Divine Destiny and Emotional Discipline in Quran
Some viewpoints in life can form one’s mental and intellectual foundation for achieving emotional discipline. For example, having faith in God and the belief in the fact that God has control over all matters, that His will dominates the whole world, that our sadness and sorrow will go away if He wills, and that we will all return to Him, and realizing that the world is transient help us to control many emotions and feelings like fear, sadness, and greed.
Maybe the most important verse in the Quran about emotional discipline is one which attributes everything that happens in life to God: “Whatever hardships you face on earth and in your souls were written in the Book before the creation of the souls. This is certainly easy for God.” (Verse 22 of Surah Al-Hadid)
Recognizing this fact helps us realize that mankind has not been abandoned in this world and that we should not get depressed or overjoyed by what happens in life.
In the next verse in Surah Al-Hadid, God say: “So that you would not grieve over what you have lost nor become too happy about what God has granted to you.” (Verse 23)
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When one realizes that what he has lost could have remained, and what he has gained is a blessing entrusted to him by God, he would neither be sad after losing something nor overjoyed after receiving a blessing.
Another verse pointing to this fact is Verse 11 of Surah At-Taghabun: “No affliction falls except by the permission of Allah.” So there is nothing that happens without God’s permission and there is no cause that can have an effect without His permission. Therefore, having faith in the Hikma (wisdom) existing in what happens in life and believing in the fact that life’s hardships are transient help us have discipline and control over our emotions and actions.
