Balancing Ease And Difficulty In Following God's Orders
A Muslim should follow all the directives of Allah and every directive requires some effort at the end of an individual. Our everyday actions also require some effort. Therefore, a minimum effort/difficulty is required everywhere, no matter the domain. As for the Shariah of Allah, it has been made clear in Quran 2:286 that God doesn’t give directives/shariah which are beyond human capacity. And when we talk about difficulty in performing any directive of Allah, relaxation has been given on the basis of the nature of directives. There are two kinds of directives in the context of easement: 1 ) The one which relate to Moharramat (Prohibitions). 2 ) The ones which relate to Ibadah. As a principle , the relaxation in case of ibadah is based on the principle of usar (‘ ghair mamoli mushaqqat ‘) and for other prohibitions (‘ mohramat ‘), the relaxation is based on ‘ iztirar ‘ ( becoming impossible to do or when it becomes a matter of life and death ). It is for the person to honestly decide whether he is faced with such a difficulty or not where he would avail the relaxation. Quran 2:185 (“ God desires ease for you and not discomfort “ ) referred to in the question is in the context of ibadah. Therefore, a Muslim should follow all the directives of Allah, including the relaxations provided within those directives .