Go Forth, Light or Heavy

The verses opened today with the saying of the Lord of the worlds, exalted is He:

﴿Go forth, light or heavy, and strive with your wealth and yourselves in the path of Allah — that is better for you﴾.

It is as though the Lord of the worlds is telling us: there is no excuse for anyone. The human being is between two states: either he is in ease, or he is in hardship. In both cases he is commanded to strive, with no excuse to lag behind.

Imagine — may Allah be good to you — a soldier on the battlefield. Could he come and say, "By Allah, conditions are hard, I cannot continue the fight"? Move forward, dear one — wherever you are, however you are. There is no excuse for you to lag behind your first mission in this life: that you are on the field of battle, and you must engage the goals laid before you.

Then the noble verse addresses the differing psychologies of people: some wait for numbers and preparation; some have the inner motivation and the desire to move, but are dispirited. So Allah, exalted is He, addresses us with this simple, gracious sentence — simple even in its way of persuading people — when He says:

﴿And had they wished to go out, they would have prepared the means for it. But Allah disliked their being sent, so He held them back﴾.

The question: is being sent (al-inbiʿāth) tied to one's psychological capacity to go out, or to one's material capacity and equipment? It is a matter tied to the soul. ﴿Allah disliked their being sent, so He held them back﴾. This holding back is psychological. There is a strong soul that can move in any land and under any conditions, and there is a weak soul that — no matter what means are placed in its hands — cannot.

Then our Lord, exalted is He, says:

﴿Had they gone forth among you, they would only have increased you in confusion﴾.

Whom does this verse address? It addresses the active, moving people — those who want to sacrifice for Allah's sake and yet look at the numbers: who let us down, and who walked with us? Let it not weigh on you — go forth yourself. For the one whose help you imagine you are seeking may be among those of weak souls.

So if you have a child who is set on doing good, do not hold him back from a deed he wants to do as long as it is in good and obedience. Do not say: he cannot, or the weather is cold. For the motto of men in this life is His saying: ﴿Go forth, light or heavy, and strive with your wealth and yourselves in the path of Allah — that is better for you﴾.

The outcome rests with Allah; the results are in His hands, exalted is He; and the One who rewards is the Lord of Might, glorified and exalted.

I ask Allah the Most High, the All-Powerful, to bless for us a resolve we ask Him to place in our souls — that He not hold it back in any state — and to grant us a sincerity with which we may meet Him on the Day of meeting. O Allah, accept this prayer.

May Allah reward you with good, bless you, and be pleased with you. And peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.