Anwa al-Sabr wa Majalatuh
- Author died
- 1440 AH
- Editions
- Safir Press
Anwa al-Sabr wa Majalatuh: Mafhum, wa-Ahammiyyah, wa-Turuq, wa-Tahsil fi Daw' al-Kitab wa al-Sunnah ("Types of Patience and Its Spheres: Concept, Importance, Means, and Cultivation in the Light of the Quran and Sunnah") is a concise treatise on patience in Islam by the Saudi scholar Saeed bin Wahf al-Qahtani (d. 1440 AH / 2018 CE).
Background and Purpose
The treatise was abridged by al-Qahtani from the chapter on patience in his extensive work Muqawwimat al-Da'iyah al-Najah fi Daw' al-Kitab wa al-Sunnah ("Qualifications of the Successful Islamic Caller in the Light of the Quran and Sunnah"). His stated objective was to produce a focused summary examining the definition of patience (sabr), its religious importance and central role in Islamic propagation (da'wah), its various spheres and legal rulings, its primary categories, practical historical applications of patience and courage, and the practical means by which a Muslim can cultivate and attain steadfastness.
Structure and Content
The work is organized into seven thematic sections (mabahith):
- Concept of Patience (Mafhum al-Sabr): Explores the linguistic meaning of sabr as restraint and confinement (al-habs wa-al-man'), contrasting it with anguish or lack of endurance (al-jaza'). It defines its practical reality as an inner virtue that restrains the soul from unbecoming conduct, the tongue from complaining, and the limbs from outward agitation.
- Importance of Patience in Islamic Propagation (Ahammiyyat al-Sabr fi al-Da'wah): Examines why patience is indispensable for callers to Islam, framing trials as an inevitable divine norm and citing scriptural injunctions to the prophets, notably the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. It details how patience is required before, during, and after performing good works—such as maintaining sincerity beforehand, guarding against laxity during the act, and resisting pride, vanity, or boasting afterward.
- Spheres of Patience (Majalat al-Sabr): Delineates eight key areas of restraint in human life, including restraining oneself from weariness during prolonged tasks, from panic when afflicted by hardships, from rashness in seeking goals, from outbursts of anger, from cowardice in situations requiring bravery, from greed, from base passions, and for enduring physical and mental distress.
- Legal Rulings of Patience (Hukm al-Sabr): Addresses the legal taxonomy of patience across the five rulings of Islamic jurisprudence (al-ahkam al-khamsah).
- Types of Patience (Anwa' al-Sabr): Details the three obligatory categories of patience: patience in carrying out acts of obedience to Allah (sabr 'ala ta'at Allah), patience in abstaining from sinful and prohibited matters (sabr 'an ma'asi Allah), and patience in bearing painful divine decrees and afflictions (sabr 'ala aqdar Allah al-mu'limah).
- Practical Examples of Patience and Courage (Suwar min Mawaqif Tatbiq al-Sabr wa-al-Shaja'ah): Presents historical models of enduring adversity, focusing specifically on the life, steadfastness, and missionary career of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ from the early secret phase of his preaching until his death.
- Means of Cultivating Patience (Turuq Tahsil al-Sabr): Outlines spiritual exercises, knowledge, and practical measures that assist an individual in developing patience and earning the divine reward promised to the steadfast.
Methodology and Sources
The author relies primarily on evidence from the Quran and prophetic hadith, providing textual citations and hadith verifications. He frequently draws upon the ethical and spiritual insights of classical scholars, particularly Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah from treatises such as 'Uddat al-Sabirin and Madarij al-Salikin, as well as statements transmitted from early authorities such as Ahmad ibn Hanbal and contemporary figures like Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz.
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