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Surah: Al-Hajj (78)
He Has Not Placed Any Hardship on You in the Religion — The Ease of Islam and Avoiding Extremism
وَمَا جَعَلَ عَلَيۡكُمۡ فِي ٱلدِّينِ مِنۡ حَرَجٍ
— الحج الآية 78
Verse: "And strive for Allah with the striving due to Him. He has chosen you and has not placed upon you in the religion any hardship — the creed of your father Ibrahim." (22:78) — Comes alongside "strive" = true striving does not mean harshness but perfecting what is required. "Any hardship" — indefinite in a negation context = negating every hardship however small. The creed of Ibrahim = Islam in its natural essence. Legal principle: every obligation that exceeds a person capacity has a concession or alternative. Strictness without textual basis is deviation, not piety. Lesson: the one who is strict imagining themselves more pious may be directly contradicting this verse.
Source: Ibn Kathir (5/440); Al-Sadi
Test Yourself
How do "strive for Allah with the striving due to Him" and "no hardship in the religion" coexist in one verse?
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