Effective Anger Management In Islam

Islam puts great emphasis on human behavior which includes attainment of good manners and positive outlook in daily routine. The entire life of the Holy Prophet, Hazrat Muhammad ﷺ also suggests that He (PBUH) possessed the best possible character and personality, Who always showed His followers virtue of Islamic Instructions through His own actions. Among different sorts of negative attitudes that are forbidden in the Religion of Peace, anger is considered to be one of the most harmful and destructive kinds. Abu Hurrairah (R.A) once related the story of a man asking Rasulullah ﷺ:

“Counsel me.” The Prophet (PBUH) said: “Do not get angry.” The man repeated his request many times, but the Prophet (PBUH) kept saying: “Do not get angry.” (Bukhari)

Such is the great weight of avoiding the unconstructive feeling of annoyance that the Messenger ﷺ kept on advising that person to remain peaceful in harsh moments. The modern psychological and behavioral research shows that the sentiments of resentment highly affect the human mind in a negative way. They also overpower the entire consciousness of a man eventually leading to bad decision making. Anger is like a fire which when is lit, results in great destruction if not controlled carefully. Similarly, thoughts of annoyance, when they are not dealt with cautiously, they resultantly give rise to piling up of myriad of such off-putting emotions on after the other, which eventually bring about failure for an individual.

Following are some of the considerations that one has to keep for effective anger management.

Seeking Allah` s Protection from Satan

As a Muslim, one must know that Islam is a religion of tranquility and harmony which preaches its followers to adopt such manners which portray its true essence. As human by nature is peaceful and loving, but still it gets feelings of hate and anger towards others. This is because Shaitan is man`s direct enemy who manipulates different kinds of circumstances against one`s will and encourages it to act in rashness. The Messenger ﷺ of God is reported by Sulaiman ibn Sard (R.A) to have advised two quarrelling men as:

“I was sitting with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and two men were slandering one another. One of them was red in the face, and the veins on his neck were standing out. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, ‘I know a word which, if he were to say it, what he feels would go away. If he said, “I seek refuge with Allah from the Shaytaan,” what he feels (i.e., his anger) would go away.’”

The above mentioned Hadith clearly indicates that Shaitan is the biggest opponent of a person who always tries its best to aggravate one`s situation. It also shows that fury is a feeling that comes directly from Satan and that one should request the Most Merciful to protect it from the devil`s influence which would result in calmness and tranquility of mind.

Regarding Anger as Weakness

Most of the people consider the action of taking revenge as bravery, which in fact comes from the strong feelings of bitterness and dislike towards other person. The Apostle ﷺ of the Almighty Lord has nullified all such thoughts and regarded anger as one`s weakness.

“The strong man is not the one who can wrestle, but it is the one who can control himself when he is angry.” 

It means that such a person is not tough who can take its rival down rather that individual is feeble because it cannot have enough influence over its actions. On the other hand, the one who manages to overpower its negative thoughts of irritation is actually the strong person because it knows how to utilize its perception of things.

Keeping Unity through Avoiding Rage

Islam puts great importance on harmony and bonding among its believers. As the feelings of bitterness lead to abandoning of relationships, therefore, it is necessary to keep in mind their deadly effects and avoid them. Rasulullah ﷺ is reported to have said:

”Do not be angry with each other and do not envy each other and do not turn away from each other, and be slaves of Allah, brothers. It is not halal for a Muslim to shun his brother for more than three nights.”

This previously declared Hadith tells about the tremendous amount of importance of keeping away from negative emotions of anger as they break the unity among the Muslim Brotherhood.

Controlling Annoyance leading to Paradise

Since anger is a feeling that comes from satanic influence, therefore, managing it is a great act of virtue which results in high rewards from Allah SWT besides successful accomplishment of daily tasks. The Holy Prophet ﷺ said:

“Whoever controls his anger at the time when he has the means to act upon it, Allah will call him before all of mankind on the Day of Resurrection, and will let him choose of the Hoor al-‘Ayn whoever he wants.”( Abu Daawuud)

It means that controlling the pessimistic sentiments of antagonism is an act that is very dear to the Gracious God, who will grant His rightful servants with a high place in Jannah (Paradise) in the hereafter.

In short, anger is a highly negative and unfruitful feeling that needs to be controlled in by every believer in order to succeed both in this world and in afterlife.