Anxiety and Depression

Transcript of the Friday Sermon delivered by Dr. Munawar Haque on July, 14, 2017

Brothers and sisters! There is a very insightful hadith, which mentions that one day the Prophet (SAW) entered the mosque and found a man from the Ansar, who was known as Abu Umamah, sitting there. The Prophet (SAW) asked him, “O Abu Umamah why do I see you sitting here in the mosque when it’s not a time of salah?” Abu Umamah replied, “O Prophet of Allah, I am overwhelmed with worries and the debts that are upon me.” The prophet (SAW) said, “Should I not teach you words that when you say them Allah will relieve you of your worries and arrange for your debts to be paid back? He said, “O Messenger of Allah please do.” The Prophet (SAW) then said, “when you reach the morning or when you reach the evening, say:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْهَمِّ وَالْحَزَنِ وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْعَجْزِ وَالْكَسَلِ وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْجُبْنِ وَالْبُخْلِ وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ غَلَبَةِ الدَّيْنِ وَقَهْرِ الرِّجَالِ

“O Allah, I seek refuge in you from anxiety and depression, I seek refuge in you from weakness and laziness, I seek refuge in you from cowardice and miserliness, and I seek refuge in you from the burden of debts and from being over powered by men.”  Abu Umamah said, “When I did that, Allah relieved me of my worries and arranged for my debts to be paid back.”

We know that people do get affected by one or more of these conditions. It’s important to note that the first two conditions mentioned in the hadith: هَمّ meaning concern or anxiety, and حُزْن meaning grief, sadness, sorrow, or depression are essentially psychological states. It is these two states: anxiety and depression that I’ll be talking about in today’s khutba inshaAllah.

When we have هَمّ or anxiety, we usually worry about some future events or actions that have not yet happened; that have not yet occurred. When we have حُزْن we are grief stricken or depressed about things in our past. When we are afflicted by either of the two, we are not living in our present moment, which is where we should be in terms of our recognition of the blessings that Allah has given us in this particular moment. 

If we feel worried about the future that should be an opportunity for us to seek Allah’s help and place our trust in Him realizing we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. We believe that Allah is in control and that makes us less nervous when we understand our place in the divine plan. In fact one of the duas that we were taught by the Prophet (SAW) is:

اللَّهُمَّ رَحْمَتَكَ أَرْجُو، فَلاَ تَكِلْنِي إِلَى نَفْسِى طَرْفَةَ عَيْنٍ

“O Allah, it is Your mercy that I hope for, so do not leave me in charge of my affairs even for the blink of an eye.” In a hadith qudsi, Allah says:

أَنَا عِنْدَ ظَنِّ عَبْدِي بِي وَأَنَا مَعَهُ إِذَا دَعَانِي

“I live in the thought of My servant as he thinks of Me and I am with him when he calls Me.” So if we think that Allah is watching us, He’s protecting us, He’s guiding us, He’s taking us on some path for our benefit, then we will see a reflection of that in our life.

In situations of panic and despair, believers should behave differently than non-believers. Non-believers have no one to return to, no one to ask for mercy and forgiveness, their life is this life, which they cannot control, and thus they get more depressed; more diseased. We should turn each anxiety, each fear and each concern into a du’a—a supplication. Allah listens and already knows what is in our heart, but He wants us to ask Him for what we want. The Prophet (SAW) said: “Allah is angry with those who do not ask Him for anything.” The Qur’an says,

ادْعُوا رَبَّكُمْ تَضَرُّعًا وَخُفْيَةً  

 “Call on your Lord humbly and secretly” (al-A’raf, 7:55).

Brothers and sisters! Can we train ourselves to start living with the attitude that today is all that we have; that our life’s span is only one day, as if we were born in it and will die at the end of it? With this attitude, we will not be caught between an obsession over the past with all its anxieties, and the hopes of the future, with all its uncertainties.

Brooding over the past and its tragedies is a kind of sickness that destroys resolve to live for the present moment. Being sad and depressed over things of the past cannot make them right, because the past is non-existent. We should not live in the nightmares of former times or under the shade of what we have missed. Thinking too much into the past is a waste of the present. When Allah (SWT) mentioned the affairs of the previous nations, He said,

تِلْكَ أُمَّةٌ قَدْ خَلَتْ لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَلَكُم مَّا كَسَبْتُمْ  

“Those were a people that have passed away; what they did is theirs and what you have done is yours.” (al-Baqarah, 2:134) 

Our tragedy is that we neglect our potential and our opportunities by not dealing with the present. Allah (SWT) calls on us to be the best human being we can be and requires us to fulfill our potential. Often, we pride ourselves with our glorious past and regret that it is no more. Everything on earth marches forward, preparing for a new season, and so should we.

