For instance, around one-thirty in the morning, Samira awoke with an intense headache and a high fever. She had harbored a deep resentment towards him ever since she was a little girl, without quite comprehending the reason for his pure hatred. His animosity had become apparent the previous night when she rose from her seat. Upon entering the living room, Yusuf, their younger brother, revealed that he had fought with her. Fahid, who had been like an angel to her, had been someone she vowed never to marry since childhood, up until she turned 19. It was from that day when their parents decided to arrange their marriage that a newfound hostility began to manifest.

As she sat, head bowed, he looked at her with eyes full of loathing. He reclined on the opulent chairs scattered around the room, legs crossed, and addressed her with disdain. “Samira, are you but a hypocrite? I’ll take you as my wife, or I’ll take you as my servant. I’ll wait and see if you dare choose otherwise. You’re just a village girl, a mere tenant of a destitute household.” With these words, he emphasized his point, and his leg shook with anger. Her distress culminated, leading to a cut on her forehead, as she fled from the room in tears.

She sat up in her room, awaiting her return and bracing herself for the impending uproar, but it seemed nobody understood her turmoil except the Almighty. The Lord, who created them all, was the sole witness to her solitude in the room. As the wedding approached, her mother had set aside a separate area for her. Samira beseeched God with prayers, crying out for answers, “Oh God, grant me the solace of a life well before I depart from home. How did Fahid come to possess such intense hatred for me? He’s not known for such behavior; he’s never displayed such animosity. He always had kinder words to say. It’s as if he despises me.” She wept, her heart heavy with sorrow. Upon waking up, she headed to the bathroom for ablution, and when she arose, she knelt on her bed. Despite her fears of being unable to stand for prayer, she managed to complete two rak’ats before commencing her supplication. She vowed to share this prayer, this aura, before the day’s end.