KHUTAB IV: 15. MEANING OF S.ABR (PATIENCE)
15. MEANING OF S.ABR (PATIENCE)
(ANUMA (25.09.09)
Brothers in Islam,
Allah says
in the Qur’ān,
(البقرة , ٤٥) وَإِنَّهَا لَكَبِيرَةٌ إِلَّا عَلَى الْخَاشِعِينَ وَاسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ
Nay, seek (Allah’s) help with patient perseverance
[s.abr] and
prayer: it is indeed hard, except to those
who bring a lowly spirit [khāshi‘īn]—who bear in
who bring a lowly spirit [khāshi‘īn]—who bear in
mind the certainty that they are to meet their
Lord, and that they are to return to Him.
(Q. 2:45, A.Y. Ali’s
translation)
In this verse we cannot literally translate وَاسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ as “and seek patience’s help” but as وَاسْتَعِينُوا بالله بِالصَّبْرِ “and seek Allah’s help with patience”, and
A.Y. Ali put Allah’s (God’s) between two brackets. The letter بَاءُ in بِالصَّبْر is called by al-Zamakhsharī بَاءُ اْلإِسْتِعَانَةِ, like
the expression كَتَبْتُ بِاْلقَلَمِ (“I
wrote with the pen”).[1] Seeking Allah’s help is mentioned in the
following verse:
قَالَ مُوسَى لِقَوْمِهِ اسْتَعِينُوا
بِاللَّهِ وَاصْبِرُوا ... (الأعراف:
١٢٨)
Said Moses to his
people: “Pray for help from God
and (wait) in patience
and constancy…” (Q. 7:128)
Abdullah Yusuf
Ali’s commentary on this verse is as follows:
The Arabic word S.abr (translated here “patient,
perseverance”)
implied many shades of meaning, which it is
impossible to
comprehend in one English word. It implied (1)
patience in
the sense of being thorough, not hasty; (2)
patient perseverance,
constancy,
steadfastness, firmness of purpose; (3) systematic
as opposed to spasmodic or chance action; (4)
a cheerful
attitude of resignation and understanding by
the
element of
constancy or steadfastness.[2]
Ibn Kathīr commentary on the
above verse is that Allah orders His servants to be patient and establish
prayer to obtain the goodness of this world and the Hereafter. He quoted
Muqātil bin H.ayyān who said, “Carry out
patience and obligatory prayers for the sake of the Hereafter, and patience in
this verse according to mufassirān (commentators of the Qur’ān) is
fasting.” He said further that Mujahid (w. 103/722) also held the same view. Al-Qurt.ubī (w. 671/1273) and other ‘ūlamā’ (Muslim scholars) say that this
is the reason why the month of Ramadan is called “the month of patience” as
mentioned in many h.adīth
literature. The other view mentioned by Ibn Kathīr is that patience in the
above verse means “avoiding evil”. This is the reason why “Sabr (patience)” is
mentioned with other acts of worship, especially “ṣalāh (prayer).” It was also reported
by Ibn Abī H.ātim that ‘Umar bin Khattāb r.a.
said, “There are two kinds of patience: good patience when in calamity, and
better patience in avoiding Allah’s prohibition.” Al-H.asan
al-Bas.rī (w. 110/728) was reported to have
held the same view.
Some interpretations given on the meaning of seeking (Allah’s) help with s.abr (patient perseverance) and s.alāh (prayer), namely, وَاسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ (البقرة
, ٤٥) above,
a. S.abr here means patience in carrying out
religious obligations and increasing the performaance of prayer in order to
purify onself from sins..
b. S.abr here means patience in
defewnding Prophet Muhammad s.a.w.
c. S.abr
here means patience in fasting and establishing the prayer; fasting is called
“patience”, as a person who fast restrains himself from eating, drinking and
indecent activities. (Mujahid’s view).
d. S.abr here means patience in any misfortune faced by man. ( The view of Abū
Ish.āq al-Zajjāj, w. 310/922)
e. There are three kinds of
patience: 1. patience in facing calamity, 2. patience in obeying Allah, and
this is harder than the first one, and with more reward, and this is meant in the abover
verse, and 3. patience in avoiding rebillion (disobedience) against Allah, and
this patience is harderest of all.
f. S.abr here means
inner obedience (to Allah), whereas prayer is
outer obedience. Allah mentions in this verse the inner patience and the
outer patience, the prayer, which is the hardest obedience, as it includes many
kinds of patience: humbleness, concentration, calmness, reciting such as the tasbīh. (glorification of Allah) and other readings in
prayer. If these two kinds of obedience can be performed easily, other kinds of
‘ībādah (acts of worship) will be easier. There is no inner obedience
harder to the body than patience. Therefore Allah oders us to be patient and to
establish prayer.
