It is not prescribed to pray for patience until after calamity has come.

What is the ruling on praying for patience? I heard some people
warning against that, and they quoted as evidence the fact that the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) heard a man saying:
O Allah, I ask You for patience. He said: "You have asked Allah for
calamity; rather ask Him for well-being." Thishadeeth is quoted in
some chat rooms and is attributed to Jaami' at-Tirmidhi, no. 3527. I
want to understand the meaning of this hadeethand how we can reconcile
between it andthe verses throughout the Book of Allah which enjoin and
encourage patience. I hope that youcan clarify that, with evidence,
because some people heard me praying for patience for my son, because
he is quick to get angry, and they warned me against doing that.
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The hadeeth mentioned was narrated by at-Tirmidhi (3527) via
Abu'l-Ward from al-Lajlaaj from Mu'aadh ibn Jabal who said: The
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) heard a man saying:
O Allah, I ask You for patience. He said: "You have asked Allah for
calamity; rather ask Him for well-being."
This is a da'eef (weak) hadeeth. It was quoted by al-Albaani in
ad-Da'eefah (4520) and he said: There is some weakness in this isnaad.
Abu'l-Ward is ibn Thumaamah ibn Hazn al-Qushayri, whom no one regarded
as trustworthy. Al-Haafiz said: His reports may be accepted if there
is corroborating evidence. End quote.
Al-Qaari (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The argument here has to do with praying for patience before
calamitystrikes; however after calamity strikes, there is no reason
not to ask for patience; rather it is mustahabb, because Allah, may He
be exalted,says (interpretation of the meaning): "Our Lord!Pour forth
on us patience" [al-Baqarah 2:250].
That is because asking for patience should only come after the
calamity has befallen or the disaster has struck, or any situation in
which a person needs to be patient. In that case it is prescribed for
him to askAllah for patience. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"And when they advanced to meet Jaloot (Goliath) and his forces, they
invoked: Our Lord! Pour forth on us patience and make us victorious
over the disbelieving people.
So they routed them by Allah's Leave"
[al-Baqarah 2:250-251].
And Allah, may He be exalted, said concerning the sorcerers of
Pharaoh(interpretation of the meaning):
"They said: Verily, we arereturning to our Lord.
And you take vengeance on us only because we believed in the Ayat
(proofs, evidences, lessons, signs, etc.) of our Lord when they
reached us! Our Lord! pour out on us patience, and cause us to die as
Muslims"
[al-A'raaf 7:125, 126].
But when one is in a state of well-being, it is appropriate to ask
Allah to complete His blessing, and to grant well-being and
protection.
Secondly:
There is nothing wrong, in sha Allah, with a person asking his Lord
for patience, restricting that to calamity if it should happen, or if
something should occur that requires patience. Itis quite natural that
man's life should not be free of trials and tribulations in which he
needs to be patient and to call upon Allah. Hence one of the
supplications of the Prophet (blessingsand peace of Allah be upon him)
was: "O Allaah, by Your knowledge of the unseen and Your power over
creation, keep me alive so long as You know that living is good for me
and cause me to die when You know thatdeath is better for me. O
Allaah, cause me to fear You in secret and in public. I ask You to
makeme true in speech in times of pleasure and of anger. I ask You to
make me moderate in time of wealth and of poverty. And I ask You for
everlasting delight and joy that will never cease.I ask You to make me
pleased with that which You have decreed and for an easy life after
death. I ask You for the sweetness of looking upon Your face and a
longing to meet You in amanner that does not entail a calamity that
will bring about harm ora trial that will cause deviation. O Allaah,
beautify us with the adornment of faith and make us among those who
guide and are rightly guided."
Narrated by an-Nasaa'i, 1305; Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in
Saheeh al-Jaami', no. 1301.
He asked Allah, may He be exalted, to bless him with contentment with
that which He decreed. Itis clear that what this means is a decree
that one dislikes, otherwise everyone is pleased and content with that
which he likes and which suits him. But this does not mean that this
is a du'aa'that something disliked be decreed, just as the other
du'aa' – in the same hadeeth – does notmean that one is asking for
poverty or death.
Thirdly:
The fact that your son is quick to get angry is a matter concerning
which it is appropriate to pray for patience. Theone who is quick to
get angry will react to the slightest annoyance and panic at any
problem; undoubtedly he is the one who is most in need of praying for
peace of mind, patience, calmnessand a good attitude. Therefore this
does not come under the headingof praying for calamity or seeking to
hasten it; rather this is a prayer forthe best remedy for him from the
problem he is faced with.
..... [And Allah knows best.]

