Guilt over loss of a cat
My cat died recently. I frequently prayed for him to recover, but sometimes I wondered as I was praying if it would be better if he died (cos he would stop suffering and we’d stop having to worry about him). I never ever prayed for him to die, but I’m scared that maybe when I was praying my intentions were subconsciously actually for something else and that I’m responsible for what happened to him
Response from a “Fatima counselor”:
Assalamu ‘alaykum,
Sincerely,
I’m so sorry to hear about the death of your cat.
Animals can be such special friends and I’m sure you miss him terribly 🙁
It is so hard to see someone we love suffer and yes, you are totally right, that sometimes it feels like if Allah took someone it would be kinder than leaving them alive to suffer. The Qur’an tells us that even Maryam (as) said “I wish I would have died before now” when she was in labor with ‘Isa (as). You are also right that we don’t pray for death, nor do we take actions that might cause death, but that ayah shows that there will be times in our life that we just don’t want to experience.
So it’s totally understandable that you worry that you might have accidently prayed for your cat to die. Even if you did, Allah (swt) made the decision about the time and the circumstances of his death. I rarely give advice that is this direct — if you did make du’a for his death, all you are required to do is ask Allah (swt) for forgiveness and to learn from the situation. I hope that helps and helps you move forward with some self compassion and less guilt.
wa’alaykum salam,
Your Sister in Islam,
Fatima “FM”
Response from your friend at Stones to Bridges:
Assalam Alaykum dear brother/sister,
Loosing someone or something is never an easy thing. It must have been very difficult for you to loose your pet companion.
Allah gives life and death and ultimately He knows how long each and everything will be alive for. We cannot rush or delay something like death. The thought you had is completely understandable as it is part of our human nature to not want to see things suffer. Allah Knows your intentions best and He knows how hard it must have been for you to see your cat struggling with illness. Do not worry yourself as you are not responsible for his death. Something that you may find helpful is to remember that it is a mercy from Allah that your cat has left this world and is no longer sick and in pain. It may bring comfort to your heart to recall some memories you have of him with your loved ones.
Wish you all the best,
Your sister in faith.
Here are some additional posts on this topic that you may find helpful: https://www.stonestobridges.org/tag/faith/
