** something for you to ponder upon**

Dear Brother, who dwells in these prisonsTo you I write with distresses,

If to Allāh you hold fastThen what harm will a misfortune of time do to you?

Beware dear Brother, of making your corrupting your thoughtsRegarding the Promise of the Deity, Mighty and Strong,

Verily, He has promised the Believers with SalvationAs He saved Yūnus from the dark depths of the belly of the Fish,

Dear Brother, before you, passed the ancient onesThese prisons are but like those prisons,

Did not Yūsuf dwelled in them for a phaseAnd Mūsā, the tyrants threatened him with it,

And such was the Messenger of the Generous DeityTo imprison him, the pagans plotted,

So my Lord saved him through his HijrahIn the company of that trustworthy friend,

And in their footsteps, the Believers traversedLike Ahmad, that firm Imām,

And likewise Ibn Taymiyyah was blessed with itIn the fortress of Shām, as a prisoner he dwelled,

Hundreds of thousands of the True FaithfulDwelled for a time in these prisons,

Be not weak, dear Brother, nor lose hopeWhen your time comes, nor submit,

Strengthen yourself by remembering the Deity, Most SupremeAnd hasten in memorizing the Manifest Book,

That is for your heart a secure strongholdAnd this is for your spirit an assisting provision,

These are hardships, soon they will all ceaseAnd remaining from it will be various fruits and benefits,

So if they intimidate you, and they threaten youNever weaken, or soften to them,

And even if they insult you, and they torture youAnd if they beat you, submit not,

You are not the first to be torturedFor a Mighty Religion and a Manifest Legislation,

Nor are you alone on this PathFor there are countless caravans throughout the years,

And if an ‘Eid passes by, and a son is bornAnd months rotate, while you are imprisoned,

Do not grieve O Brother of the Righteous OnesOf departing from family and losing children,

And if they forbid you from their visitsAnd likewise their letters never appear,

So if this is for a Lord and ReligionThen where is the patience, where is the certainty!?

And where are your past speechesRegarding the (weight of the) Millah of that Trustworthy Messenger?!

That Intimate Friend went willinglyTo slaughter his son, a clear trial,

On a magnificent, noble day like todayWithout any anxiety, he put him down upon his forehead,

So my Lord saved him through His Good WillAnd ransomed him with a fat sheep,

But you, your sons are in a carefree lifeAnd diversion and amusement, and a secured home,

Yet you have not been asked to slaughter themRather, merely for patience of a temporary separation,

For verily, they are in the care of a Merciful LordAnd you are in solitude with Him and Faith,

For the Pleasure of a Lord and assisting a ReligionLife and all children become insignificant,

For the Pleasure of a Lord, Mighty and GenerousThe prisons come perfumed, and the bitter come sweet…

 by Shaykh Abū Muhammad Al-Maqdisī

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