One of the most beautiful and comforting subtleties in the Qur’an appears in the way God speaks about hardship and relief.

Allah says:

﴿فَإِنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا ۝ إِنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا﴾

(Surah Ash-Sharh, verses 5–6)

“Indeed, with hardship comes ease. Indeed, with hardship comes ease.”

The beauty lies in the language itself:

The word al-‘usr (العُسر – the hardship) is definite, referring to one specific difficulty.

But yusrًا (ease) is indefinite, suggesting multiple forms of ease.

Classical scholars noted a profound meaning here:

? One hardship is never alone; it is accompanied by many eases.

Even more striking is the word “ma‘a” (with).

The Qur’an does not say ease comes after hardship — it says ease comes with it.

This teaches a gentle but powerful truth:

In the very heart of difficulty, relief is already present — even if we cannot yet see it.