What is Tawwakul in Islam?
Tawakkul means placing one’s trust in Allah for every wordly affair in his life.
Having tawakkul entails two things:
1) Trusting in Allah’s plan and depending on Him alone.
We put our full reliance on Allah and believe that whatever He decrees for us is best, no matter the outcome. You accept everything that happens because you have faith that Allah is guiding you to that which most beneficial for you.
2) Taking the means and the appropriate measures.
This means that one should put an effort and strive to pursue his objective while leaving the result to Allah. Whatever the outcome may be, he should accept it and be grateful.
Anas ibn Malik reported: A man said, “O Messenger of Allah, should I tie my camel and trust in Allah, or should I leave her untied and trust in Allah?” The Messenger of Allah, (ﷺ) said, “Tie her and trust in Allah.”
Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2517 – Hasan (fair) according to Al-Albani
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
“If you were to rely upon Allah with the required reliance, then He would provide for you just as a bird is provided for, it goes out in the morning empty, and returns full.”
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2344
A perfect example of tawakkul is in the story of the mother of Prophet Musa (AS). At the time Pharaoh was killing all the male children in town, Allah ordered the Mother of Musa to throw her child in the river. For every mother, her attachment to her child is strong. The bond between them is unbreakable, but here she was ready to do the unthinkable and place her baby in the basket to drift away from her sight. She did not know where baby Musa would go or where he would end up, but her trust in Allah and complete reliance on His Plan kept her strong. In the end, Allah reunited them together and returned him back to his mother. This is the beauty of Tawwakul!
