Health, Wealth and Family

Ibn ʿAbbās said that Ayyūb (peace be upon him) was very wealthy, had a large family, and was very healthy and strong. So he had health, wealth and family. And then, suddenly, Ayyūb (peace be upon him) lost his family, lost his wealth, and lost his health. And this did not happen gradually; it happened suddenly. He lost everything — everything a person loves in the dunyā.

Allah (swt) says that wealth and children are the adornment of the life of this world. Whether you are Muslim or non-Muslim, this is something Allah (swt) has placed the love of in your heart: your wealth and your family. It is something we love in this world; it is the adornment of this world. Ayyūb lost these two, and on top of that he lost his health.

His health became so bad that he could not move and could not work. And the particular disease he had was one that people regarded with tashāʾum: they took it as a bad omen, an evil omen. They despised that disease and stayed away from anyone afflicted with it. So he became an outcast in society, and it is said that they even forced him out of the village, so that he lived outside his town.

He had no source of income. So it is said that his wife began to work. She would cook for people and serve them in their homes, but then people did not want to deal with her, because they were afraid she might infect them too, so no one would hire her. The situation of Ayyūb kept deteriorating, and this went on over a span of years — not a matter of a few weeks or months.

And it is said that even those closest to him — his wife, his brothers and his family — were saying: if Allah (swt) had any love for him, this would not have happened to him. That was hard for Ayyūb to hear, and that is when Ayyūb made his duʿāʾ to Allah (swt), saying: harm has afflicted me, and You are the Most Merciful.