Steadfastness and Trust in Allah

Bismillahi r-Rahmani r-Rahim.

We are in the blessed month of Ramadan — the month of endurance, the month of holding. And so today I want to speak about steadfastness: istiqamah and tawakkul, the two wings of the believer in times of difficulty.

Istiqamah — Remaining Upright

Istiqamah is often translated as “steadfastness” but the Arabic root carries the image of a pillar — something that stands upright regardless of what presses against it from the sides. The Prophet ﷺ was asked: “What is the most beloved deed to Allah?” And he said: “The most consistent one, even if it is small.”

Consistency. Uprightness. Remaining on the path when the path is not easy, when the conditions are not comfortable, when the internal weather is dark.

This is the teaching of Ramadan itself. Every day, from dawn to sunset, regardless of how you feel — hungry or full of energy, joyful or sorrowful — you fast. You practice uprightness with your body so that the heart learns the lesson: I can remain.

Tawakkul — Trust That Acts

There is a misunderstanding of tawakkul — trust in Allah — that weakens many people on the path. They hear “put your trust in Allah” and they translate this as “do nothing and wait.” This is not tawakkul. This is laziness dressed in spiritual language.

The real meaning of tawakkul is taught through the famous story of the man who tied his camel and then said: tawakkaltu ‘alAllah — I trust in Allah. The Prophet ﷺ corrected him: “Tie your camel, then trust in Allah.”

Tawakkul is for the space that is beyond your reach. You do what is yours to do — with full effort, full attention, full sincerity — and then for the result, which belongs to Allah alone, you let go. You open your hands. You say: Ya Rabb, I have done what a human being can do. The rest is Yours.

This is not passivity. This is maturity. This is the believer who acts and then rests — not rests in inaction, but rests in surrender.

The Roots Go Deeper

Our masters of the tariqah have always said: the test is not given to break you. It is given to deepen you. A tree in a storm — what does the storm do? It forces the roots deeper. The tree that has never faced wind has shallow roots. It looks fine when the weather is pleasant, but it cannot stand when the real tests come.

This is why the awliya — the friends of Allah — those who have been tested most severely — have the deepest stillness. You sit with such a person and you feel it. Not that their life has been easy. Their life has been difficult in ways most people cannot imagine. But the roots have gone deep, and so the upper branches can move freely with the wind without the tree falling.

This is what Ramadan is training us for. Every day that we endure the hunger and the thirst in obedience to Allah, the roots go a little deeper. Every night prayer, every tarawih, every recitation — another thread of root going into the earth.

Remaining in the Company

One of the greatest aids to istiqamah is the company of those who are themselves upright. The suhba — the gathering — is not a luxury on the path. It is a necessity. The person who tries to remain steady alone, without the company of the righteous, is like a single coal taken from the fire. It glows for a moment and then cools.

But in the company — in the suhba — the coals keep each other alight. The heat passes between them. One person’s remembrance reaches another’s heart. One person’s steadfastness strengthens another’s resolve.

This is why we gather. This is what this gathering is. Let us not take it lightly.

May Allah make us among the people of istiqamah. May He give us the true tawakkul — the trust that acts and then lets go. And may He bless this Ramadan to deepen our roots so that when the storms come — and they will come — we remain standing.

Fatiha.