Story of a Jinn

The well-known scholar Khateeb has stated on the authority of Hadhrat
Jabir bin Abdullah who stated: "Once, we were travelling with the
Prophet (SAW). The Prophet was sitting under a tree for taking rest.
All of a sudden, there came a snake near him, took his mouth near the
hole of his ear. After sometime, the Prophet took his mouth near its
ear and said something. On that, the snake vanished in such away as if
the earth had swallowed it. We submitted to the Prophet that we were
very much frightened when you let it reach near your ear. The Prophet
told that it was an animal and in fact, it was a jinn who had
forgotten a few verses of such and such Surah and the jinns had sent
it to inquire about the same verses. Because of your presence, he came
changing its form to thatof a snake and inquired about the verses
accordingly.

Why an authoritarian rule is against Islam

Forcing people to believe in a religion or to adopt its forms of
belief is completely contrary to the essence and spirit of Islam. That
is because according to Islam, true faith is only possible with free
will and freedom of conscience.
In the contemporary world, there are people who envisage or
supportauthoritarianism in the name of Islam. However this is a great
misconception. Islam is areligion which provides and guarantees
freedomof ideas, thought and life. It has issued commands to prevent
and forbid tension, disputes, slander and even negative thinking among
people. In the same way that it is determinedly opposed to terrorism
and all acts of violence, it has also forbidden even the slightest
ideological pressure to be put on them:
There is no compulsion in religion. True guidance has become clearly
distinct from error. (Surat al-Baqara: 256)
So remind them! You areonly a reminder. You arenot in control of them.
(Surat al -Ghashiyya: 21-22)
Forcing people to believe in a religion or to adopt its forms of
belief is completely contrary to the essence and spirit of Islam. That
is because according to Islam, true faith is only possible with free
will and freedom of conscience. Of course, Muslims can advise and
encourage each other about the features of Qur'anic morality. All
believers are charged with explaining Qur'anicmorality to people in
thenicest manner possible. They will explain the beauties of religion
in the light of the verse, "Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom
and fair admonition..." (Suratan-Nahl: 125), however, they must also
bear in mind the verse, "You are not responsible for their guidance,
but God guides whoever He wills." (Surat al-Baqara: 272)
Thus true Muslims will never resort to compulsion, nor any kind of
physical or psychological pressure. Neither will they use anyworldly
privilege to turn someone towards religion. When they receive a
negative response to what they say, Muslims will reply along the lines
of: "To you your religion, and tome, mine" (Surat al- Al-Kafirun: 6)
The world we live in contains societies with all kinds of beliefs:
Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, deist and even pagan.
Muslims living in such a world must be tolerant of all beliefs they
come up against, no matter what they may be, and behave forgivingly,
justly and humanely. This responsibility placed on believers invites
people to the beauty of the religion of God by means of peace and
tolerance. The decision whether or not to implement these truths,
whether or not tobelieve, lies with the other party. Forcing that
person to believe, or trying to impose anything on him, is a violation
of Qur'anic morality. In fact, God issues a reminder to believers in
the Qur'an:
If your Lord had willed, all the people on the earth would have
believed. Do you think you can force people to be believers? (Surat
Yunus: 99)
We know best what theysay and you [O Muhammad] are not a compeller
over them. But warn by the Qur'an whoever fears My warning. (Surat
Qaf: 45)
A model of society in which people are forced to worship is a complete
contradiction to Islam. Belief and worship are only of any value when
they are directed to God by the free will of the individual. If a
system imposes belief and worship on people, thenthey will become
religious out of fear of that system. From the religious point of
view, what really counts is thatreligion should be lived for God's
good pleasure in an environment where peoples' consciences are totally
free.
When we look at the history of Islam, the way that Muslims have
translated this importantfeature of Qur'anic morality into the life of
society can be seen quiteclearly. Since the Prophet Muhammed, true
Muslims have always brought with them an atmosphere of freedom and
tolerance wherever they have gone. They have enabledpeople whose
religions, languages and cultures are completely different from one
another to live together in peace and harmony under one roof, and
provided peace and harmony for its own members. One ofthe most
important reasons for the centuries-long existence of the Ottoman
Empire, which spread over an enormous region, was the atmosphere of
tolerance and understanding that Islam brought with it. Within this
multi-national structure, all ethnic and religious groups have been
free to live according to theirown religions, and their own rules.
Barbarism in the name of religion, that is so preoccupying the world
at present, is the work ofignorant and fanatical people, completely
estranged from Qur'anic morality, and who have absolutely nothing to
dowith religion. The solution to these people and groups who try to
carry out their savagery under the mask of religion is the teaching of
true Qur'anic morality.
Islam and Qur'anic morality are solutions to the scourge of bigotry,
barbarism and terrorism,not supporters of it.

