The Creation of Weakness and Illness is from Allah's Endless Mercy
And Ayyub when he called out to his Lord, 'Great harm has afflicted me and
You are the Most Merciful of the merciful,'
(Surat al-Anbiya, 83)
Those who do not follow the Qur'an's morality interpret every anxiety, hardship, or illness as a disaster that upsets their orderly lives and destroys their dreams. This is because their plans for the future, which they expect to realize, deny such possibilities, even though such things happen every day. There is no place in their plans for a sudden illness or an accident. Many, even though they have a healthy body, think that they cannot confront these kinds of misfortune that happen to thousands of people every day. As a result, when confronted with such events, they become rebellious and begin to question Allah's destiny for them.
Seeing the cause of illness only in terms of germs and viruses, or traffic accidents as the result of bad driving, they remain unaware of the fact that Allah creates, and therefore controls and has knowledge of, every cause. If a person becomes very ill because of a virus, this illness is included in Allah's knowledge. If a person is hit by a car and is left paralyzed, this is also subject to the fate that Allah has created. People are free to do whatever they want, but they cannot change their destiny, for it surrounds them on all sides. Those who submit to Allah's eternal power and trust in His endless wisdom and mercy view each illness, accident, and disaster as a temporary test that will end in good.
What is important in such instances is that the believers show their good moral character while submitting to their destiny with great patience, morality, and desire to draw even closer to Allah. Illness and accidents are periods when believers can show their patience and good moral character and they are important opportunities for them to draw close to Allah. In His endless mercy, the Lord has created illness, anxiety and hardship as tests and He desires by these means that everything will turn out for the good of His faithful servants. In the Qur'an, Allah has determined the period of illness and told us about the importance of showing patience in the face of hardship.
Rather, those with true devoutness are those who believe in Allah and the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, and the Prophets; and who, despite their love for it, give away their wealth to their relatives, orphans and the very poor, travelers and beggars, free slaves, and who perform prayer and give alms; those who honor their contracts when they make them, and are steadfast in poverty, illness, and battle. These are the people who are true. They are the people who guard against evil. (Surat al-Baqara, 177)
As the period of illness has already been determined, we need to realize that we must endure that particular test in a way that pleases Allah, for He has created both the test and the cure. We must not falter in the face of seeing no good in the situation; rather, we must submit to Him in complete sincerity and wait to see what happens, sure in our knowledge that He will reward us with endless beauty in the Hereafter. Most importantly, when we are passing through any given test, we must bear in mind that it is happening for a reason, which may or may not be known, that somehow will benefit us. Therefore, it must be kept in mind that all illnesses that happen to people happen for a reason. If Allah willed, no one would ever be ill or feel pain. But even if a person encounters these difficulties, he must realize that experiencing them is good for him because they enable him to understand the transitory nature of this world and the eternal power of Allah. In addition, such tests help us understand this world's transitory nature and Allah's eternal power.
In times of illness, a healthy person's body falls victim to invisible germs and viruses and may experience weakness and pain in various areas. Perhaps they may even become bedridden. Their inability to overcome a microscopic virus reminds them of their inherent weakness and complete need for Allah. Perhaps they may remember this truth when they regain their health and strength or recover their lost possessions, for those who do not suffer often give it no thought. As a result, they may acquire a greater appreciation of the Creator's endless mercy, compassion, and power.
One of the things we do not think about in our daily life is how much of a blessing health is. An individual who has not had a long term illness is not used to feeling pain or discomfort. But when he becomes ill, he realizes that being healthy is a great gift from Allah. Some people, when they are stricken with a health-threatening illness or lose a limb, think of it as something bad for them. They do not consider that Allah may have sent it to them so that they would turn toward Him and begin thinking about the real meaning of life and the reality of the Afterlife. Perhaps they will realize how senseless their attachment to the world really is and how they could die at any moment. This new awareness, gained through an unexpected illness, may lead them toward salvation and engender within them a desire to start trying to earn Allah's good pleasure. When considered from this point of view, we can better understand that illness is a source of good for believers, a great gift from Allah to humanity.
When people believe that death is approaching, they begin to consider what such an event means. They may pray sincerely to Allah for good health, even if they have never prayed before. This may draw them closer to Allah and, if it causes a real change in their worldview, will have been a great boon for them by causing them to begin a new life. And, if this person continues to pray with the same sincerity and reacts with gratitude when the illness is past, his illness will have been a great blessing for him and the means by which he will lead a blameless life. Illness, therefore, is a great mercy and a gift given by Allah, designed to lead people toward seeing the possibility of good in everything, to make them think on a much deeper level than they are used to, and to take resort in Allah in every situation. In the Qur'an, Allah tells us that there are people who resort to Him in times of such difficulty. In Surah Yunus, it is revealed as follows:
When harm touches a person, he [or she] calls on Us, lying on his [or her] side, sitting down, or standing up. Then when We remove the harm, he [or she] carries on as if he [or she] had never called on Us when the harm first touched him [or her]. In that way, We make what they have done appear good to the profligate. (Surah Yunus, 12)
We learn from this verse that it is not enough for people to pray in times of hardship. Just as they pray when they understand their own weakness in relation to Allah, they must also pray and take refuge in Him when they receive a blessing from Him. Perhaps this illness and anxiety may be the means by which they finally understand their weakness, repent, and begin a new life of complete submission to Him. In this case, our All-Merciful Lord's mercy will use this test as the door to the Afterlife's eternal blessings. In the Qur'an, Allah gives the example of the afflictions of Job (pbuh). Job (pbuh) was a patient believer who always turned to Allah, and as a manifestation of His mercy, Allah was pleased to show him the way, help him and grant him blessings.
We learn from this verse that it is not enough for people to pray in times of hardship. Just as they pray when they understand their own weakness in relation to Allah, they must also pray and take refuge in Him when they receive a blessing from Him. Perhaps this illness and anxiety may be the means by which they finally understand their weakness, repent, and begin a new life of complete submission to Him. In this case, our All-Merciful Lord's mercy will use this test as the door to the Afterlife's eternal blessings. In the Qur'an, Allah gives the example of the afflictions of Job (pbuh). Job (pbuh) was a patient believer who always turned to Allah, and as a manifestation of His mercy, Allah was pleased to show him the way, help him and grant him blessings. (Surah Sad, 41-44)
