The Qur’an (6:12) states: “Say: To whom belongs all that is in the heavens and on earth? Say: To Allah. He has committed Himself to bestow grace and mercy.”
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “When Allah made His creation, He made a promise to Himself in writing which is with Him, written in which are the words: ‘My mercy shall remain dominant over My wrath.” (Sahih Muslim; Qurtubi)
The Qur’anic ayah follows this statement asserting Allah’s ownership of the heavens and earth by stating that “He has committed Himself to bestow grace and mercy.” He is the sole, undisputed owner of the whole universe. He, however, out of His generosity and by His own will, has committed Himself to bestow grace and mercy. Grace and mercy provides the basic rules in His treatment of, and judgement over, us both in this present life and the life to come. Believing in this rule is one of the constituents of the Islamic concept of life. Even when Allah tests us with hardship, His mercy takes precedence. Indeed, the test is meant to prepare us for the fulfilment of the trust He has assigned to us. He sorts out the good from the bad among us: those among us who are keen to follow Allah’s Messenger distinguish themselves from those who turn back on their heels. The exercise of mercy and the bestowing of grace in all this are clearly manifest.
Every moment Allah’s grace is showered upon us. We have only identified that mercy which is reflected in hard tests, because often we do not see it as such. However, we need to reflect a little on the way this Qur’anic statement is phrased: “He has committed Himself to bestow grace and mercy.” The same statement is repeated in ayah 54 of this surah with a slight variation: “Your Lord has committed Himself to bestow grace and mercy.” Allah’s mercy is extended to all His servants throughout their lives. It is reflected in the forces and resources of the universe which Allah has made subservient to us.
It is further reflected in granting us the ability to learn and to make our talents and abilities responsive to the world around us. The knowledge Allah has given us is part of the grace He has bestowed on us. It is further reflected in the fact that Allah forgives our sins every time we repent. Allah rewards us for our good deeds at least ten times their value and He may increase that manifold for whomever He wills. Furthermore, a good deed erases bad ones. All this is part of Allah’s grace because no human being can earn admission into heaven based on his or her actions alone unless Allah bestows His mercy on them. Allah’s Messenger states that this also applies to him, thereby acknowledging man’s shortcomings and Allah’s grace.
Let us now consider some ahadith which give us an insight into how the Prophet ﷺ portrayed Allah’s grace to make it properly appreciated by ordinary people. Abu Hurairah quotes the Prophet ﷺ as saying: “When Allah created His creation, He wrote in a book which He keeps with Him above the Throne: My grace over-speeds My anger.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
“Allah has made mercy into one hundred parts. He then retained ninety-nine parts and placed on earth one part. It is from that one part that creatures show mercy to one another, to the extent that a female animal lifts its hoof away from its young in order not to harm it.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
In yet another hadith we read: “When Allah created the heavens and the earth, He also created one hundred mercies; each one of them filled the space between the heavens and the earth. He placed one mercy on earth. It is through this that a mother is compassionate to her baby, and so are wild beasts and birds. On the Day of Judgement, Allah complements them with this one mercy.” (Muslim)
This is an inspiring description by the Holy Prophet ﷺ. It makes it easy for our mind to visualise the extent of Allah’s grace. We only need to reflect on how mothers are so kind-hearted to their youngsters and the sympathy and kindness people show towards the very young and very old, the sick and the invalid, and to relatives and friends.
Abdullah ibn Amr quotes the Messenger of Allah ﷺ as saying: “The merciful are granted mercy by Allah. Show mercy to those on earth so that you are shown mercy by the One in heaven.” (Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi)
Jarir quotes Allah’s Messenger as saying: “Allah does not bestow His grace on those who do not show mercy to people.” (Bukhari, Muslim and Tirmidhi)
The Holy Prophet ﷺ did not stop at extending mercy to mankind. Man does not attain his full humanity unless he is merciful to every living thing. The Prophet’s instructions in this regard were, as always, highly inspiring. Abu Hurairah quotes the Messenger of Allah ﷺ as saying: “A man was travelling along a road when he was very thirsty. He found a well, so he went down into it to drink. As he came up he found a gasping dog that was so thirsty that he licked the dust. The man thought, `this dog is now as thirsty as I was a short while ago’. Therefore, he went down the well again and filled his shoe with water. Holding it in his mouth, he came up and gave the water to the dog to drink. Allah rewarded him for his action by forgiving him.” The Prophet’s audience asked: “Messenger of Allah, are we to be rewarded for kindness to animals?” He answered: “You get a reward for every kindness you do to any living creature.” (Bukhari, Muslim and Malik)
Such was the Prophet’s method in cultivating among his Companions a keen sense of appreciation of Qur’anic guidance. This enabled them to appreciate how limitless Allah’s grace is, through their own mercy to one another. It was clear to them that all aspects of mercy in their world come only from one out of a hundred parts of Allah’s mercy. When we truly appreciate the significance of Allah’s commitment to being merciful to His servants, we experience a profound sense of reassurance which remains with us even when we go through periods of hardship and severe trials that are enough to turn us away from our Lord. A believer is certain that at every moment and in every situation and condition, Allah’s grace is present and sure to be bestowed.
Our reassurance that Allah’s grace is close at hand fills our heart with strength, perseverance, hope and comfort. We start believing that we are in good, caring hands and we enjoy the comfort of Allah’s grace as long as we does not go far astray. We must realise that despite our shortcomings, slips and mistakes, we still enjoy an abundance of Allah’s grace; therefore, we must show mercy to others, forgive them their mistakes and treat them with forbearance.