بِسۡمِ اللهِ الرَّحۡمٰنِ الرَّحِيۡمِ

1 Verse :

‘‘But as soon as He rescues them, they transgress in the land unjustly. O humanity! Your transgression is only against your own souls. ˹There is only˺ brief enjoyment in this worldly life, then to Us is your return, and then We will inform you of what you used to do.’’ (Surah Yunus : 23)

1 Story :

Allah paints a scene in Ayah 22, where almost all of us had been once in our lives :

‘‘He is the One Who enables you to travel through land and sea. And it so happens that you are on ships, sailing with a favorable wind, to the passengers’ delight.’’

The captain is happy, the passengers are hopeful, and the entire ship feels at peace.

Things were moving forward smoothly. The sky was clear, the waves gentle. The wind was calm and moving in their favor.

But then — suddenly — everything changed. Allah continues in the ayah : ‘‘Suddenly, the ships are overcome by a gale wind and those on board are overwhelmed by waves from every side, and they assume they are doomed.’’

Out of nowhere, the ship is struck by an abrupt, violent, crushing, aggressive, inconsiderate wind and the waves start to attack them from every direction.

They were convinced they were going to drown. One more slap of a wave and everything would be over.

Just moments earlier, everything was smooth. And now the sky turned dark, the ocean changed its face, rain poured heavily, and the ship wobbled so violently that everyone felt the entire vessel could flip over at any second.

In that moment, every single one of them — regardless of their beliefs — called out to Allah alone, with sincerity.

The ayah tells us : ‘‘They cry out to Allah ˹alone˺ in sincere devotion, “If You save us from this, we will certainly be grateful.”’

In that moment, they were their most authentic selves. All the pretense disappeared.
In that moment, their fitrah emerged.

And then Allah rescues them.

The winds calm.
The waves settle.
The sky clears.
The ship steadies.

But the moment relief comes…
the human being goes back to the same rebellion.
The same arrogance.
The same forgetfulness.

And that’s when Allah says in the next ayah:
“But when He rescues them, they transgress in the land unjustly. O humanity! Your transgression is only against your own souls. There is only brief enjoyment in this worldly life. Then you will be returned to Us, and We will inform you of what you used to do.” (Surah Yunus : 23)

They tasted pure faith in the storm.
They found Allah Himself.
But the moment Allah rescued them, they forgot Him completely and returned to their old ways.

1 Lesson :

You think these people on the ship are in danger…
but what you don’t realize is: we’re all out at sea.

This is our reality.

We don’t need a ship or a plane to experience this.
Every one of our life events is a journey.
Some of us are journeying through education.
Some through careers, business, marriage or parenting.

When we’re at the dock of these journeys, everything looks perfect.
A new beginning.
A hopeful start.
A smile on our face.

But then suddenly, a wind comes out of nowhere. And we get slapped with a wave, then another wave, then another and we think:
“Everything was going so well… and now everything has fallen apart.”
“I’m drowning here. Ya Allah, what happened?”
Maybe you face sickness.
Maybe you lose someone.
Maybe disaster strikes your plans and destroys everything you built.

When the hardship becomes heavy enough, we turn to Allah:
“Ya Allah, just let me ride this storm. Let it be over. I know I’ve been ungrateful. I’ll never be ungrateful again.”

The problem becomes so massive we can’t think about anything else.
Our entire universe becomes the problem.

The same wind that once carried you now destroyed everything.

Its Allah’s way of teaching us: Don’t rely on blessings.
The wind can change without warning.
Everyone can change.
But Allah never changes.

When the waves hit you from every direction and you have no one left to trust or rely on, you finally turn to Him alone — with sincerity.

You become honest with Allah for the first time in a long time.
You admit your weakness, your sin, your stubbornness.
You stop pretending you don’t know He’s there.

You start appreciating the blessings.
Nobody appreciates health like someone who is sick.
Nobody appreciates a job like someone who was fired.

Every one of us has to identify what journey we’re on.
What blessings are distracting us away from Allah while we’re busy enjoying the smooth wind.

Don’t wait for a storm to finally remember Allah.

And the moment Allah rescues you — the moment He calms the sea, settles the wind, and brings you back to safety — do not lose Him. Do not let the sincerity you gained through fear evaporate in comfort.

1 Question for you :

‘‘When Allah last rescued me, what forgetfulness, sin, or old habit did I quietly slip back into — even though I had promised Him otherwise?’’

Dhikr of the week :

اللَّهُمَّ مَا أَصْبَحَ بِي مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ أَوْ بِأَحَدٍ مِنْ خَلْقِكَ فَمِنْكَ وَحْدَكَ لَا شَرِيكَ لَكَ، فَلَكَ الْحَمْدُ وَلَكَ الشُّكْرُ

Allahumma mā aṣbaḥa bī min ni‘matin aw bi-aḥadin min khalqika fa minka waḥdaka lā sharīka lak. Falakal-ḥamdu wa lakash-shukr.

(O Allah, whatever blessing has come to me this morning—or to any of Your creation—is from You alone, without partner. To You belongs all praise and to You belongs all thanks.)

Virtue :
The Prophet ﷺ said:
Whoever recites this du’a in the morning [or evening] has fulfilled the shukr [gratitude] to Allah Ta’ala for that day/night..
Reference : Sunan Abī Dāwūd (Hadith 5034)

note : When reciting this du’a in the evening, one should say “أمسى” [amsa] instead of “أصبح [asbaha]”.

If you’re seeking deeper, personalized guidance beyond these reflections —
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May Allah make us grateful servants of Him.

Until next Thursday/Friday, in shā’ Allāh.

— Aaira

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P.S. I studied the tafseer of these ayahs from Ustadh Nouman, and his “Striking Examples” series on YouTube. Makes you feel like you’re right there in the scene. Highly recommended.