مُضْطَرٌّ
victim of circumstance
مُضْطَرٌّ : distressed, compelled, victim of circumstance
#root word: ضرر: harm, hurt
#of times in Qur’an: once
Sūra al-Naml 27:62
أَمَّن يُجِيبُ الْمُضْطَرَّ إِذَا دَعَاهُ وَيَكْشِفُ السُّوءَ
Who is it that answers the distressed when they call upon Him?
And Who removes their suffering?
Today’s word comes from an āya in juz' 20: āya 62 of Surah al-Naml, which is at the tip of our tongues when anyone is in distress or hardship, or when someone is ill. We usually recite it a few times. The word is muḍṭarr: which is translated as ‘one who is distressed’. It comes from the root ضرر which means ‘hurt or harm, and specifically from the verb اضْطَرَّ : which means to compel or force someone to do something.
A muḍtarr person is distressed because their circumstances force them to be in the situation they are in. They have absolutely no control over anything.
The other times in the Qur’an where Allah mentions this verb are mainly to do with dietary laws, and when Allah makes exceptions for us to consume Haram food when we’re in a state of compulsion and we need to save our lives.
So a muḍṭarr is distressed, compelled and utterly at the mercy of God. And it makes sense that we beseech God on their behalf using this āya.
The sad thing is that this is only half the āya, and we don’t recite the whole thing, whereas the second half is what completes it and actually gives the muḍṭarr person faith and hope that there is Allah, and reminds us to put our faith in Him:
وَيَجْعَلُكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ الْأَرْضِ ۗ أَإِلَـٰهٌ مَّعَ اللَّـهِ ۚ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ
...and Who makes you successors of the earth? Is there another god besides God? Little notice you take!