The Status of Satisfaction with And Submission to Allah
This is according to religious scholar and researcher Hojat-ol-Islam Mohammad Ali Khosravi who made the remark in the tenth session of a series on “Monotheism in Quran”. Excerpts from his remarks are as follows:
The status of satisfaction is one of the levels of mysticism. Achieving this level, an individual will be pleased and satisfied with Allah while also being thankful. This sits higher than the status of patience.
“O satisfied soul, return to your Lord well pleased with him and He will be pleased with you.” (Surah al-Fajr, verses 27-28) Satisfaction is essentially mutual. It is said that individuals can refer to their own hearts to feel whether God is pleased with them or not. God will be pleased with individuals as much as they are satisfied with God.
Satisfaction is not a one-way road. “Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him.” (Surah Al-Mujadila, verse 22) Of course, satisfaction does not mean submitting to any defeat; for instance, take a lazy student who has not read the assigned books and failed the exam, and then he would say to be pleased with what God wants. This is a wrong approach. This is contrary to the teachings of the Quran and the Shia school. One should also resist injustice and oppression and this is no place for satisfaction.
The satisfaction that we talk about is when you have made your efforts but not achieved your goals. This is where you should be pleased with what God has decided for you. Satisfaction means humans should not become desperate and hopeless.
The highest level for those in Paradise is that of the satisfied. “The pleasure from Allah which is greater. That is the greatest winning.” (Surah At-Tawbah, verse 72) The satisfied feel living in Paradise even before their death.
