Quran Garden

Session 477

Chapter 3

Verse 147

All they said was, "Our Lord, forgive us our sins and our excesses in our affairs.  Establish our feet firmly, and give us help against the disbelievers" (Chapter 3: Verse 147)

God will not leave you to your own devices unless you turn away from Him; that is what happened to the believers in Uhud.  So they reflected, "Why did this happen to us?" They did not pray, "Our Lord, help us to get out of this mess;" instead, they thought about the causes that led them into this situation and reached the proper conclusion,

All they said was, "Our Lord, forgive us our sins and our excesses in our affairs.  Establish our feet firmly, and give us help against the disbelievers" (Chapter 3: Verse 147)

Introspection was the right thing to do because it led them to the root cause of the setback in Uhud.  The battle exhausted and frustrated them, but that was not the problem.  The problem was that they forgot God, so He lifted His support. 

Here, we must pause and note the words the companions chose.  They started the supplication with "Our Lord," translated from the Arabic رَبَّنَا (Rubbana.)  They could have said, 'O Allah,' but chose "Our Lord" for a good reason.  This is because the relationship of the servant with his or her Lord is different from that with God.  The relationship with God's divinity is that of obligation and duty because God is the one worshipped and obeyed.  But Allah blessed you with His Lordship well before He assigned you any responsibility.  Allah, your Lord, cared for you in your mother's womb, created a universe ready to receive you, and provided you with the essentials and comforts for survival.  Thus, "Our Lord" means the One who takes care of our affairs and raises us, and today, we need your help. 

They continued, "Our Lord, forgive us our sins," as if nothing can harm us more than our own negligence.  The word "sin" is translated from the Arabic ذنب (thanb) and shares the root with the term used for an animal's tail.  This is interesting because a tail follows the animal wherever it goes, and so do your sins; they will follow and haunt you till the Day of Judgment.  Keeping this meaning in mind makes you less likely to sin. 

The supplication continues, "Our Lord, forgive us our sins and our excesses in our affairs." Transgression is going beyond what Allah has allowed you to do.  Keep in mind that excessive indulgence can happen even in actions that God has allowed.  For example, Islam legislated marriage so you can enjoy intimacy and raise offspring, but if you engage in relationships outside of marriage, then you have exceeded the limits.  God gives you wealth according to your effort, but when you grab wealth that is not yours, then you have exceeded the limits.  Allah even legistated the Zakat almsgiving to help you in case you work hard and still not earn enough to feed your family.  So why would you ever transgress?  God says,

Say "O My servants who have committed excesses against their own selves, do not despair of God's mercy.  Indeed God forgives all sins.  Indeed He is the All-forgiving, the All-merciful. (39:53)

The supplication continues, "Our Lord, forgive us our sins and our excesses in our affairs.  Establish our feet firmly." Here we can learn the etiquette of supplication.  Note that by addressing the Lord first, and admitting their sins and excesses, they have now exited error and were about to enter the truth.  This is because when Allah forgives sin and pardons the transgression, you will be worthy of His divine help.  Thus their next words were to ask for help, "Establish our feet firmly." 

Battles demand mobile and agile fighters.  So, what is the meaning behind "establish our feet firmly"?  It means do not make us flee the battlefield under any circumstances.  We said before that after Uhud, the disbelievers did not stay on the battlefield but left and headed back to Mecca.  On the other hand, despite the believers' setbacks, Allah planted their feet, so they remained and later chased after their enemies.  Even modern militaries understand this concept.  An old military medal in France depicts the image of a fly.  Why?  Because no matter how many times you swat a fly away, it returns to the same spot.  And that is how military leaders should behave when driven out of their position.  We pray "establish our feet firmly" because leaving is the first sign of defeat as it emboldens the enemy to advance. 

The supplication ends with, "and give us help against the disbelievers." So as long as they said "against the disbelievers," they assigned themselves to the camp of faith and truth.  Omar bin Al Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, famously said, "You are only victorious over the enemy by your obedience to Allah, because if you are on disobedience –just like them-, you will be overcome by their multitude and superior military gear."

We learn from this beautiful Du'aa that faith requires you, first and foremost, to pay attention to your shortcomings because they are the actual reason behind any setback.  It is not about physical weakness, mental fatigue, or desperation.  If you pay attention, look in the mirror, and rectify your sins and excesses, Allah will reward you.  What was the reward?  Listen to the next aya in Al Imran,

So God gave them both the rewards of this world and the excellent rewards of the Hereafter: God loves those who do good (3:148)