Surah 1-2 - YasSarNal QuR'aN

Al-Baqarah (The Cow) | ACQUIRING REAL STRENGTHenthusiasm. It is noteworthy that the verse starts by making its address exclusively tothe believers, and concludes by reassuring them that patience ensures God’s help.Numerous reports have been handed down that tell us how highly the Prophethimself viewed the qualities of patience and perseverance, and how deeply he hadthought about them. Some of them are quite relevant to our discussion.The Prophet’s Companion, Khabbāb ibn al-Aratt, said: “A group of us onceappealed to God’s Messenger while he was resting in the shade of the Ka`bah. Wesaid, ‘Would you please appeal to God to help us? Would you kindly pray for us?’He replied, ‘In days gone by, believers like yourselves used to be put in ditches andhave their heads sawed in halves, and have their flesh scraped off the bone with ironcombs. They withstood all that torture, held on to their faith, and never wavered. Iswear that God Almighty will establish this religion so that a man can travel fromSan ‘ā’ [in western Yemen] to Ĥadramawt [in eastern Yemen] fearing none but God,and the wolf for his sheep. But you are impatient!” [Related by al-Bukhārī, AbūDāwūd and al-Nasā’ī]Another Companion of the Prophet, `Abdullāh ibn Mas`ūd says: “I can almost seeGod’s Messenger in the same position as an earlier prophet who was beaten by hispeople until he bled. But even while he was wiping the blood off his face he said:‘Lord, forgive my people, for they do not know the truth.’” [Related by al-Bukhārīand Muslim]The Prophet is also quoted as saying: “A Muslim who mixes with people and putsup with their maltreatment is better than one who neither mixes with people norsuffers their abuse.” [Related by al- Tirmidhī]Sacrificing One’s LifeThe Qur’ān continues with its spiritual mobilization of the pioneering Muslimcommunity of Madinah, as the latter braces itself for the crucial and momentous taskof leading mankind back to God. It outlines the major demands and consequences ofits hard and long struggle, or jihād, with its attendant sacrifices. It identifies theproper and correct criteria for the evaluation and appraisal of its outcome: “Do notsay of those who are killed in God’s cause ‘They are dead.’ They are alive, although you do notperceive that.” (Verse 154)The sūrah tells the Muslims that, in the fight to uphold God’s universal truth, liveswill have to be sacrificed. Those who risk their lives and go out to fight, and who areprepared to lay down their lives for the cause of God are honourable people, pure ofheart and blessed of soul. But the great surprise is that those among them who arekilled in the struggle must not be considered or described as dead. They continue to164