ma wadda’aka rabbuka wama qalaa

Size: 30×24
Calligraphy: “مَا وَدَّعَكَ رَبُّكَ وَمَا قَلَىٰ”
Transliteration: “ma wadda’aka rabbuka wama qalaa”
Meaning: “Your Lord did not abandon you, nor is He displeased”
From: Quran 93: 3

Story:

Does it ever feel that Allah (SWT) is not responding? You have recited each and every recommended supplication, but nothing is happening? Do you feel despair in these situations and start having negative thoughts and emotions about Allah’s presence in your life? These are valid emotions. Did you know that before Surah Ad-Duha was revealed, there was a time when the Prophet Muhammad (saw) didn’t receive revelation for six months?

During that time, the Prophet (saw) was very depressed as he felt that Allah was displeased or had forgotten him. We are talking about the best of mankind here; if he experienced such emotions, then what about you and I?

When I was in the hospital, hit with the sudden news of my illness, I was profoundly confused about the whole situation. I felt like my prayers, faith, and calling weren’t going anywhere. As though Allah (SWT) didn’t care about me. But there was this moment, when the IV cannula was in my arm, I was aching and crying with no one beside me, and my heart whispered softly, “مَا وَدَّعَكَ رَبُّكَ وَمَا قَلَىٰ” and I thought to myself, that the One who inspired this verse into my heart is with me and always will be.

Now to say that I feel this verse is holding me together every time I experience those feelings is unfair. Because this project is not about having full conviction or hope – but desperately seeking it. It’s about the constant struggle one has when going through such emotions.

I chose this verse, trusting that the most compassionate, loving, and merciful does not ever abandon His creation. I tied it together with the confirmation of His closeness “فَإِنِّي قَرِيب” and the importance of trust and patience “فصبر جميل.”