A leader in the hive: The queen bee

There is an astonishing order in every stage of the social life of
bees, with their many miraculous characteristics. The rules in the bee
hives and bees' scrupulous implementation of theserules is just one of
these miraculous features. In addition to the rules in the hive, there
is another important factor that regulates andsupervises the order in
their social life: the bees'leader, in other words the queen.
It can be seen from a short examination of thebee hive that the
workerbees devote very special attention to one bee much larger than
themselves. This bee, thefeeding, cleaning, and protection of which,
as well as all its other needs, are taken care of by other bees, is
the queen, who ensures the continuity of the colony.
The Queen: A Very Different Bee
The number of worker bees in a hive may be in the tens of thousands,
though there is only onequeen. The presence of the queen is of vital
importance for the bees,because it is she who lays the eggs that
ensurethe survival of the colony. The privileged status of the queen
begins right from the larva stage. Queens are raised in places with
different features to those of other cells. This place where the queen
is reared consists of specially prepared cells that hang down from the
comb. Since the queen is larger in size than the other bees, it is
natural that these cells should be built to be larger than other
cells. (1)
The miraculous point here is that the egg that produces the queen is
no different to those that produce worker bees.
Due to feeding differences, during the six-day larva stage, a queen
bee with a very different appearance and functions to those ofa normal
female bee emerges. Worker bees are only given royal jelly for three
days, whereas the queen is fed with this very valuable substance
throughout the entire larval period (six days). (2) The content and
amount of the royal jelly fed to the queen are carefully regulated.
Research has shown thatwhile the queen is given10 mg of royal jelly
throughout the larval stage, worker bees are only given 3 mg. Two
living things, the queen bee and the worker bee,with various
morphological (structural) differences between them emerge as a result
of this feeding difference alone. (3)
Differences between the Queen and Other Bees
The queen differs from other bees in general structure and external
appearance. For example, although the worker bees are female, so is
the queen. Their ovaries do not develop; in other words, they are
sterile. A queen's head and thorax (body section) are not much larger
than those of worker bees. In total contrast to worker bees, the
queen's jaw lacks the appropriate structure for building wax cells.
The queen alsolacks the tough hairs that constitute the workers'
pollen sacs. Oneof the important differences is that, although the
queen emerges from an identical egg, she has a life span of four to
five years rather than the five to six weeks, (a few months in those
around in the winter), of workerbees. This is again solely due to
feeding differences.
These are just a few examples of the general differences between the
queen and other bees. One point worthy of note here is that female
bees emerge as queens or workers solely on the basis of nutritional
differences.
How Does the Queen Regulate the Gender of Other Bees?
One of the most extraordinary attributes of the queen bee is her
ability to regulate the genders of the bees in the hive. The queen
regulates gender by opening and closing the mouth of the sac in which
sperm are preserved. This sac is connected to the egg laying tube by a
thin channel. When the queen wishes to lay a female egg she
contractsher muscles, drawing a few sperm from the small sac connected
to the egg passage channel, and these fertilise the egg there. Asa
result of this function given to the queen, female bees hatch from
