Search
He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to console his daughters and teach them patience:
Usaamah ibn Zayd (a Companion) narrated that the Prophet’s daughtersent for him, saying that one of her sons was near death, and asking him to come to them. The Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, sent a message to her giving her greetings, and saying: “To Allah belongs what He has taken, and to Him belongs what He gives. Everything has a specified term, so let her be patient and seek the reward from Allah.”
At this, she sent back to him asking him by Allah to come to her. The Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, stood up, and with him were Sa’d ibn ‘Ubaadah, Mu’aath ibn Jabal, Ubayy ibn Ka’b, Zayd ibn Thaabit, and others. The child was lifted to the Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and he (the boy) made a sound as if water was poured into an empty container, so the Prophet’s eyes filled with tears.
Sa’d was surprised (to see him cry), and said:
“O Messenger of Allah, what is this!” The Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “This is mercy, Allah places it in the hearts of whomsoever He wishes of His slaves. For Allah only has mercy upon the merciful ones from His slaves.”
“The words: “To Allah belongs what He has taken, and to Him belongs what He gives. Everything has a specified term” was a way of encouraging her to have patience and submit to the decree of Allah. The meaning of it is that whatever Allah gave you belongs to Him, not you. Thus, He only took what belonged to Him originally. So one should not despair and become disconsolate, just as if he was asked to return something he borrowed.
The words: “To Him belongs what He gives” means that whatever Allah gives you is still part of His kingdom, and He has the right to do with it what He wishes.
The words: ‘The Prophet’s eyes filled with tears. Sa’d said:
“O Messenger of Allah, what it this!”’ Sa’d said this because he thought that any kind of crying was not lawful, and he thought that the Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, had forgotten this, so he reminded him. However, the Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, informed him that merely crying is not impermissible or disliked, rather it is a mercy and virtue. The act that is impermissible is wailing loudly while crying.”
