This article explores the Islamic view of hardship and the meaning of suffering by describing Satan’s role in the origin of mankind’s hardship, and clarifies the concept of suffering, tragic events, and calamities people tend to face as viewed in the Qur’an and hadith from the Ahlul Bayt. Part 2 continues to expound on the importance of suffering and why those who are closer to God may suffer more in this world.
This paper is based on the second part of two lectures delivered by the author in Dar al-Zahra in Qum during the Fatimiyyah commemoration, 2011.