, so fear them.’ But this only increased them in faith, and they said, ‘Allah is sufficient for us, and He is the best Disposer of affairs.’” And in His words, Most High:

“But if they intend to deceive you, then Allah is sufficient for you. He is the One who strengthened you with His help.”

His words,

“If only they had been content with what Allah and His Messenger gave them and had said, ‘Allah is sufficient for us. Allah will give us from His bounty, and so will His Messenger,’”

contain a command to be content and to put one’s trust in Allah. Contentment and trust in Allah stand on either side of what has been decreed: trust precedes its occurrence, while contentment follows it. Thus, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would say in prayer:

“O Allah, by Your knowledge of the unseen and Your power over creation, keep me alive so long as life is better for me, and cause me to die when death is better for me. O Allah, I ask You to grant me fear of You in private and in public. I ask You to enable me to speak the truth in anger and in contentment. I ask You for moderation in poverty and in wealth. I ask You for bliss that never ends, and joy that never ceases. O Allah, I ask You for contentment after Your decree, and I ask You for the comfort of life after death. I ask You for the delight of looking upon Your Face, and I ask You for longing to meet You, without harmful adversity or a trial that leads astray. O Allah, adorn us with the adornment of faith, and make us rightly guided guides.”

This was narrated by Ahmad and al-Nasā’ī from the hadith of ‘Ammār ibn Yāsir.

What exists before the decree, however, is a resolve to be content, not actual contentment. Thus, some spiritual masters would resolve to be content before affliction struck, but when it did, their resolve crumbled. Something similar happens with patience and other qualities, as Allah Most High says:

“You certainly wished for death before you encountered it. Now you have seen it with your own eyes.”

And He Most High says:

“O you who believe, why do you say what you do not do?”

“It is greatly hateful to Allah that you say what you do not do.”

“Indeed, Allah loves those who fight in His cause in ranks as though they were a building