Tradition

إنَّ اللّهَ قَضَى قَضاءً حَتْماً أَلاّ يُنْعِمَ عَلَى الْعَبْدِ بِنِعْمَة فَيَسْلُبُها إيّاهُ حَتّى يُحْدِثَ الْعَبْدُ ذَنْباً يَسْتَحِقُّ بِذلِكَ النَّقِمَةِ.

Imam al-Baqir (‘a) is narrated to have said: “God has made a decisive rule that he will never take away a blessing which he has given to people unless they commit a sin which causes the loss of that blessing.”1

Brief Commentary

The blessings of God are without end but it cannot be said that they are without calculation and accounting. God never gives to the people without proper calculation and he never takes away from them without cause as well. When the people begin to use the blessings of God as a means of corruption, arrogance, and oppression, then those same blessings are transformed into the means for their destruction. It is at this time that the blessing is removed and a calamity comes in its place.

When such a thing happens, things like industry and technology (which are positive phenomenons) are turned into destructive elements. The society begins to fall apart and such blessings become the means for worry and anxiety. Even things which help the people and allow them to do things more efficiently become the means for their regression. This is all caused by the improper use of God’s blessings.

• 1. Usul al-Kafi, vol. 2.