Every Disease Has a Cure
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Ibn al-Qayyim opens with one of the most hopeful sayings ever spoken about illness. The Prophet ﷺ said: Allah has not sent down any disease except that He also sent down its cure.
Think about what that means. Every sickness has an answer somewhere in creation. Some cures have been found. Some are still waiting to be discovered.
And the Prophet ﷺ said: seek treatment, O servants of Allah. For Allah has not created a disease without creating a cure for it, except one. When they asked what it was, he said: old age.
Ibn al-Qayyim uses these sayings to answer an old question. Does taking medicine go against trusting in Allah? Not at all, he says. Taking medicine is like eating when you are hungry, or drinking when you are thirsty. Allah made these things causes. Using them is part of trusting Him, not the opposite.
He explains that true reliance on Allah has two parts. The heart depends on Him alone. And the hands take the means He created.
So when you take your medicine, take it with your hand, and with your heart say: O Allah, put the cure in it. That is the way of the Prophet ﷺ.
