BY - DR. SALMAN AL-OADAH - islamtoday.com
Allah says: “Say: Our Lord will gather us together, then He will lay open His judgment between us in truth; and He is the Opener of all affairs, the All-Knowing.” [Sūrah Saba`: 26]
He also says: “Our Lord! Lay open Your true judgment between us and our people; as You are the best to lay open all affairs.” [Sūrah al-A`rāf: 89]
These two verses establish that Allah is the Opener. He is the one who lays open all matters in truth and justice, and He does so in innumerable ways.
The Remover of Hardships
Allah relieves our sorrows. He shows us the way out of our difficulties and distresses. He removes our afflictions and covers us with His mercy. He opens up the gates of His bounty. This is why the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught us to say when we enter the mosque: “O Allah! Open to me the gates of Your mercy.” [Sahīh Muslim (713)]
This supplication is most appropriate for entering the mosque. It reminds us that mosques are the places where we worship the one who can show us mercy, and we are there to bow and prostrate before Him in humility.
It is Allah’s mercy that He does not prolong the times of sorrow and hardship in our lives.
Whenever the future looks bleak in the face of seemingly never-ending hardships, we should know that Allah will provide a way out for us. Relief may seem far off, but the night is at its darkest in the last hours before dawn. When we are stricken with sorrows, we must remember that Allah is “the Opener of all affairs, the All-Knowing”, and that He is “the best to lay open all affairs.” We should call out to Him by His name al-Fattāh, since a believer never despairs and never loses hope in Allah.
The Giver of Religious Knowledge
Allah opens up for His devotees the gates of knowledge and wisdom. He blesses them with insight and religious understanding. This is why we see that scholars differ in their knowledge and proficiency. The Prophet (peace be upon him) informed us that Mu`ādh b. Jabal will be brought forth on the Day of Resurrection leading the religious scholars and far ahead of them. [Musnad Ahmad (108)]
Allah opens up to us the path of knowledge. Take the Qur’an for example. Pause on each of its verses. Consider the various meanings, nuances, and aspects of rhetorical beauty each verse contains. Then turn to the books of commentary. You will find great differences between the scholars in the variety of insights they have, as well as in the meanings they are able to derive from the verses. This is Allah’s grace that He bestows on whom He pleases. Allah is the Opener of all affairs, the All-Knowing who opens up the treasures of knowledge and understanding to whom He chooses from among His devotees.
The Discloser of All Affairs in the Hereafter
Allah will judge between all of His creatures in truth on the Day of Judgment. No matter how elusive the question of justice might have been on Earth, Allah will bring it to the surface in the Hereafter. Allah will open the way for the oppressed to finally find redress from their oppressors: “Our Lord! Lay open Your true judgment between us and our people; as You are the best to lay open all affairs.” [Sūrah al-A`rāf: 89]
O Allah! Open to your creatures the ways and means to success. Relieve them their sorrows and illuminate their path. Forgive them their sins and open to them the gates of your bounty and mercy, as You are the best to lay open all affairs.
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