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When the clouds of grief attack and the shackles of distress unite together against you and you do not find a way out and things become too hard for you, as if your soul is departing through your throat and you are suffocating; at that moment when you feel life has become too harsh and restricted, people withdraw from your life leaving you alone, and you expect nothing but death,
at this moment Allah sends you relief and a window of hope, instills tranquility within you, extends a helping hand to you, and gives you life after you have almost seen death. Thereupon, you fall in prostration to Him, weeping and repeating: O the Ever-Living, the All-Sustainer, all thanks are due to You.
This can only happen when you rely upon Al-Hayy Who does not die. {And rely upon the Ever-Living who does not die, and exalt [Allah] with His praise. And sufficient is He as All-Aware concerning the sins of His servants.} [Surat al-Furqān: 58]
Our Lord, Glorified and Exalted, established the attribute of life for Himself. His is a perfect and eternal life, neither preceded by nothingness nor will come to an end. It suffers no deficiency or defect and experiences no heedlessness, inability, or death. Indeed, {...No slumber or sleep can overtake Him...} [Surat al-Baqarah: 255] Far Exalted is Allah above this!
His life is far exalted above being similar to the life of the created beings. {...There is nothing like unto Him: He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.} [Surat ash-Shūra: 11] His is a life that entails possessing perfect attributes of knowledge, hearing, seeing, ability, will, mercy, and other attributes of perfection.
Our Lord is the Ever-Living through Whom life came into existence and every living being became a living being. The life of everything apart from Him depends on His will to make it living. Allah Almighty says: {...When you were lifeless and He brought you to life; then He will cause you to die, then He will bring you [back] to life, and then to Him you will be returned.} [Surat al-Baqarah: 28]
Our Lord is the One Who gives life to our souls through the light of knowledge, guidance, and faith.
It is our Lord Who will grant the dwellers of Paradise the eternal and enduring life. He says: {...And indeed, the home of the Hereafter - that is the [eternal] life, if only they knew.} [Surat al-‘Ankabūt: 64]
Allah is the Ever-Living Lord. There is no god but Him. He is sufficient for anyone who relies upon Him. None can overpower His will or escape His power. He removes harm, responds to the distressed, and brings the dead back to life as He created them in the first place, and that is easier for Him. He is the All-Wise Lord, Who does not create anything in vain or does anything without a purpose.
Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported: “Al-‘Ās ibn Wā’il came to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him). He got up, held a decomposed bone, broke it into small pieces with his hand, and said: ‘Who will give life to decomposed bones?’ - He meant to express denial of resurrection. Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘Yes, Allah will resurrect this and then He will cause you to die, bring you back to life, and then admit you into Hellfire.’ Then, Allah Almighty revealed: {Does man not consider that We created him from a [mere] sperm-drop - then at once he is a clear adversary?} [Surat Yasīn: 77] To the end of the Surah.” [Narrated by Ibn Jarīr, Al-Bayhaqi, and Al-Hākim, who graded the Hadīth as Sahīh and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him; Sahīh (authentic)]
How ungrateful man is! He forgets his own creation and denies his Creator. Indeed, the One Who created him in the first place will repeat his creation and resurrect him. The second time is logically easier than the first one - and everything is easy for Allah Almighty. {And it is He Who begins creation; then He repeats it, and that is easier for Him...} [Surat ar-Rūm: 27]
To Allah belong might, power, majesty, pride, authority, the dominion, and judgment, and glorification and extolment. He is the Most Great, His dominion is magnificent, and His status is the highest.
Glory be to Allah Who has made for every created being a special life. The life of angels, for example, differs from the life of human beings, and the life of the latter is different from the life of jinn, and the life of animals varies from the life of humans, jinn, and angels.
Even some inanimate objects were influenced by Allah’s name Al-Hayy and became living themselves. An example is the staff of Mūsa (Moses) (peace be upon him). {Then Moses threw his stick, and behold, it swallowed up all that they falsely showed.} [Surat ash-Shu‘arā’: 45]
Even the trees have their special life. An example is the trunk that yearned for the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him). “The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to deliver sermons while leaning on a trunk. Then, when he started to use the pulpit, the trunk made a sorrowful sound. So, he came to it and passed his hand over it.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri] Another narration in Al-Sunan reads: “He came to it and embraced it, and it calmed down. Thereupon, he said: ‘If I had not embraced it, it would have continued to grieve until the Day of Judgment.’” [Narrated by Ibn Mājah; Sahīh (authentic)]
The emergence of life in this lifeless object is certainly one of the signs of Allah Almighty, which indicates that He is the Ever-Living Lord, besides Whom there is no god.
