Is man ungrateful to Allah? What is the ungrateful to Allah?
The Qur’an says:
“Indeed man is ungrateful to his Lord. And he very well knows it.” (Al-Adiyat, 100: 6-7)
The Qur’an brings this aspect of man alive by showing his tendency to go whichever way the wind blows:
“And when adversity touches you at sea, you lose thought of all those you invoke except for Him. But when He delivers you to the land, you turn away. And ever is man ungrateful. Can you be sure that He will not cause a part of the land to swallow you or send against you a storm of stones? Then you would not find for yourselves an advocate. Or do you feel secure that He will not send you back into the sea another time and send upon you a hurricane of wind and drown you for what you denied? Then you would not find for yourselves against Us an avenger.” (Al-Isra, 17: 67-69)
Another verse reads:
“And as for man, when his Lord tries him, is generous to him and favors him, he says, ‘My Lord has honored me’. But when He tries him and restricts his provision, he says, ‘My Lord has humiliated me.’” (Al-Fajr, 89: 15-16)
We tend to forget that our Lord tests our patience at every moment. However, it is only to reward us. Many people who fall into financial or personal troubles overlook the fact they are only means of ease and rewards in the afterlife and instead think that Allah has forsaken them. They are no longer able to appreciate what they have. They forget the need to give thanks for what they have no matter how little these may be and ignore the fact that those who do not appreciate what they have will not be given the things they lack.
The thought that they are only being tested does not even cross their minds. That is despite Allah saying:
“And We test you with evil and with good as trial” (Al-Anbiya, 21: 35) Losing sight of this fact takes man to the edge of disbelief and turns him against Allah, where obsession with the fleeting pleasures of this life makes him blind to what awaits eternally. The Qur’an says:
“Allah created man from a sperm-drop; then he suddenly becomes clear adversary” (Al-Nahl, 16: 4)[1]
[1]. Also see, Ya Sin, 36: 77.
Source: The History of Prophets in Light of The Qur’an, THE CHAIN OF PROPHETS, Osman Nuri TOPBAŞ, Erkam Publications