Yesterday has passed with all its good and evil, while tomorrow has not yet arrived. We have to live for today. Today—during this day, we should pray with a wakeful heart, recite the Qur’an with understanding, and remember Allah with sincerity. We should try to be balanced in our affairs, satisfied with our allotted portion.

We should organize the hours of this day, so that there is barakah in our time, we should seek forgiveness from our Lord, remember Him, prepare for the final parting from this world, and live today happily and at peace. We should be content with our sustenance, our wife, our children, our work, our house, and our station in life. What did Allah (SWT) say to Musa (AS)? 

فَخُذْ مَا آَتَيْتُكَ وَكُنْ مِنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ

“So hold that which I have given you, and be of the grateful.” (al-A’raf, 7:134)

We must try to live today free from sorrow, anger, jealousy, and malice. We must engrave on to hearts one phrase: Today is my only day. If we get warm, fresh food today, then what does it matter what we got yesterday or what we will get tomorrow? We are informed through a hadith,

مَنْ أَصْبَحَ مِنْكُمْ مُعَافًى فِي جَسَدِهِ آمِنًا فِي سِرْبِهِ عِنْدَهُ قُوتُ يَوْمِهِ فَكَأَنَّمَا حِيزَتْ لَهُ الدُّنْيَا‏

“Whoever among you wakes up physically healthy, feeling safe and secure within himself with food for the day, it is as if he acquired the whole world.” Say to yourself: Today I shall be refined in my speech and will neither bad-mouth nor backbite anyone. Today I shall organize my house and my office. Today I will be particular about my bodily cleanliness, and appearance. Today I will be meticulous in my neatness, and balanced in my walk, talk, and actions. Today I will strive to be obedient to my Lord, pray in the best possible manner, and do more voluntary acts of righteousness. Today I will plant goodness into my heart and extract from it the roots of evil such as pride, jealousy and hypocrisy. Today I will help others. Today I will stand side by side with the oppressed and the weak, and today I will be respectful to the old, and merciful to the young. We should not cry over the past that has departed and is gone. May Allah grant us understanding and goodness.

أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ المُسْلِمينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتْ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهْ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ 

الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين

Brothers and sisters! As for the future, it is in the sphere of the unseen, so we should not be obsessed by its dreams. We should not hasten and rush for things that have yet to come to pass. Is it wise to pick fruits before they are ripe? Why should we have apprehensions about future disasters? Why should we be engrossed by their thoughts, especially since we do not know we will even see tomorrow? Many people of this world are unduly fearful of future poverty, hunger, disease and disaster. Such thinking is inspired by the Devil, for as the Qur’an says,

الشَّيْطَانُ يَعِدُكُمُ الْفَقْرَ وَيَأْمُرُكُمْ بِالْفَحْشَاءِ وَاللَّهُ يَعِدُكُمْ مَغْفِرَةً مِنْهُ وَفَضْلًا وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ

“Satan threatens you with poverty and orders you to commit immoral acts, whereas Allah promises you His forgiveness and His bounty. Allah is bountiful and all knowing.” (al-Baqarah, 2:268)

Many are those who cry because they see themselves starving tomorrow, falling sick after a month, or because they fear that the world will come to an end soon. When we have no clue as to when we will die, then why should we busy ourselves with such thoughts?

Be absorbed in today; leave tomorrow until it comes, and never have a long-term attachment to this world. We are all travelers. Rather than being sad and depressed about what’s going to happen tomorrow, here in this life, let’s be more focused and oriented towards our eternal abode—Al-Akhirah (the hereafter).

There is no one who does not experience a situational anxiety one time or the other. In terms of what we can do, it’s important to build circles of trust between our family and friends so we could openly express our feelings and worries without being judged. Sometimes the most powerful way to help someone is to let him understand that you recognize that what he is going through is something difficult, and that you are going to be there for him, and you do this in the most non-judgmental way. Sometimes, you may not have said a word but can help just by sitting there and listening to everything that person has to say.

It is also important to keep reminding ourselves that we don’t control all the variables in the world. Allah does. He is the Wise, the All-Knowing. Sometimes our limited human faculties are not able to comprehend His wisdom behind what happens to us and to others, but knowing that He is in control, as human beings we should submit to His Will. This enriches our humanity and enhances our obedience towards him. We should strive to have the taqwa of Allah—the consciousness of Allah as much as we can.

فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ

“Be conscious of Allah as much as you can” (al-Taghabun, 64:16).

May Allah (SWT) in His infinite mercy bless us, bless our heart, bless our life, bless our health, bless our home, bless our family, bless our livelihood, bless our spiritual life, bless our finances, plans and projects with outcomes that are beneficial for our deen, duniya and akhirah. Allahumma Ameen.

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