Being Muslim: Will Islam Bring Me Happiness or Hardship?

QWe understand that the more we adhere to Islam the more it would bring us happiness in this life and the hereafter. But one hadith implied that the stronger we adhere to Islam, the greater would be our affliction and hardship. That would mean we would suffer more and presumably would be less happy (in this world). Does not this situation contradict the premise that Islam would bring more happiness to those who adhere to it?


ANSWER

Short Answer: The more we adhere to Islam the more it will bring us happiness. The ultimate message of Islam is that only submission to Allah brings true, lasting happiness and peace. But yes, actively living as a Muslim in this world today will bring you hardship. This is a fact of life: the best, most valuable things in life are the hardest to attain, and cost us the most.

Salam Dear Aisha,

Thank you for your question and for contacting Ask About Islam.

There is no contradiction at all between the two statements you make.

The only contradiction is that life, itself, is rather contradictory.

Love Is Painful and Beautiful


Learning How to Love For the Sake of Allah

Take, for example, the love anyone would have for their baby son.

There is no greater joy for any father or mother than to hold their baby in their arms and look into its eyes with tenderness and love.

Anything that causes our baby pain will cause us great distress.

As our children grow, we love our children with the same love, though often we don’t express it in the same way we did at first.

There is no doubt, though, that the older our children grow, the more distress they will cause us.

In fact, there is no hardship we would not undergo in order to protect our child.

So there is a direct contradiction here between loving a child and also feeling affliction and hardship because of our love.

If we didn’t have the child we would be free of the hardship we are going to feel. We wouldn’t fret over how we will pay for his schooling or over the friends he makes at school.

We wouldn’t worry over the job he is going to get or the person he will marry.

And yet all these hardships we undertake willingly because of the love we have for our children.

Yes, Islam Brings True Peace and Even Happiness

Seeking Nearness to Allah - First Steps to the Spiritual Journey


You are quite right that the more we adhere to Islam the more it will bring us happiness in this life and in the hereafter.

Islam is not a punishment, but a blessing.

By living the way Allah Almighty wants us to behave, we will find the happiness that our hearts crave.

In life, all people crave happiness and fulfillment. Some people will go to great lengths to achieve it.

The great message of Islam is that true, lasting happiness can only be found in Allah.

When we see football hooligans on television or read the alarmingly high levels of suicide or alcoholism or drug addiction, we see the results of people craving happiness where it cannot be found.

Temporary “highs” will not answer the deepest needs of our hearts.

Islam, on the other hand, directs us to a way which will bring true happiness.

Yes, Being Muslim Is Hard In This World

The Priceless Blessings We Never Count


You are also quite right in quoting that the stronger we adhere to Islam, the greater would be our affliction and hardship.

The more we adhere to Islam the more we will care for the world in which we live.

We will be distressed, for example, when we see hunger and suffering in our world, because Islam teaches us to care for our world and for the people in it.

We will also be distressed when Islam itself is portrayed in the wrong way on our television screens and in the newspapers, because the more we adhere to Islam the more we will want others to see it as beautiful, gentle and sweet.

It will cause us personal hurt when others misinterpret our actions and behavior, even though our intention in doing them is to serve Allah.

How distressing it is for Muslims in the West, for example, to be seen as extreme and the supporters of violence and terrorism simply because they go to a mosque and pray!

So you see, the more we love Islam and adhere to its teachings the more we will not only find happiness through it, but also experience suffering because of it.

Our Role Model: Prophet Muhammad


How Can We Forgive Like Prophet Muhammad

Our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) suffered great hardship at the hands of the enemies of Islam.

But, there is no doubt that he would not have had it any other way and that he was glad (peace be upon him) to suffer hardship for Allah’s sake.

Just as a parent would suffer any hardship or indignity for his or her child, so we, as Muslims, would do the same for Islam and for Allah, when we have come to see Islam for what it really is and have found the happiness it offers us in this world and promises us for the next.

Great technological advances have enabled man to manufacture cars, planes and other luxury goods. Yet such advances have enabled man to manufacture also nuclear and cluster bombs that can indiscriminately kill millions of people.

Great advances have been achieved in medicine leading to the production of vaccines that prevent disease and a variety of medicines that cure numerous illnesses. However, man managed also to produce killer viruses to use in germ warfare.

Human thought also advanced, producing philosophical theories that reduce man to the level of animals and even insects. Other theories justify the extermination of whole races so that only advanced races may survive.

Today, with the resources available to him, man is more able to achieve prosperity and happiness than at any time in history. Yet mankind still grope in the dark, plagued by wars, crime, famine, suicide and depression. The question many of us find perplexing is: why have we not made advances leading to happiness? Even more importantly, How can we achieve happiness then?

In short, the answer is: by moulding man.

The Moulding of Man


All around us we see concrete buildings rising high, while their inhabitants sink into the depths of fanaticism and ignorance, thinking only of their next meal or their next drink.

Luxury buildings have shining glass surfaces that reflect tiny objects like a mirror, while darkness spreads over the hearts of countless numbers of people who lead a life of misery.

Luxury jets travel the world, and passengers are comfortable in seats that turn into beds so that they may sleep as they fly through the night, while the majority of mankind suffer a life below the poverty line.

It is no surprise that a billionaire who has at his fingertip all that anyone can wish for, may need to take several sleeping tablets in order to get to sleep. He may even jump from the top of the palace he so eagerly built, sending his body into the abyss into which his soul had earlier sunk.

Islam attaches due importance to the moulding of man, as a structure of values, one supporting the other. Here is the value of mercy: On screen: Prophet Muhammad says: ‘No mercy will be shown to one who is not merciful to others’. And here is truthfulness: On screen the Qur’anic verse: ‘Believers, fear God and always remain with the truthful’ (9: 119) And here is honesty, and there is courage. Together they form a wall that shields man from temptations. Besides, here we find a cleansing tool that removes all the dirt of grudge, hatred, greed and pursuit of wealth. Under Islam, you live between one wall that protects you from all that is wicked and another that keeps you free from the temptation of desire.

Here is a pillar of support to lean upon when you experience a moment of weakness. You can thus maintain your dignity and refuse to bow before anyone. You will say to all: God has liberated us from servitude to anyone. We worship God alone. By contrast, when you have power, you will stop before a threshold that prevents you from the abuse of power. Thus, when those who have fought you find themselves subject to your authority, you pardon them in the hope that they will be guided to the truth.

Man always looks at his childhood with nostalgia. As a child, man reflects uncorrupted human nature. Nevertheless, he tries his best to kill that structure day after day. Ultimately, many are those who kill themselves. Today, suicide has reached unprecedented proportions.

We spend decades building our bodies. Is it time that we should take a backward step in order to start building our souls before it is too late.