In everything there is a sign proving that He is the One God.
The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: “Allāhumma inni a‘ūdhu bi‘izatika la ilāha illa ant an tudillani anta Al-Hayy al-ladhi la yamūt wa al-jinn wa al-ins yamūtūn (O Allah, I seek refuge in Your honor - there is no god but You - that You should lead me astray; You are the Ever-Living Who does not die, whereas the jinn and humans die).” [Narrated by Muslim]
Undoubtedly, guidance is the life of hearts, and it comes from the Ever-Living God, other than Whom there is no god. So, whoever wants guidance should seek it from the Ever-Living Lord, Who says: {He is the Ever-Living; there is no god but Him, so call upon Him, [being] sincere to Him in religion. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.} [Surat Ghāfir: 65]
When a person’s heart abounds with belief in Allah and glorification of Him, life becomes beautiful in his eyes, he develops a clearer insight, and distress and grief go away.
The names of Allah Almighty fill the believers’ hearts with love for Him and they lead, thus, a blissful life in this world and in the Hereafter. {Whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do.} [Surat an-Nahl: 97]
On the other hand, the disbeliever leads a hard and an uneasy life in this world and in the Hereafter. Allah Almighty says:
{And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will raise him on the Day of Resurrection blind.}
[Surat Taha: 124]
Although he is walking among the living, he is counted among the dead.
{They are, [in fact], dead, not alive, and they do not perceive when they will be resurrected.}
[Surat an-Nahl: 21]
He who dies and finds relief is not truly dead. But the true dead is the one who dies while still living.
Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: “When anything distressed the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him), he would say:
‘Ya Hayy ya Qyyūm birahmatika astagīth (O the Ever-Living, the All-Sustainer, I seek relief in Your mercy).’”
[Narrated by Ahmad; Hasan (sound)]
The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to his daughter Fātimah (may Allah be pleased with her):
“What prevents you from listening to my advice! Say in the morning and evening: ‘Ya Hayy ya Qayyūm birahmatika astagīth aslih li sha’ni kullah wa la takilni ila nafsi tarfata ‘ayn (O the Ever-Living, the All-Sustainer, I seek relief in Your mercy! Reform for me all of my affairs and do not leave me to myself, even for the blink of an eye).’”
[Narrated by Al-Nasā’i; Sahīh (authentic)]
Ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever says: ‘Astaghfirullāh al-ladhi la ilāha illa huwa Al-Hayy Al-Qayyūm wa atūbu ilayh (I ask Allah for forgiveness, there is no god but Him, the Ever-Living, the All-Sustainer, and I repent to Him)’, his sins will be forgiven, even if he fled the battlefield.” [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi and Al-Hākim; Sahīh (authentic)]
Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: “A man supplicated saying: ‘Allāhumma inni as’aluka bi’anna laka al-hamd la ilāha illa ant Al-Mannān Badī‘u as-samāwāti wa al-ard ya Dhal-Jalāl wa Al-Ikrām ya Hayy ya Qayyūm (O Allah, I implore You by virtue of the fact that all praise is due to You, there is no god except You, the Bestower of Favors, the Originator of the heavens and earth, the Owner of Majesty and Honor, O the Ever-Living, the All-Sustainer).’
Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: ‘He has implored Allah by His greatest name, which when supplicated therewith He answers, and when asked therewith He gives.’” [Narrated by the Compilers of Al-Sunan; Sahīh (authentic)]
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy upon him) said: “The attribute of ‘hayāh’ (life) comprises and entails all attributes of perfection, and the attribute of ‘qayyūmiyyah’ (sustaining) comprises all the attributes of actions. That is why, the greatest name of Allah by which when asked He gives, and by which when supplicated He answers is ‘Al-Hayy Al-Qayyūm’.”
O Allah, I seek refuge in Your honor - there is no god except You - that You should lead me astray; You are the Ever-Living Who does not die, whereas the jinn and humans die.
O Allah, the Ever-Living, the All-Sustainer, I seek relief in Your mercy; reform for me all my affairs.