most Compassionate, the most Merciful, to forgive them and made Du’a that God may show the people of Ta’if the right path.

He spoke unto Angel Gabriel the following words- “so what if these people have rejected faith today, their future generations will”. This was the level of compassion and mercy that Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) had for his enemies, for the people who had caused him great pain and had completely rejected him and his message.

I believe if we have even a small portion of that compassion in our hearts, in our lives, we would not only be better human beings, but would also make everyone around us happy and content. Isn’t it easier to make up and forgive than to nurture thoughts of enmity and revenge and torture our own selves and others? So, if we want to become a little like our dear Prophet (s.a.w)  and follow his ways, let us do it now:

Forgive others and ask forgiveness for our actions that may have hurt others.

Ameen.