God starts off this verse by reminding us that He will never place a burden on a human being more than he/she can handle.
لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا
"God does not burden any human being with more than he is well able to bear".
Never. We all have different thresholds, and no one knows them better than our Creator. And here, He assures us that every trial, test, or affliction that comes our way is indeed within the capacity that we can handle. This statement alone lifts every worry off my chest. It tells me that nothing I go through is done in vain. Rather, everything has its purpose and we simply trust Him to do what's ultimately best for us in the long run, although we cannot always see that instantly. Yet knowing that God knows the capacity of what we can handle gives us comfort in that which we are going through.
As the verse continues:
لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا اكْتَسَبَتْ
"In his favor shall be whatever good he does, and against him whatever bad he does".
Anything good you do is for yourself, to your benefit, and for your advantage in the hereafter. And anything bad you do will weigh you down on the day of judgement. God gave us options: to do good and strive for the best for ourselves, our families and surroundings, or to aim low and do wrong, which ultimately affects us in ways that we will later regret. It's up to us to use what God gave us, our senses and the many blessings, for us or against us.
The rest of the verse is followed by a beautiful Dua (supplication). I feel like this supplication is God's gift for you and I. He who knows us knows what we need, and here He gives us the perfect words to ask for just that.
رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِن نَّسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا
"Our Lord and Sustainer, do not punish us if we forget or make mistakes"
At the end of the day, no matter how pious and good we strive to be, we will fall in error, make mistakes, and forget what's best for us. And God knows it too. That's why He gave us this prayer. No human is perfect. We will make mistakes. Yet the best of us are those who will recognize those mistakes and do something to fix them. What a beautiful supplication to give us to put ease in our hearts and lift our spirits.
رَبَّنَا وَلَا تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِنَا
"Our Lord and Sustainer! Lay not upon us a burden as You lay upon those who lived before us"
God, we know that people in the past have gone through punishments, trials, and tribulations. They may have had the capacity to endure such, yet we cannot. We are fragile and weak without You. Give us that faith to handle what we can handle and nothing more.
رَبَّنَا وَلَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ
"Our Lord and Sustainer, do not let us bear burdens which we have no strength to bear"
Although God already started this verse attesting this, He still gives us the prayer to ask for it. He already told us that no human will be given more than what he/she can handle, yet again He gives us a prayer for it. Why? Perhaps to reassure us and provide us with even greater comfort in this premise. Going through a rough wave? Don't worry, you can handle it.
وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا
"And erase our sins, and grant us forgiveness, and bestow Your mercy upon us"
This part of the verse is one of my favorites. So many beautiful commands in one statement. Here, we are begging God to forgive us, wipe out our sins and have mercy on us. We will fall into error, so please forgive our shortcomings and erase the many sins we have gathered. And most importantly, envelope us with Your endless mercy, in our life and in our death, and on the day we stand before You.
أَنتَ مَوْلَانَا فَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ
"You are our Lord Supreme, our Protector and Master, so help us against people who deny the truth"
How many times in this verse do we call upon God as our Lord and Sustainer? Several, which shows us that all affairs go back to Him. Everything goes back to Him, including ourselves. We put our full trust and reliance on Him alone. He is our protector. So what do we ask in the final statement of this supplication? To help us deal with those who reject us and our faith and our belief in Him. Prophets of God came with a clear message and signs from God, yet there were still those who rejected the truth and plotted against it. Today, we see people who hate believers simply because they believe. Our job is to return hate with peace, and what else? Turn back to God and ask Him for His help against those who oppress us for what we believe. He will aid us when humanity fails us, and that's all we need.
This entire verse is such a blessing. It's God's gift for me every night as I end my day reciting it. Embody it, dissect it, memorize it, and let it be your refuge at the end of a long day as it has been mine.
