The dealings of God with His servants
and the manner in which He deals with them are called sunnatullah by the Qur’an.
The Almighty says that these practices are permanent and unalterable.
Consequently, for a true comprehension of God, just as knowledge of His
attributes is essential, knowledge of His dealings with His creation is also
essential. We shall now present the details of these dealings; however, before
we do this, it is essential that certain premises remain clear in our mind at
the very outset.
Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:
1. The
Almighty has created each person with a noble nature and has blessed him with
the ability to discriminate good from evil and has given him the freedom to
choose whichever of them he wants to. After that, his becoming a good or a bad
person is dependent on his attitude and on the Almighty’s grace. If he tries to
adhere to virtue, the Almighty’s grace impels him to virtue and if he adopts
evil, the Almighty, if He wants to, leaves him to tread the path of evil.
2. Issues on
which the Almighty will hold a person accountable are those in which he has the
freedom to choose and exercise his free will. People who do not have this
freedom will not be held accountable by Him. This freedom to exercise one’s will
has been granted by the Almighty and not something which a person possesses.
Thus a person exercises his will while remaining subservient to the will of God.
The Almighty, on the basis of His own will and wisdom, may not allow man to
achieve what he intends; however, because of some reason which only His wisdom
can encompass, if He does not allow a virtuous intention of a person to
materialize, He does not deprive him of its reward; similarly, if He allows evil
intent to materialize, then this does not mean that He will necessarily acquit a
person in the Hereafter.
3. Wherever
the will of God has been mentioned in the Qur’an, it only means that except for
God Himself no one has the power to stop Him from materializing it or to alter
it in any way. It does not mean that His will is not subservient to justice and
wisdom. The Almighty is wise and just and nothing that He does is devoid of
justice and wisdom. Hence wherever His will is stated in the Qur’an, it must be
considered to be subservient to the wisdom and justice according to which He is
running the affairs of this world. It would not be correct to assume that He
would act contrarily to whatever practice He has initiated for Himself and to
the justice and wisdom He has chosen for Himself. For example, the Qur’an says
that God guides whomsoever He wills and leads astray whomsoever He wills. This
statement does not mean that He does not adhere to any principle of justice and
wisdom in giving guidance to someone or leading him astray; it only means that
giving guidance to someone or leading him astray materializes in accordance with
the practice He has set for it and no one has the power to change or break it.
4. In the
Qur’an, we find certain acts being attributed to God; however, the real
objective in this regard, as referred to earlier, is not the attribution of
these acts, it is their attribution to certain laws and principles on the basis
of which these acts materialize. Because these laws and principles have been set
by the Almighty, He has attributed the acts which emanate on the basis of these
laws and principles to Himself at certain places in the Qur’an. For example,
فَلَمَّا زَاغُوا أَزَاغَ اللَّهُ قُلُوبَهُمْ (٥:٦١)
(And when they deviated [from the truth], God led away their hearts [from the
truth], (61:5)) and وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفْئِدَتَهُمْ
وَأَبْصَارَهُمْ (١١٠:٦) (We will turn away their
hearts and eyes [from the truth], (6:110)). On such instances, the Qur’an also
refers to the principle on the basis of which a certain act emanates. For
example, words such as: “God only leads astray the defiant.” These insinuations
are meant to direct the attention of the reader on the factual reality so that
the apparent meaning of the words does not create any misconception in his mind.
5. The eternal
and all embracing knowledge of the Almighty does not negate any of the practices
and laws set by Him. Undoubtedly, He knows from the very beginning whether a
person will adopt the right path or go astray; however, besides this, He also
knows that a person will adopt or reject the right path in accordance with the
law of guidance prescribed by Him.
Two further things should remain clear as well:
Firstly, certain things are attributed to God also because
He is the first cause and nothing can originate or materialize without His will
and certain things are attributed to us because at times we become worthy of
them. The Qur’an thus says:
وَإِن
تُصِبْهُمْ حَسَنَةٌ يَقُولُواْ هَـذِهِ مِنْ عِندِ اللّهِ وَإِن تُصِبْهُمْ
سَيِّئَةٌ يَقُولُواْ هَـذِهِ مِنْ عِندِكَ قُلْ كُلًّ مِّنْ عِندِ اللّهِ فَمَا
لِهَـؤُلاء الْقَوْمِ لاَ يَكَادُونَ يَفْقَهُونَ حَدِيثًا مَّا أَصَابَكَ مِنْ
حَسَنَةٍ فَمِنَ اللّهِ وَمَا أَصَابَكَ مِن سَيِّئَةٍ فَمِن نَّفْسِكَ
وَأَرْسَلْنَاكَ لِلنَّاسِ رَسُولاً وَكَفَى بِاللّهِ شَهِيدًا (٤:
٧٨-٧٩)
And if they receive any benefit, they say: “This is from
God.” But when evil befalls them, they say: “This was because of you.” Tell
them: “Everything is from God!” What has come over these men that they are not
prepared to understand a word? Whatever good befalls you is from God and
whatever affliction comes your way is because of your own selves and O Prophet!
