It is an established fact as far as the teachings of Islam that any aspect of religiosity that does not impact the character of an individual, that act of religiosity is of very little value.
Prophet PBUH said, “I was sent so that I may perfect for people the best of characters.” Hadith.
As we all know these days because of economic crunch and destabilized economics people are losing jobs, they get laid off, not able to pay rent, mortgages are difficult to go away these days and all of these matters keep amassing and it impacts on our character. What kind of a person are we getting because of the financial difficulties we are facing? Let’s face it, we are facing some very difficult financial times. It is very common these days that people are told to vacate the apartment, house or flat because they can’t pay rent, people can’t pay off their medical insurances bills, people can’t buy books for their children. All of these examples are enough for us to understand that these are difficult times. So again the question is the same, in these perplex and difficult circumstances what kind of human beings are we becoming? And it is in these difficult times that the true inner of a person is known that who you are? That is why Quran tells us that how did people reacted when they were faced with difficult times.
Allah SWT says in the Quran:
“As for man, when his Lord tries him by giving him honor and gifts, then he says (puffed up): “My Lord has honored me.” But when He tries him, by straitening his means of life, he says: “My Lord has humiliated me!”” Surah Al-Fajr : 15-16
So the normal misinterpretation of the above mentioned above verses is “If we have much sustenance and wealth, it means we are blessed by Allah SWT and our Lord is happy from us and if he straitens the sustenance and wealth from somebody it means Allah SWT is not pleased with him or her” which is not the case. So the real question is once we do not have the means and wealth what kind of people do we become? Some of the wrong choices people have made as a result of these tough times.
- The consumption of Alcohol
How does drinking give you more money? It does not; in fact it makes you even poorer. It may relax you but it is a false source of relaxation. So for us it is a very wrong decision to make. Yes things are difficult but it does not mean we adopt such routes. People are more depressed. They think money can solve all their problems, once they are deprived of it they think they cannot take it anymore. As a result some people get angry with their family members and relatives.
- The increase in domestic violence
A man beats his wife because he does not have a job. How does beating your wife result in your employment or how does it involve in your promotion? It does not.
- They start Gambling
People think it is not going to work like this; I am not going to make it; I need some quick money; let’s gamble; But it also does not work out this way. The main question you are going to ask yourself is who are becoming in absence of money and resources?
Unfortunately, in this world the worth of a person is judged by what he wears. If you wear good branded clothes, you are a very worthy person. In some places people judge you worthy by knowing how many restaurants have you gone. These are some of the wrong criteria of worth conjured up by us and in order to attain such values in our societies we attain wrong means to achieve wrong criteria of worth.
Solution for Depression
The real reason why we adopt wrong means to let go of our depression is that we have stopped being grateful to Allah SWT. We no longer thank the Al-Mighty. We are so busy in striving for what we don’t have is that we forget to thank for what we have. We are so ungrateful. Whenever we buy a new house, new car, better job than before we say Alhamdulillah. What about the previous old home, or an old car, we never show any gratitude for that. That is why Allah SWT reminds us to be grateful in any condition.
Prophet PBUH say before sleeping,
“All praises due to Allah who has given us something to eat, and something to drink, given us shelter to be under, provided us family to give us love and care. For how many people are going to spend the night with no shelter or nobody to look and care after them” Hadith
Gratefulness is the biggest sign of optimism. In our lives we talk so much about bad thing. All the time we talk about our problems in front of children and discuss our problems with wife. Yes, it is not bad to discuss our problems with wife but we never talk about good things we have in a positive manner. It also impacts on our children. Let the habit of saying gratitude (Alhamdulillah) with sincerity and heart flow in our lives that whenever we see any good we say Alhamdulillah and even if we encounter any problem, we remember the other blessings of Allah SWT and gratitude him sincerely. By this way you would see most of your depression would flee away and you would have calm and happiness in your lives.