Life of Muhammad — Page 240
sa 240 and had not been guilty of what was charged against me" ( Muslim, Kit a bul I m a n ). The Holy Prophet sa was ever ready to forgive people their faults and trespasses. One of the persons concerned in the affair of the slander against his wife, ‘ A ’isha ra , was dependent for his living upon the charity of Ab u Bakr ra ( ‘ A ’isha ra 's father). When the falsehood of the allegation against ‘ A ’isha ra was clearly established, Ab u Bakr ra stopped his support of this man. Even this is evidence of Ab u Bakr's ra commendable moderation and restraint. An average person would have proceeded to extreme lengths against a dependent who had been guilty of defaming his daughter. When the Prophet sa came to know of what Ab u Bakr ra had done, he spoke to him and pointed out that though the man had been at fault, it did not behove a person like Ab u Bakr ra to deprive him of his means of sustenance on account of his wrongdoing. Thereupon Ab u Bakr ra resumed his patronage of the man ( Bukh a r i , Kit a but Tafs i r ). PATIENCE IN ADVERSITY The Holy Prophet sa used to say: "For a Muslim, life is all full of good and nobody but a true believer finds himself in that position; for, if he meets with success he is grateful to God and becomes the recipient of greater favours from Him. On the other hand, if he suffers pain or tribulation he endures it with patience and thus again makes himself deserving of God's favours. " When his end drew near and he gave vent to a groan in the extremity of his condition, his daughter F at ima ra exclaimed that she could not bear to see him in that state. Thereupon he said: "Have patience! Your father will suffer no pain after this day," meaning that all his troubles were confined to this world and from the moment that he was released from this life and entered the presence of his Maker he would be subject to no further pain. During the prevalence of an epidemic he