We have sent you forth as a Messenger and sufficient is God’s testimony [on
this]. (4:78-79)
While explaining these verses, Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi
writes:
… first those people are addressed who were attributing
their successes to God and failures to the Prophet (sws). They are told that the
actual reality is that both good and evil manifest with the will of God; without
His consent nothing can come into being. The difference, however, is that good
comes into being as a requisite of God’s mercy and evil comes into being because
of man’s deeds. Viewed thus, evil is related to one’s own self.
Here one must keep this in consideration that God is an
embodiment of good. He has created this world as a manifestation of His mercy.
Hence to ascribe any evil to Him is against His noble attributes. Evil comes
into being because of person’s ill-use of his free-will. The Almighty has
granted a person a certain sphere in which he has the freedom to exercise his
will. This freedom is a great favour of the Almighty. It is on its basis that
man occupies pre-eminence among other creations. It is on its basis that in the
Hereafter, he will be held accountable and rewarded or punished accordingly. In
the absence of this freedom, there would have been no difference between a human
being and an animal. However, one thing that needs to be kept in consideration
regarding this freedom is that it is not unlimited and unrestricted; as referred
to before, this freedom is restricted to a certain sphere; and then, within this
sphere too, it is subservient to the will and wisdom of the Almighty. Without
His will and permission, a person cannot fulfill any of his will and intentions.
Good intentions also materialize because of His grace and bad intentions also
materialize because of the respite He grants. If the Almighty allows a certain
evil intent to materialize, then this is attributed to God because it
materialized because of His will and consent; however, from another angle it is
an act of a human being because it was a product of his will.
What must further be understood is that whenever the
Almighty allows the evil of a person or a group of persons to become rampant in
a society then this is because, at a collective level, some benefit or
well-being of His creation is intended. At certain instances, giving such
opportunity to evil to make hey is to test the righteous so that their
weaknesses are done away with and their qualities are polished. At certain other
instances, the reason is to leave the wicked with no excuse to deny the truth
and to bring to an end their period of respite. At still other instances, the
Almighty creates circumstances so that what is hidden in the nature of people is
revealed. Thus not only righteous deeds emanate from them as a result but evil
deeds also emanate from people who have them hidden in themselves.
Secondly, the basis of the directive of good and evil, and
right and wrong is that what is in accordance with the attributes of God and
what is against them. We praise justice because justice is an attribute of God
and for this reason its likeness has been ordained in our nature. No doubt, this
directive is relative as such but is also eternal because the attributes of God
are eternal. Furthermore, there is no clash or conflict between these attributes
so that the Almighty on one occasion wills something which is in accordance with
His attributes and at another wills something else which is in conflict with
them. In all circumstances, He fully adheres to justice:
شَهِدَ
اللّهُ أَنَّهُ لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ وَالْمَلاَئِكَةُ وَأُوْلُواْ الْعِلْمِ
قَآئِمَاً بِالْقِسْطِ لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ (١٨:٣)
God bears witness that there is no god but He, and so do
the angels and people [who have true knowledge]. He is fully adherent to
justice, there is no other God, [He is] the Mighty, the Wise. (3:18)
Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:
The reference that God is adherent to justice is a very
important constituent of faith and so close it is to the essence of Islam that
one can say that it is in fact Islam. The importance it occupies requires that
some points delineated by my mentor Imam Hamid al-Din Farahi in this regard be
stated here so that people who intend to deliberate on the philosophy and wisdom
of religion are able to benefit from them:
1. The word iman originates from the verbal noun aman.
This, in other words, means that believing in something and adhering to it is
ingrained in the very nature of iman. As an obvious consequence of this it is
essential that a person must have a deep conviction on the existence of God.