fertilized eggs and malesfrom non-fertilised ones. (4) Despite the
queen bee's regulation of the eggs, it is actually the workers who
determine the egg's gender. Because the egg-laying performed by the
queen is carried out in accordance with the cell type prepared by the
workers. If the cell the queen approaches is a 5.2 mm standard cell,
shewill lay a female egg, whereas if it is 1 mm larger, she will lay a
male egg in it. (5)
Queen Bees Behave under Allah's Inspiration
All of the details in the lives of queen bees we have examined so far
reveal the existence of exceedingly conscious behaviour, a perfect
social order, and of designs appropriate to that order. The
organismreferred to as the queen bee is actually an entity just a few
centimetres inlength with a brain consisting of very simplesynapses.
How is it possible for this animal to comprehend why the cells will be
constructed and to lay the appropriate egg withoutconfusing them,
throughits own will and intelligence?
From the moment she hatches to the moment she leaves the hive, the
queen bee knows exactly what she has to do. In the verse, " Your Lord
revealed to the bees …" (Surat An-Nahl, 68), Allah reveals that all
the animal's actions and the conscious behaviour it displays take
place under His inspiration. As with all other living things, Almighty
Allah has created queen bees with bodily systems that are completely
appropriate to the lives they lead. He is the Creator of all. In one
verse from the Qur'an, our Lord reveals: Is He who creates like him
who does not create? So will you not pay heed? (Surat An-Nahl, 17)
The Queen's Authority Substance
Worker bees do not construct queen cells under normal conditions. The
presenceof the queen in the hive prevents this. This only changes
under exceptional circumstances. It will be useful here to examine the
secretion known as queen's substance, in order to understand for what
reason workers feel the need to construct a queen cell when they
already have a queen at their head. It is this substance that ensures
discipline in the hive. For that reason, if all the functions in the
hive are to be fully carried out, the queen has to secrete enough ofit
every day to go around all the bees in the hive. This has been
calculated as an average of 0.1 mg per bee. (6)
Any reduction in this substance sets the worker bees in action. That
is because a reduction in the royal secretion is regarded as a sign
either that the queen is aging or that the colony is too large. In
either case, there are certain steps the workers have to take. (7) It
is the substance secreted by the queen which prevents the workers from
raising a new queen. In the event of a drop in this substance, the
workers immediately begin constructing new queen cells. Immediately
after the queen lays an egg in these cells, the workers go into action
to rear new queens. When conditions suddenly alter and the danger of
the colony being left without a queen raises its head they begin
feeding some of the already existing larvae on royal jelly and tearing
down other cells around. (8)
REFERENCES:
1. Thomas A. Sebeok, Animal Communication, Indiana Univ. Press, London; p. 437
2. Compton's Pictured Encyclopaedia. Vol. 2, Compton &Comp. Chicago,
USA, 1961, p.106
3. Prof. Ali Demirsoy, The Fundamental Laws of Life,
Invertebrates/Insects, Entomology Vol. II / Part-II, Ankara; p. 212
4. Prof. Karl von Frisch, The Life of Bees, p. 55-56
5. Prof. Karl von Frisch, Aus Dem Leben Der Bienen, Verständliche
Wissenschaft Band 1, 8.Auflage, p. 57
6. Edward O. Wilson, The Insect Societies, Harvard Unv. Press,
Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1972,p. 96
7. Mark L. Winston, The Biology of the Honey Bee, Harvard Univ.
Press, 1991, p.130
8. Murray Hoyt, The World of Bees, Coward Mcnann Inc, New York, 1965; p. 40