Depression, despair and faith

Submitted by an anonymous member

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With mental health awareness being on the rise in recent years there has been huge strides by the wider public in accepting the struggles that people with mental health face. In this small piece I’d like to mention some points regarding viewing mental health through an Islamic lens. Throughout the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet Peace Be Upon Him it is often repeated that the state of people is to be faced with tests and adversity

 لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ فِى كَبَدٍ
“Indeed, we have created humankind in ˹constant˺ struggle”. (Quran 90:4) 
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ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ  ٱلْمَوْتَ وَٱلْحَيَوٰةَ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ أَيُّكُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًۭا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْغَفُورُ 
”He is the One˺ Who created death and life in order to test which of you is best in deeds. And He is the Almighty, All-Forgiving.” (Quran 67:2)

Before we delve into the relationship between Islam and mental health, it is important to recognise that even for people who have never suffered with mental health difficulties that the default experience for people regardless of their religion, under the Islamic paradigm, is to be frequently faced with difficulties and struggles. And we see this from the first verse, and from the second verse we see that a reason for us to be given the blessing of life itself is for us to be tested and to see how our actions respond to the challenges that Allah gives us.

A common trait of experiencing depression is to be overcome with grief, where most people can feel as if there isn’t an end to the pain they feel. This feeling can often bleed into a person’s life and remain for large periods of time. It’s important to highlight that this feeling is irrespective of a person’s quality of faith. And there isn’t a better example to highlight how being overcome with grief is not correlated with quality of faith other than Yaqoub AS. Having had his dearest son taken away from him, Yaqoub AS’s grief reached a point where he lost his eyesight due to the amount he wept. And a single quote from Yaqoub AS is the reason for this short piece.

(Quran 67:2)وَلَا تَا۟يْـَٔسُوا۟ مِن رَّوْحِ ٱللَّهِ  إِنَّهُۥ لَا يَا۟يْـَٔسُ مِن رَّوْحِ ٱللَّهِ إِلَّا ٱلْقَوْمُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرُونَ
As Yaqoub was speaking to his sons he says to them “And do not despair in the mercy of Allah, Indeed no one despairs in the mercy of Allah’s mercy except those with no faith” (Quran 12:87)

This verse highlights a subtle balance that Muslims who struggle with depression should hold tight to, and that is no matter how difficult a person’s current situation is, or even if it feels like your current situation isn’t going to change, even then a person should not lose hope in the mercy of Allah. And we as Muslims should, just like Yaqoub AS, take the pain that is guaranteed to be a part of this life as a tool to get closer to Allah.

قَالَ إِنَّمَآ أَشْكُوا۟ بَثِّى وَحُزْنِىٓ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ وَأَعْلَمُ مِنَ ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
“I complain of my anguish and sorrow only to Allah, and I know from Allah what you do not know.”

(Quran 12:86)