My eye has wept, and rightly so;
Yet neither tears nor wailing avail.
Weeping deliberately induced through effort is called striving to weep. It is of two kinds: praiseworthy and blameworthy. The praiseworthy kind is induced to soften the heart and out of fear of Allah (1), not for ostentation or reputation. The blameworthy kind is induced (2) for the sake of other people.
When ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb saw the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and Abū Bakr weeping over the captives of Badr, he said to him: “Tell me what makes you weep, O Messenger of Allah. If tears come to me, I will weep; otherwise, I will strive to weep (3).” The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not object to this (4).
Some of the early Muslims said: “Weep out of fear of Allah; if you cannot weep, then strive to weep (5).”
Section
His Guidance (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in His Sermons
He delivered sermons (6)—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—from the ground, from the pulpit, on a camel, and on a she-camel.