Twin Provisions for the Journey
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb(ra) once said:
“If gratitude and patience were two camels, I would not mind which of them I rode.”
This vivid image captures how both ṣabr and shukr serve as provisions on the journey to Allah.
The Holy Qur’an reminds us of this balance:
“We did send Moses with Our Signs, commanding him: ‘Bring forth thy people from every kind of darkness into the light and remind them of the favour and chastisement of Allah; for surely therein are Signs for every patient and grateful person.”
(14:6)
Human beings are tested precisely so that their response,gratitude or ingratitude,may become manifest:
“We created man from a sperm drop comprising many qualities, that We might try him; so We made him hearing and seeing; We have shown him the Way, whether he be grateful or ungrateful.”
(76:3)
Our very faculties are gifts given for one purpose:
“It is Allah Who brought you out of the wombs of your mothers while you knew nothing, and He gave you hearing, sight, and hearts so that you may give thanks.”
(16:79)
Gratitude: Preserver and Multiplier of Blessings
Gratitude is not merely good manners; it is a form of worship that preserves and multiplies blessings. Allah the Exalted declares:
“If you will use My bounties beneficently, I will surely multiply them unto you, but if you misuse them, My punishment is severe indeed.”
(14:8)
Scholars have thus described gratitude as al-ḥāfiẓ (the preserver of blessings) and al-jālib (the bringer of new blessings).
ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz advised:
“Secure Allah’s blessings by showing gratitude.” Hasan al-Baṣrī explained: when Allah bestows favours, He asks only for gratitude; if people are grateful, He increases them, and if they are ungrateful, those same favours can become a source of torment.
Three Dimensions of Gratitude
True gratitude is holistic; it engages the tongue, the heart, and the limbs.
- Gratitude of the Tongue
- Praising Allah frequently.
- Recounting His blessings.
- Admitting one’s own shortcomings in repaying His favour.
Prophet Sulaymān(as) showed that remembering Allah’s blessings strengthens love and attachment to Him.
- Gratitude of the Heart
- Recognizing inwardly that every good is purely from Allah’s grace.
- Remaining humble before His generosity.
- Realizing that the ability to thank Him is itself a blessing that demands further gratitude.
This creates a beautiful “recursive” state: each act of thanks opens the door to more reasons to be thankful.
- Gratitude of Actions (the Limbs)
- Using each blessing only in ways that please Allah.
- Turning every talent, resource, relationship, and moment into an avenue of obedience.
Allah commanded:
“Act gratefully, O House of David, but few of My servants are grateful.”
(34:14)
It is said, “Every blessing that does not bring a servant closer to his Lord is in fact an affliction.”
Gratitude as a Mindset: From “Have To” to “Get To”
Gratitude is fundamentally a way of seeing. Many of us move through life saying:
- I have to wake up early for work.
- I have to do so much at my job.
- I have to go to the gym.
- I have to go to the mosque for Salat.
- I have to do Jama’at work.
- I have to eat dinner with the family.
- I have to go to my son’s game.
Now change just one word:
- I get to wake up early for Salat.
- I get to work and earn a living.
- I get to maintain my health.
- I get to go to the mosque.
- I get to serve the Jama’at.
- I get to eat dinner with my family.
- I get to attend my son’s game.
- I get to talk to friends and family on the phone or Zoom.
Both descriptions are technically true, but this small shift—from “have to” to “get to”—turns burdens into opportunities and obligations into privileges.
One man in a wheelchair was asked if it was difficult being confined to it. He replied: “I’m not confined to my wheelchair-I am liberated by it. If it wasn’t for my wheelchair, I would be bed-bound and never able to leave my house.” The circumstances did not change; the perspective did. That change of lens transformed how he lived each day.
So too with our spiritual life: time constraints, physical limitations, and worldly responsibilities can all become vehicles drawing us nearer to Allah if we choose to see them through the lens of gratitude.
- Physical limitations push us toward creativity and resilience.
- Height or skill limitations in sports, for example, force new strategies and smarter play.
