Please join us in mediating on what motivates a farmer to work hard and sweat. It is the hope of harvesting. What urges a merchant to travel, adventure and leave his people and home? It is the hope of getting revenues. What encourages a student to study hard and remain awake for hours? It is the hope for success. What motivates a soldier to fight desperately and endure the hardships of war patiently? It is the hope for victory. What makes a patient like bitter medicine? It is his hope for health. What calls a believer to disobey his desires and obey his Lord? It is the hope of winning the Pleasure and Paradise of Allah The Almighty.

Hope, then, is a motivating power that makes one feel delighted when working, that provides the stimulus for struggling for the sake of duty and which enlivens body and soul. This power encourages lazy people to work hard and urges hardworking people to remain as such. It also stimulates the failing person to try repeatedly until he succeeds, and encourages the successful person to double his efforts to be more successful. The hope which we are talking about here is the opposite of despair; it carries meanings of cheerfulness and good thoughts. Despair is the demolishing tool that destroys the work motive in man's soul and weakens the sources of strength in his body. Therefore, Ibn Mas‘ood  said, “Destruction lies in two things: despair and conceit.” Imam Al-Ghazali  said, “They were mentioned together because happiness cannot be obtained except through endeavor, hard work, and diligence; a despairing person neither seeks nor endeavors, because what he hopes for is impossible in his eyes.”

Faith Infuses Hope in the Soul

Faith infuses hope in the soul and defends it against despair and sorrow. A faithful person believes that everything is at the hands of Allah The Almighty. Accordingly, he thinks good of his Lord and aspires for His reward taking into consideration the Sacred Hadeeth in which Allah The Almighty Says: “I am as My slave thinks I am…”

How can despair sneak into a believer’s heart while he reads the Quranic verses (which mean):

• {And despair not of relief from Allah. Indeed, no one despairs of relief from Allah except the disbelieving people."} [Quran 12:87]



• {And who despairs of the Mercy of his Lord except for those astray?} [Quran 15:56]

If a servant is a real believer, he will never despair; rather, he will be always cheerful, satisfied, and looking forward to what is better in all cases and under all circumstances. The Prophet  said: “How wondrous is the case of a believer! There is good for him in everything. If prosperity attends him, he expresses gratitude to Allah and that is good for him; and if adversity befalls him, he endures patiently and that is good for him.” How, then, could a true believer despair while he is promised of goodness in all circumstances?

His true faith makes him feel that Allah The Almighty is with him and that He will support and protect him, consequently:

• If he gets sick, he would hope for recovery and reward. Allah the Almighty Says (what means): {And when I am ill, it is He who cures me.} [Quran 26:80]



• If he commits a sin, he would repent to Allah The Almighty immediately in the hope that Allah The Exalted would forgive and have mercy upon him. In such a case, he would keep the following Quranic verse in his mind (which means): {Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the Mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is The Forgiving, The Merciful."} [Quran 39:53]



• If he suffers distress or hardship, he would be certain that this would end soon since Allah the Almighty Said (what means): {For indeed, with hardship [will be] ease. Indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.} [Quran 94:5,6] Of course, one hardship cannot defeat two eases.

A believer always has great hope for the mercy, relief, and support of Allah The Almighty. This is because he does not count on material means only, but also believes that these means have a Creator in Whose Hand is the dominion of all things, and when He decrees a matter, He only Says to it, "Kun (i.e. Be)," and it is. Hence, a believer’s heart is filled with trust in Allah The Almighty and hope for gaining His Mercy. This is exactly what the disbelievers lack, thus we see them commit suicide and suffer many psychological diseases. We ask Allah to protect us against this.

How Difficult Life Would be Without Hope

Hope is necessary for achieving progress in all fields. Without hope, civilizations would not have been built and science and technology would never have progressed. Without hope, nations would have never overcome times of distress and no call for reforming a society would have been made. In the past, a sage said, “Without hope, none would have built a building or planted a plant.”

Hence, O believer, think good of your Lord, hope for gaining His reward and support. If you suffer a distress or hardship, be patient and be sure that wherever there is a difficulty, certainly there would be ease. So, be patient and courageous, seek support from Allah The Almighty, and do not lose heart!

 

Islam came when people were separated into sects, factions and tribes. Allah The Almighty united people by Islam and brought their hearts together, as He The Almighty Says (what means): {And remember the favor of Allah upon you - when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favor, brothers.}[Quran 3:103] Islam teaches its followers to feel that they are individuals in a group and that they are part of this large group. Feeling that he is a part of the group, a Muslim likes for the other parts what he likes for himself. There are rights and duties that result from a Muslim belonging to the group, the greatest one being the way the believers support one another.

