APRIL 1
Gratitude and Ingratitude
Right from a glass of water to political power, whatever we receive in this world is a gift from God. Everything is a direct blessing of the Almighty. Man receives everything in this world by His will. If God does not so desire, no one can succeed in anything, no matter hard he may try. This is a truth which is made very clear in the Quran and the Hadith.
We learn, moreover, from the Quran and the Hadith that there are two kinds of divine gifts, one a special gift and the other a general gift.
Political power falls into the first category, for as the Quran explains, political power is not given to everyone. Neither can it be received by launching a political movement or subscribing to a gun culture. It is, in fact, directly dependant upon the Sunnah of God. One such sunnah or law of God, according to the Quran, is His promise to believers and the doers of good works “to make them masters in the land as He had made their ancestors before them.” (24:55)
That is to say, even when our aim is political power, our task, rather than the launching of political movements, will be to strive to bring people back to the true Islamic faith and good actions.
The general gift of God, received by all the people to a greater or lesser degree consists, in principle, of two things—peaceful circumstances and plentiful supplies of food. By withholding such a gift, Allah could punish the wrongdoers:
“Allah has made an example of the city which was once safe and peaceful. Its provisions used to come in abundance from every quarter: but its people denied the favours of Allah. Therefore, He afflicted them with famine and fear as a punishment for what they did.” (16:112)