However, this conviction can only be achieved if a person believes that
intellect is primarily meant to guide him and not to misguide him. It should be
accepted, in other words, that intellect by its nature is a barometer of justice
within a person. This premise necessarily leads to another conclusion: human
nature is created by the Almighty on the principles of justice and equity. The
reason for this is that the Almighty being an embodiment of justice and equity
holds justice and equity very dear and is also One who wants to establish
justice and equity everywhere. All these conclusions are a logical consequence
and are in fact self-evident. It is evident from this discussion that one cannot
verify the veracity of something unless the Creator is regarded to be an
embodiment of truth and justice. From this fact, all the actions and deeds which
emanate from God are regarded to be just and the way this fact is validated
through intellect, it is also validated through universal truths. An explanation
of this compact premise is that the Almighty has ingrained piety in human nature
and made hearts inclined to relish and accept it. In such a situation, how is it
possible for us that we like piety and not regard God as someone who likes
piety. How can we regard our liking for the truth to be true if we are not
satisfied with the liking for the truth of our Creator. We want to please him by
doing a good deed because we are satisfied that He is pleased by a good deed. We
ascribe good attributes to Him because in liking these attributes we are fully
convinced of the veracity of our nature.
2. The
foundation of faith is love for God. We profess faith in a being whom we love,
who we want to please and from whom we have high hopes and expectations. This is
not possible unless we are certain that it is absolutely impossible that He be
unjust and oppressive. He will grant His favours to those who will obey Him and
punish only those who are worthy of punishment. It is against human nature to
love an unjust and oppressive master.
3. If one deliberates on the favours and blessings of the
Almighty, the foundation of the requirement of professing faith in the Almighty
which emerges in human nature is gratitude. This gratitude becomes mandatory
when one accepts that it is the right of the Creator Who has bestowed these
favours on us and a requisite of these favours. It is this very reality on the
basis of which the Qur’an has called shirk (polytheism) as zulm (injustice) and
iman as gratitude. Owing to this very reason, the basis of a person demanding
his rights is necessity of justice. This is a self-evident reality of shari‘ah
and law. On these very grounds, the basis of every shari‘ah is justice and
fairness.
4. The
consequence of faith is obedience to God and the consequence of obedience to God
is the pleasure of God. In every deed and
act which is committed, there is a similar relationship of causation which the
Almighty has established through His commands and directives
and has guided us in various ways towards it and since we have full conviction
on these results of deeds hence while relying on His promises we obey Him. If we
do not have faith on the fact that God honours His promises all basis of deeds
will be razed to ground and all reliance will remain on either of the following
two things: like the Christians on the false notion of intercession, which
totally depends on Christ, who they worship as a deity and love more than God
Himself or like the Jews on their deviation from the truth and
short-sightedness: they abandoned their ship to the winds and because of their
arrogance and pride did not remain content with the judgement of God as if to
them there is no principle before God to discriminate good from evil. To protect
oneself from going astray in this manner, it is essential that one has full
conviction that God adheres to justice and every directive and promise of His is
true, as specified by the Qur’an: وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَتُ
رَبِّكَ صِدْقًا وَعَدْلاً (١١٥:٦) (Fulfilled was the
word of your Lord in truth and in justice, (6:115)).
Following are the sunan (practices and dealings) of God:
1. Tests and Trials
God has created this world for trial and test. Every
single person on this earth faces these trials and as such His practice of
putting mankind through trials is a universal phenomenon. Whatever is ingrained
in human nature comes to surface because of these trials; the secrets of the
inner personality of a person are revealed through these very trials and the
levels attained by a person in his ideologies and in his deeds are ascertained
through these very trials. The Qur’an says that life and death have been created
for the very purpose of judging that who among mankind adopts a rebellious
attitude towards his Creator and who leads a life according to the liking of his
Creator. No doubt, the Almighty has knowledge of everything; however, He has set
the practice for Himself that He does not merely reward and punish people on the
basis of His knowledge; on the contrary, He does so on the basis of their deeds.
For this very purpose, He has implemented the system of trial on this earth:
الَّذِيْ
خَلَقَ المْـَوْتَ وَالْحَيَاةَ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ أَيـُّكُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلاً،
وَهُوَ الْعَزِيْزُ الْغَفُوْرُ (٦٧:
٢)
[He] Who created death and life that He might test you as
to which of you is best regarding deeds. And He is also Mighty and Forgiving.