The Importance of Supporting One Another in the Ummah

Supporting one another is of great importance in the life of this Ummah (Muslim nation), and without it the Muslim community is exposed before its enemy and is liable to any defeat. On the other hand, if the society members adhere to supporting Allah The Almighty and one another, then this would definitely lead to the Muslims gaining every good and victory over their enemy. This is a fulfillment of the promise of Allah The Almighty, for He Says (what means): {And Allah will surely support those who support Him.}[Quran 22:40] The Muslims support their Lord The Almighty, and this is attained through obeying Him, not violating His limits and abstaining from disobedient acts. The Muslims support their brothers and sisters and this is achieved through helping them whenever they need it, warding off oppression if they are oppressed and deterring them if they are oppressors. The Prophet, , said: “Support your brother whether he is an oppressor or is oppressed.”A man enquired,“O Messenger of Allah, I will support him if he is oppressed, but how can I support him if he is an oppressor?”He, , said:“You can prevent him from committing oppression, and that is how to support him.” [Al-Bukhari]

 

A Novel Concept of Supporting One Another

We notice that the aforementioned Hadeeth adds a new meaning to supporting one another with regards to supporting a brother who is an oppressor. The Messenger of Allah, , pointed out that this kind of support is attained by preventing and keeping him from oppression. This is real support, and not helping him to oppress others, and preventing him from this is supporting him against his self - which is a persistent enjoiner of evil - and its fancies that have deviated from the way of truth. It also supports him against the human and jinni devils and their enticements. Such support saves him from the punishment and torment of Allah The Almighty, rescues him from committing a crime and its lowness, and protects him from the filth of sin and aggression.

 

"No" to Pre-Islamic Tribal Bigotry

The prevalent concept of supporting one another in the pre-Islamic era was tribal or familial support, whether this support was for a truthful cause or for falsehood. Therefore, whenever disputes arose between two individuals, the tribe of each would support the one who belonged to it, even if he was an aggressor and an oppressor. However, when Islam came, it abolished this bigoted concept which contradicted the primary bases upon which good morals are built. It substituted it with a noble moral concept that is represented in supporting the oppressed against the oppressor, even if the oppressor is a relative while the oppressed is not. This sublime concept of support in Islam is found in many verses. For example, Allah The Almighty Says (what means):

 ·        {And when you testify, be just, even if [it concerns] a near relative.}[Quran 6:152]

·        {O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm for Allah, witnesses in justice, and do not let the hatred of a people prevent you from being just} [Quran 5:8]

 

 The Prophet, , ordered his Ummah to support the oppressed, regardless of color and race, as Al-Baraa’ ibn ‘Aazib, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “The Prophet  ordered us to do seven things and forbade us from seven: He ordered us to visit the sick; to follow funeral processions; to respond to a sneezer with ‘Yarhamuk-Allah [may Allah have mercy on you]’ when he says ‘Al-hamdu lillaah [praise be to Allah]’; to help the oppressed…”[Al-Bukhari and Muslim] The Messenger of Allah, , clarified that the bond of brotherhood is what attaches Muslims, and that supporting one another is one of its prerequisites; he, , said: “Every Muslim is inviolable to the Muslim; they are two brothers supporting each other…” [An-Nasaa’I and Ibn Hibbaan, Al-Albaani - Hasan]

 

The Prophet, , encouraged Muslims to support each other, clarifying that each good deed will have an equal reward; he, , said: “Any person who forsakes a Muslim in a situation in which his inviolability is breached and his honor is defamed, Allah The Almighty will forsake him in a situation where he would like Him to support him. Anyone who supports a Muslim in a situation in which his inviolability is breached and his honor is defamed, Allah The Almighty will support him in a situation where he would want Allah The Almighty to support him.” [Ahmad, Al-Albaani - Hasan]

 

The Messenger of Allah Supported the Oppressed

 According to the terms of the Hudaybiyah peace treaty, everyone had the choice to enter into an alliance and pay allegiance to either the Messenger of Allah, , or the Quraysh.

As a consequence, Banu Bakr paid allegiance to Quraysh, and Khuzaa‘ah paid allegiance to the Prophet, . There were wars between Banu Bakr and Khuzaa‘ah during the pre-Islamic era, and during the treaty between them, Nawfal ibn Mu‘aawiyah, from Banu Bakr, led a group of men from his people and headed to the tribe of Khuza’ah. They reached Khuzaa‘ah at night and killed a man called Munabbih. Thereupon, the people of Khuzaa‘ah woke up and started fighting them. Quraysh provided Banu Bakr with weapons and some of them fought with Banu Bakr at night. When the war ended, ‘Amr ibn Saalim, may Allah be pleased with him, went to the Prophet, , and when he reached him, while he was sitting in the mosque, he said some poetic verses describing the attack and the breaching of the treaty. He sought the support of the Prophet, . Ibn Is’haaq  said, “The Messenger of Allah said to him: ‘O ‘Amr ibn Saalim, you are supported.’This was the cause of the conquest of Makkah.” [Fat’h Al-Baari 592/7]

 

The Righteous Advise Each Other to Support the Oppressed

When Ibn Muljim, may Allah curse him, stabbed ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, he entered his house and called Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, may Allah be pleased with them, and some of his advice to them was, “Be opponents of the oppressor and support the oppressed.”  

Abu Bakr At-Tartooshi  visited Al-Afdhal ibn Ameer Al-Juyoosh while he was the ruler of Egypt, and admonished and advised him. Some of what he said was, “Open your door and tell your guards to make it easy for people to enter, support the oppressed and relieve the grieved. May Allah help you to support the oppressed, make you a resort for the grieved, and a means of safety for those who are afraid.”

 

Finally, supporting the oppressed and preventing the oppressor in light of taking into consideration the circumstances, knowing the Islamic jurisprudence of changing and referring to the scholars lead to the safety and success of society.