With
regard to the verse وَإِنَّهَا لَكَبِيرَةٌ إِلَّا
عَلَى الْخَاشِعِينَ (البقرة , ٤٥) it is indeed hard, except to those who bring a
lowly spirit [khāshi‘īn] (Q. 2:45), it means (a) seeking Allah’s help is hard, (b)
establishing prayers, except those who bring a lowly spirit, khushu’,
humble people. (بحر العلوم
للسمرقندي, باب ٤٥, ج١, ص٤٩)
The
above verse was revealed for Muslims to have patience with the insult of
the Makkan idolators when they shifted the qiblah (direction of their
prayer) towards the Ka‘bah from Masjid al-H.arām in Jerusalem. The Makkan idolators said:
“Muhammad will return to our religion as he has returned to our qiblah.”
For this rerason, the Prophet’s followers were told to seek Allah’s protection
with patience and prayers. “The
posistion of s.abr in īmān
(faith)” said ‘Ali bin Abi Talib r.a.,
“is like that of the head in the body, there will be no benefit for the body
without a head.”[3]
The meaning of s.abr in the Qur’ān
According to al-Rāghib al-As.fahānī, the term s.abr basicly means الإمْسَاكُ فِي ضِيْق “self-restraint in distress,” like the
expression صََبَرْتُ
الدَّابَة (lit. “I make the animal
patience”) meaning “I kept the animal without food,” and صَبَرْتُ فُلاناً (lit. “I make
So-and-so patient”) meaning “I kept following him until he could not get rid of
me.” S.abr
is “self-restraint from what is required by one’s mind or law or both.” The
term is general and has many connotations, depending on one’s condition. S.abr in calamity is called s.abr, the
opposite of الجَزَع “anxiety”,
“uneasiness”, “fear”, “anguish,” and “sadness.”
S.abr in the battlefield
means الشَجَاعَة “bravery,” the opposite of الجُبْن “cowarness.” S.abr in
facing annoying and grieving heavy blow, disaster, calamity, or misfortune is
called رَحْبُ
الصَّدْر “open-mindedness”, the opposite ofالضَّجَر “anger,” “displeasure,” “dissatisfaction,”
“sorrow” and “grief.” S.abr from talking is called كِتْمَان “silence”, “secrecy", the opposite of مَذْل “disclosure.” [4]
Ibn
al-Jawzī give the definition of s.abr slightly
different from that of al-Rāghib al-As.fahānī mentioned above, namely, حَبْسُ النَّفْسِ عمّا تُنَازِع ُإليَه “restraining oneself
from what it desires”. Anything that restrains something else is called “making
it patience.” The prohibited thing called المَصْبُوْرَة, is the animal made a target of launched spears till it dies.
It is also said that a patient person from misfortune is called so, because he
restrain himself from sadness, worry, dan remorse. Ibn al-Jawzī mentions three
meanings of s.abr
in the Qur’ān, as follows:
1. Patience itself (الصَبْرُ نَفْسُه) , and this is its most common meaning in
the Qur’ān, for example, الصَّابِرِينَ وَالصَّادِقِينَ وَالْقَانِتِينَ
وَالْمُنْفِقِينَ وَالْمُسْتَغْفِرِينَ بِالْأَسْحَارِ (آل عمران : ۱۷) “(They
are) those who are patient, those who are true (in Faith, words, and deeds) and
obedient with sincere devotion in worship to Allah. And those who spend (give
the zakat and alms in the ways of Allah), and those who pray and begs Allah’s
pardon in the last hours of the night.” (Q. 3:17). [5]
2.
Fasting(الصََّوْم) , as in the
verse وَاسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ (البقرة : ٤٥) “And, seek (Allah’s) help with fasting and prayer.” (Q. 2:45)
3. Boldness, daring, recklessness, (الجُرْأَة), such as
the example given by al-Farrā’, as follows: أُولَئِكَ الَّذِينَ اشْتَرَوُا الضَّلَالَةَ بِالْهُدَى وَالْعَذَابَ
بِالْمَغْفِرَةِ فَمَا أَصْبَرَهُمْ عَلَى النَّارِ (البقرة : ١٧٥) “Those are they who have purchased error at the price
of guidance, and torment at the price of forgiveness. So how bold they are (for
evil deeds which will push them) to the Fire!” (Q. 2:175)
Al-As.ma‘ī related a story of a man lying to
a Bedouin but swore with Allah’s name. The Bedouin said to him, مَا أَصْبَرَكَ عَلَى اللهِ meaning مَا أَجْرَأَكَ عَلَى اللهِ “How bold
(reckless) you are to Allah!” [6]
We
have seen that the term s.abr translated simply with “patience” has various
connotations and meanings in the verses of the Qur’ān. There are many similar
terms found in the verses of the Qur’ān, and rendering them into any other
language would be difficult to give their extensive and deep meanings.
Reference:
A.Y. Ali, The Meaning of
the Holy Qur’ān. Kuala Lumpur: Islamic Education Services, 2005
Ministry of Islamic Affairs…The
Noble Qur’ān. Riyadh, n.d.
الكشاف للزمخشري
تفسير إبن كثير
بحر العلوم للسمرقندي
تفسير بحر المحيط لأبي حيّان
المفردات
للراغب الإصفهاني
لإبن الجوزي نزهة
الأعين النواظر
Comments
Post a Comment