By the remembrance of Allah hearts are assured

Some describe our era as the "age of anxiety," or that "anxiety is the disease of the age," from which many psychological and organic illnesses like high blood pressure and heart disease arise. We ask Allah to cure our sick and the sick among Muslims.

Does this mean that tranquility no longer exists?

No, on the contrary, there are hearts filled with tranquility at all times. However, this tranquility is reserved for the righteous believers who are actively working, striving, and constantly remembering Allah.

Two Kinds of Tranquility:

1. Tranquility through the remembrance of Allah, as Allah Almighty says: " Those who have believed and whose hearts are assured by the remembrance of Allah. Unquestionably, by the remembrance of Allah hearts are assured." [Ar-Ra'd: 28] This is a true, lasting, stable, and continuous tranquility.

2. Tranquility through worldly life, as Allah Almighty says: “Indeed, those who do not expect the meeting with Us and are satisfied with the life of this world and feel secure therein and those who are heedless of Our signs” [Yunus:7] This is a temporary and superficial, or rather, a false tranquility. It vanishes and is replaced by anxiety when worldly circumstances change, and the sources of its pleasures disappear. Allah Almighty also says: "And of the people is he who worships Allah on an edge. If he is touched by good, he is reassured by it; but if he is struck by trial, he turns on his face [to the other direction]. He has lost [this] world and the Hereafter. That is what is the manifest loss.”

The Mirage of Worldly Tranquility

Know, may Allah have mercy on you, that one of Satan's greatest deceptions and Iblis's trickery upon mankind is to make them believe that tranquility is attained through an abundance of wealth, a high position, widespread fame, or immersion in pleasures. These are nothing but a mirage in a desert that a thirsty person think is water, until he comes to it and finds nothing.

These worldly matters are inherently volatile and perishable, with no stability. How can the heart's stability be built upon something that has no stability itself? Wealth goes, positions vanish, health declines, the world changes, and people shift. Whoever attaches their heart to any of these will fluctuate with their changes and be disturbed with their disturbances.

People today find themselves besieged by increasing pressures. From intense economic pressures to the clamor of phones and the internet, which plunge individuals into cycles of competition, comparison, trying to imitate others, and the relentless pursuit of material possessions and keeping up with every new trend.

If one immerses themselves in life through virtual social media, they find their real social bonds and relationships eroding and receding. Their sense of isolation and loneliness intensifies, and in this state, they will suffer from a deterioration of values, principles, and morals in themselves and those around them. All of this leaves individuals exhausted in a spiral of anxiety, depriving them of moments of peace, serenity, and enjoyment of life, making them constantly search for a tranquility that may seem out of reach.

So What's the Solution? And What's the Way Out of This Strait?

The solution lies in faith and obedience, contentment and conviction, striving and working, and exerting every effort possible.

The solution lies in reducing attachment to worldly life and its allurements, staying away from its desires and passions, and controlling one's self and its cravings.

Weakness and Reliance

Humans are weak creations; they need to lean on the Strong and seek refuge in a Mighty support.

The believer seeks refuge in Allah.

The non-believer relies on money, positions, and may even align with oppressors.

Whoever accepts to walk on Allah's path, meaning in the way of Allah, will find tranquility and serenity in all circumstances, no matter how conditions change. As for those who refuse to walk the path of attaining tranquility through the remembrance of Allah, they will walk the path of seeking tranquility through worldly means – by accumulating worldly possessions, by being preoccupied with gathering wealth, increasing their status, and rising in rank, for a year, two, ten, or twenty. But they forget that the nature of the worldly path involves many fluctuations, that no state lasts forever within it, and that permanence is impossible. When circumstances change, tranquility based on worldly things vanishes, and fear and anxiety take its place over what they have accumulated and done outside of Allah's way.

