Fatiha Nadeem, Bradford
God Almighty reminds us in Chapter 46, verse 14 of the Holy Qur’an, “Verily, those who say, ‘Our Lord is Allah,’ and then remain steadfast — no fear shall come upon them, nor shall they grieve.”
I’m sure many of us didn’t know an International Day for Failure existed up until now – I certainly didn’t. It is actually quite unique in the sense that it is not a day commemorated by all, especially as it is neither a religious, nor a cultural day per se.
You see, what I love about the English language – well, all languages really – are the connotations, questions, perhaps even issues raised by the meaning of the word or the context it is brought up in. The use of the words ultimately relies upon the intention of the individual, which we don’t really know.
Similarly, in the context of commemorating an international day for failure, what is actually meant by failure?
Of course, the Cambridge dictionary defines failure as the fact of someone/something not succeeding (1) and success as achieving the aims we hoped for (2).
You and I may differ in defining failure, just as we might interpret any word in the dictionary differently, because we all experience life through our own perspectives and circumstances. What one person sees as a failure, another may consider a valuable lesson to learn from.
However, perhaps we should be more drawn to the question of facing and overcoming this feeling or even fear of failure, rather than simply how we define it. And perhaps, that is the true purpose of marking International Day for Failure – to encourage, to support and to remind us to stay resilient, no matter how big or small the challenge is. After all, we react to failure in different ways, but what matters is we move forward together rather than staying stuck in the fear of not succeeding. Debasish Mridha, an American philosopher and poet may have a point in saying:
‘Failure is our best teacher but fear of failure is our worst enemy’.
Interestingly, time and time again, we see Islam revealing itself as a practical religion, in which we can apply its teachings to everyday life and once again, this is evident in how it approaches the concepts of failure and how to persevere through going such trials and tribulations.
As Ahmadi Muslim women, our complete trust and reliance must always remain in Allah the Almighty, above any other person or institution. Moreover, we know that in the most difficult times in our life, our relationship with Allah the Almighty will be tested. In fact the very meaning of the word ‘steadfastness’ is that we continue holding on to the rope of Allah, even if we feel disheartened, because He sees everything we cannot.
His Holiness, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (may Allah be His Helper) stated in a virtual meeting with Australian Khuddam:
“It’s normal that a person doesn’t see success in a particular goal, but it could be that they see success in another. Sometimes they don’t see success for a long period and they go through a trial. But then again, without God, there is no other way either.” (3)
I’m reminded of the translation of a beautiful couplet from a poem, which sees failure serving as a test of our relationship with Allah the Almighty, written by the daughter of the Promised Messiah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), Hazrat Nawab Mubaraka Begum:
‘Who else could be more disappointed and disheartened; than one who has no grip on the grip of Allah’s sword.’ (3)
References:
(1) FAILURE | English meaning – Cambridge Dictionary
(2) SUCCESS | English meaning – Cambridge Dictionary
(3) Don’t let failure pull you down – work hard and pray to Allah: Australian Khuddam blessed with fourth virtual meeting with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V | Al Hakam
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