Don’t Overburden Yourself – A Sacred Truth From the Qur’an

This Qur’anic principle [1] is a refutation of the ‘perfectionist fallacy’, the idea that a “perfect solution” exists and that you should keep searching for it before taking action. More importantly, it’s a totally illogical hindrance to your happiness and success. Instead, the Qur’an reminds man that perfection is a Divine quality, and that no matter how hard one may try, he can never give his Lord his full dues, saying:

Allah says,

كَلَّا لَمَّا يَقْضِ مَا أَمَرَهُ

“No, man has not yet accomplished God’s commands.” [2]

The Prophet ﷺ would stress the exact same meaning, saying:

فَإِذَا نَهَيْتُكُمْ عَنْ شَيْء فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ، وَإِذَا أمَرْتُكُمْ بِأمْرٍ فَأْتُوا مِنْهُ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ

“If I prohibit you from something, then stay away from it, and when I command you to do something, do as much as you can from it.” [3]

Due to these evidences and others, the scholars of Islam have deduced maxims, like

الضرورات تبيح المحظورات
“Necessities permit the impermissible”

ما لا يمكن التحرز منه يكون عفوا
“Whatever cannot be avoided is pardoned”

لا واجب مع العجز ولا حرام مع الضرورة
“There is no obligation with inability, just as there is no impermissibility with necessity.”

Naturally, the applications of these maxims are not left for to the judgement of the average Muslim. The point of sharing them is to display the compassionate and fluid nature of the Islamic religion, one that is sympathetic to our weak nature. Examples of them in action include the following:

• Wuḍū’ is carried out with water. If doing so is not possible, then one can turn to tayammum (dry ablution using clean soil).
• The obligatory ṣalāh is to be carried out in a standing posture. If this is not possible, then one can pray sitting down, and – if need be – lying down.
• Fasting is an obligation in Ramadan, those who are ill however can break their fast and make them up on other days., those who are chronically ill feed a poor person for each missed day of fasting.
• Hajj is an obligation upon every Muslim. Should one however be compromised physically or financially, the obligation of Hajj drops till one’s circumstances change. Evil is challenged physically, or verbally for those not in authority, or internally for those who cannot achieve either of the first two.

The principle of “fear Allah as much as you can” is not only useful in  fiqhi (legal) discussions, but also in the day-to-day struggles of Muslims.

• It gives solace to the newly practicing. You will encounter huge amounts of information, and instructions to do and abstain from so many things. This principle tells you to slow down, take it one step at a time, limit your sources of information for now, and “fear Allah as much as you can”.
• It gives solace to the activists who feel like they want to do it all and dip into every Islamic project that comes their way. This principle inspires one to be focused, well defined, and to set yourself targets that are both ambitious but realistic.
• It gives solace to the student of knowledge who feels overwhelmed by the mission ahead. This principle reminds him that a premature dive in the deep end will drown him, and that knowledge has an endless shore, so “fear Allah as much as you can”.
• It gives solace to the callers to Islam to not be dissuaded from their path due to the prevalence  and variety of sins. This principle reminds them that even prophets did not uproot every iota of evil. What they did do, however, was “fear Allah as much as they could”.
• It gives solace to those unable to practice every aspect of their religion for whatever socio-political reason. This principle reassures such people to veer away from the tendency of dropping it all, for what cannot be attained in its entirety should not be dropped in its entirety.