Faith and Security

Allah Almighty says: " Those who have believed and whose hearts are assured by the remembrance of Allah. Unquestionably, by the remembrance of Allah hearts are assured." [Ar-Ra'd: 28] This verse, the verse of tranquility, begins by speaking about "those who have believed." Faith is the first condition and cause of tranquility. Without faith in Allah, a person is nothing; they have no weight or stability, like a feather in the wind, tossed right and left by the world, and swayed by whims day and night. They are snatched by overwhelming currents and moved by fierce storms, finding no stability and no guided path.

The believer, however, is like a towering mountain, whose roots are firmly planted in the depths of certainty. Winds of hardship do not shake them, nor do storms of trials weaken their resolve. In their faith, they find an anchor that guides the ship of their life and a lighthouse that illuminates their dark paths. From their heart emanates an unconquerable strength, an unwavering serenity, and an unyielding determination, with which they traverse the paths of this world with confident steps, feeling the companionship of their Lord, drawing strength and support from Him.

Peace (Salam) is linked to Islam, and security (Aman) is linked to Iman (faith), in both meaning and structure.

If faith is lost, there is no security, and no worldly life for those who do not revive their religion.

And whoever is content with life without religion, has made annihilation its companion.

Allah Almighty has taught us that living in security and tranquility is only achieved by realizing faith and staying away from injustice and disobedience. Allah says: " Those who have believed and whose hearts are assured by the remembrance of Allah. Unquestionably, by the remembrance of Allah hearts are assured." [Ar-Ra'd: 28]

Practical Steps for a Tranquil Life

So that this is not just theoretical, here, seeker of happiness, are practical steps drawn from Allah's Book and His Prophet's Sunnah, to help you achieve tranquility in your reality:

1. Firm Belief in Divine Decree (Qadar): Know that what has befallen you was not to miss you, and what has missed you was not to befall you. And that if the entire nation were to gather to benefit you with something, they would not benefit you except with what Allah has already decreed for you. This belief cuts off the roots of regret over the past and anxiety about the future from your heart. It plants tranquility and serenity within your heart.

2. Happiness is in Prayer: Whenever Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was distressed by an affair, he would hasten to prayer. He also said: "The coolness of my eyes has been made in prayer." So, make your prayer a refuge you flee to from the worries of the world. Empty your heart in it, and you will return from it with a heart filled with serenity and light.

3. Contentment and Satisfaction: Look at those below you in worldly matters, and do not look at those above you. That is more likely to make you appreciate Allah's blessings upon you. True happiness is not in possessing everything you want, but in wanting (and being content with) what you possess. Contentment is an inexhaustible treasure; whoever is blessed with it has attained great tranquility.

4. Beneficence to Creation: "Acts of kindness protect from evil ends." Bringing joy to a Muslim's heart, relieving a distressed person's hardship, or wiping the tear of an orphan has an amazing effect on the soul's tranquility and the chest's expansion. Reward is of the same kind as the deed. Whoever makes people happy, Allah makes them happy. Whoever makes things easy for people, Allah makes things easy for them. Whoever makes things difficult for people, Allah makes things difficult for them. And whoever is gentle with people, Allah is gentle with them. And whoever shows mercy to people and deals with them mercifully, Allah will show them mercy and admit them into His mercy and bestow upon them His mercies and blessings.

5. Keeping Good Company: A person is on the religion of their close friend. A righteous companion is like a musk bearer: either they will give you some, or you will buy some from them, or at least you will find a pleasant scent from them. They remind you if you forget, help you if you remember, and their very presence in your life is tranquility.

6. Avoiding Imitation of Disbelievers: And not imitating the corrupt, and not following in the footsteps of sinners, and boycotting the corrupt and sinful, and staying away from the path of disobedience, and not frequenting places of disobedience, or corrupt websites and applications.

The path is clear, and the door is open. Tranquility is not a commodity bought with money, nor a position attained by status, nor a certificate obtained from a university. Rather, it is a divine gift, a heavenly grant, which Allah places in the heart of whoever turns to Him with sincerity.