- Time constraints around Salat force us to reorder our priorities, provided we give Salat its rightful precedence.
In reality, constraints become a source of ilham (inspiration). Necessity is the mother of invention, and inspiration itself is a form of divine grace.
The Promised Messiah(as) on Patience and Gratitude
The Promised Messiah(as) captured this spiritual psychology in a few powerful lines:
“The root of patience is gratitude, and the fruit of gratitude is patience. These two alone make the believer a true victor.”
Sabr ki jaar hay shukr aur shukr ka phal hay sabr; ye doy chizain hain jo momin ko banati hain sahibe zafar
“Grieve not when affliction comes, it too is a mercy of God. And in joy, be grateful, for that too is a bounty of God.”
Ghun na kah agar duk aya ye bhi Rahmat hay khuda ki; shukr kar too Khushi per ye bhi nemat hay khuda ki
In these couplets, pain and joy are both redefined: each becomes a sign of Allah’s mercy when viewed with the eyes of ṣabr and shukr.
Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad M.A(r.a) mentions in Seeratul Mahdi
Maulvi Sher Ali Sahib (r.a) narrated to me that once the Promised Messiah (peace be upon him) said:
“It is one of Allah the Exalted’s favors upon me that He has raised me in such a time when the month of Ramadan falls in winter, and the fasts do not cause much physical hardship, and even during Ramadan one can carry out many tasks with great ease.” Maulvi Sahib says that in those days Ramadan occurred in December.
The Promised Messiah (a.s) made his claim in 1891 as the Messiah. Ramadhan started in April 11th 1891. The Promised Messiah died in 1908 and Ramadhan started on Oct 1st 1908.
Living Between Two Stations
The true life of a believer is thus a continual oscillation between two stations of worship:
- Patience (ṣabr) in trials.
- Gratitude (shukr) in blessings.
Both are acts of servitude and both are beloved to Allah. Trials cleanse and purify; blessings elevate and honour. A believer is, therefore, safe from two great spiritual dangers:
- Despair during hardship.
- Arrogance during prosperity.
His success does not lie in the absence of trials or the abundance of blessings, but in remaining steadfast to the Lord of both trials and blessings.
He lives, as it were, flying with two wings-patience and gratitude-soaring steadily toward the pleasure of Allah.
“Alhamdulillah ‘alaa kulli haal”
The believer’s constant motto is:
“Alhamdulillah ‘alaa kulli haal”
(All praise is due to Allah in every condition.)
One of the righteous explained:
“If I am afflicted with a calamity, then I praise Allah for four reasons:
- I praise Him that it was not worse than it was.
- I praise Him for providing me patience to bear it.
- I praise Him for guiding me to supplicate appropriately and hope for reward.
- I praise Him for not making it a calamity in my religion.”
This is the heart of a grateful servant: always able to find reasons to praise, even in difficulty.
Character of a Grateful Believer
Ubayy ibn Ka‘b(ra), a close companion of the Holy Prophet(sa), described the believer in these terms:
“The believer has four characteristics. If he is afflicted by any misfortune, he remains patient and steadfast. If he is given anything, he is grateful. If he speaks, he speaks the truth. If he passes a judgment on any issue, he is just.”
Allah the Almighty commands:
“Therefore remember Me, and I will remember you; and be thankful to Me and do not be ungrateful to Me.”
(2:153)
The Holy Prophet(sa) then taught us a concise prayer that gathers remembrance, gratitude, and worship:
“O Allah, grant me the ability to remember You much, to thank You much, and to worship You in the best possible manner.”
Allahumma a‘inna ‘ala dhikrika wa shukrika wa husni ‘ibadatika.
Take-Home Message
- Gratitude is not just words; it is a way of seeing.
- We can choose to live life as a series of burdens—or as a series of opportunities Allah has given us.
- When we say “I get to” instead of “I have to,” we train our hearts to recognize Allah’s favour in every moment.
- By living between patience in hardship and gratitude in ease, we attain inner peace and draw ever closer to Allah.