(67:2)
The circumstances of sorrow and happiness, poverty and
affluence, grief and joy which befall a person in this world are governed by
this very practice of God. Through such circumstances, the Almighty tests His
servants and differentiates the good among them from the evil. When He blesses
someone with affluence and status, He tests whether such people will remain
grateful to Him or not and when He afflicts someone with poverty and hardships,
He tests whether such people will remain patient or not:
وَنَبْلُوكُم
بِالشَّرِّ وَالْخَيْرِ فِتْنَةً وَإِلَيْنَا تُرْجَعُونَ (٣٥:٢١)
We are inflicting you with sorrow and happiness to test To
Us shall you return. (21:35)
Writes Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi:
… He gives wealth and status to some people to see if they
become grateful, humble and obedient on this favour or end up proud and
arrogant, pompous and conceited and ill-treat the poor and do not spend on
others from what God has blessed them with. Similarly, He deprives some people
of wealth to see if they remain patient in such circumstances, are thankful for
what they have, are satisfied with their fate and remain honourable in their
hardships or in frustration and disappointment end up in despair and dejection,
show discontent on their fate, become angry with God and live a life of misery
as a result.
All these facilities and provisions with which this earth
is endowed with are meant to test man. These provisions, in other words, are not
provided to him for his indulgence and pleasure; they are a means to try him. By
providing them to man, the Almighty is judging whether a person seeks the
comprehension of His Creator and in this way attains success in the Hereafter or
loses his way by indulging in them:
إِنَّا
جَعَلْنَا مَا عَلَى الْأَرْضِ زِينَةً لَّهَا لِنَبْلُوَهُمْ أَيُّهُمْ أَحْسَنُ
عَمَلًا (٧:١٨)
We have decked the earth with whatever is in it so We can
test them that who is the best regarding his deeds. (18:7)
Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:
This world is a place of trial and test. In it, God is
testing that who while using his intellect and brains seeks the Hereafter and
who while following his desires ends up seeking this world. For the purpose of
test, God has adorned the face of this earth with make-up that is deceptively
pleasing to the eye. There is great lure and attraction in wealth and children,
in orchards and gardens, in fields and crops, in cars and houses, in buildings
and castles, in positions of high social and political status of this world. All
its pleasures are at hand and easy to attain while its pangs are hidden. On the
other hand, all the successes of the Hereafter are as yet concealed from the
eyes and those who seek them are immediately faced with a lot of hardships in
this world. Indeed this is a severe trial. Not every slave to his passions can
come through it. Only those will sail through it who are perspicacious enough
not to be mislead from these worldly lures which may attempt to deceive them in
one guise or another and are never prepared to lose the favours of the Hereafter
by getting caught in the lures and attractions of this world.
These are the details of the law of trial and test that is
generally faced by human beings. A specific form of this law comes into play in
the times of the rusul (Messengers) of God. At the behest of the Almighty, their
propagation culminates in the worldly Judgement of their addressees and those
who claim to profess faith in these messengers are, during the course of this
propagation, put through certain trials and tests which are generally not faced
by others. Consequently, the Qur’an says:
أَحَسِبَ
النَّاسُ أَن يُتْرَكُوا أَن يَقُولُوا آمَنَّا وَهُمْ لَا يُفْتَنُونَ وَلَقَدْ
فَتَنَّا الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا
وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَاذِبِينَ (٢٩:
٢-٣)
Do people think that once they say: “We believe [in the
rasul]”, they will be left alone and not be tried even though We [similarly]
tried those who lived before them. So God will surely set apart the truthful,
and He will also surely set apart the liars. (29:2-3)
Once the Messengers of God communicate the truth to their
addressees to the extent that they are left with no excuse to deny it, this test
manifests itself to isolate and discriminate the believers and the disbelievers
before the latter are punished. The words of the above quoted verses:
فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ
الْكَاذِبِينَ (29: 3) (So God will surely set apart
the truthful, and He will also surely set apart the liars) refer to this very
reality. The implication is that before the judgement is delivered it is clearly
known where each person stands. At certain other places in the Qur’an too, this
law and practice of God is mentioned with similar emphasis:
وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُمْ
بِشَيْءٍ مِّنَ الْخَوفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِّنَ الأَمَوَالِ وَالأنفُسِ
وَالثَّمَرَاتِ وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُم مُّصِيبَةٌ
قَالُواْ إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّـا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ (٢:
١٥٥-١٥٦)
We shall test
you with some fear and some famine and some loss of property and life and some
loss in produce [from the fields]. And [O Prophet!] give glad tidings [of
success in this world and in that to come] to those who persevere [in this
cause]. [Those] who when afflicted with some calamity say: “We belong to God,
and to Him [one day] we shall return.” (2:155-156)
2. Guidance and Error
In this trial, man has been asked to guard himself from
going astray and consciously adopt the guided path. The Qur’an has informed us
that this guidance is found in the very nature of a person. Moreover, once a
person attains the age of intellectual maturity, the signs of the heavens and
the earth around him direct his attention to this guidance. If a person values
and treasures this guidance and benefits from it and is grateful to his Lord for
it, it is the practice and law of God that He increases the glow of this
guidance and creates in a person a further desire for this guidance and as a
result of this induces in him the urge to benefit from the guidance brought by
the prophets of God:
نُّورٌ عَلَى
نُورٍ يَهْدِي اللَّهُ لِنُورِهِ مَن يَشَاء وَيَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ
لِلنَّاسِ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ (٣٥:٢٤)
Light upon light. God guides to His light whom He wills
and God cites parables to mankind and God has knowledge of all things. (24:35)
وَالَّذِينَ
اهْتَدَوْا زَادَهُمْ هُدًى وَآتَاهُمْ تَقْواهُمْ (١٧:٤٧)
And those who are guided, He will increase their guidance
and also grant them their share of piety. (47:17)
This can be called culmination of guidance and the Qur’an
has stated with full clarity that without the will of God even a desire for
obtaining it is not produced in a person. This will of God is also related to
this law of guidance of His. God is aware of everything and is also wise: He
gives this favour to only those who accept the guidance ingrained in their
nature:
إِنَّ هَذِهِ
تَذْكِرَةٌ فَمَنْ شَاءَ اتَّخَذَ إِلَى رَبِّهِ سَبِيلًا وَمَا تَشَاءُونَ إِلَّا
أَنْ يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا يُدْخِلُ مَنْ يَشَاءُ
فِي رَحْمَتِهِ وَالظَّالِمِينَ أَعَدَّ لَهُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا (٧٦:
٢٧-٣١)
This [Qur’an] is only a reminder. So whoever wishes he
should take the path leading to Allah and you do not wish [O People!] until
Allah so wishes [according to His law]. Indeed, Allah is all-knowing, wise. He
admits into His mercy whomever He wishes [on the basis of this knowledge and
wisdom]. And for the wrongdoers, He has prepared a grievous punishment.
(76:27-31)
If a person decides upon evading this ingrained guidance,
refuses to use his intellect, and deliberately deviates from the truth, then in
the words of the Qur’an this is zulm (wronging the soul) and fisq (defiance) and
the Almighty never guides a person who continues to wrong his soul and persists
in defiance and He leaves him to wander in the darkness of error and
misguidance:
وَمَا
كَانَ لِنَفْسٍ أَن تُؤْمِنَ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِ اللّهِ وَيَجْعَلُ الرِّجْسَ عَلَى
الَّذِينَ لاَ يَعْقِلُونَ (١٠٠:١٠)
It is not possible for anyone to profess faith [in the
Prophet] except by God’s permission. [This permission is only granted to those
who use their intellect] and those who do not use their intellect He puts on
them the dirt of [error and misguidance]. (10:100)
The consequence of such behaviour is that the obduracy,
stubbornness and selfishness of such wrong-doers increase and they are deprived
of the ability to think and understand in the right way. A state reaches when
the Almighty seals their hearts in retribution of this wrong behavior:
إِنَّ
الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا سَوَاءٌ عَلَيْهِمْ أَأَنذَرْتَهُمْ أَمْ لَمْ تُنذِرْهُمْ لَا
يُؤْمِنُونَ خَتَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ وَعَلَى سَمْعِهِمْ وَعَلَى
أَبْصَارِهِمْ غِشَاوَةٌ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ (٢:
٦-٧)
Those who have decided to reject [this Book], it is the
same to them whether you warn them or not; they will not believe. Allah has
[now] set a seal on their hearts and on their ears [in accordance with His law],
and on their eyes is a veil and great is the penalty that awaits them on the Day
of Judgment. (2:6-7)
At another place, the words are:
وَأَقْسَمُواْ
بِاللّهِ جَهْدَ أَيْمَانِهِمْ لَئِن جَاءتْهُمْ آيَةٌ لَّيُؤْمِنُنَّ بِهَا قُلْ
إِنَّمَا الآيَاتُ عِندَ اللّهِ وَمَا يُشْعِرُكُمْ أَنَّهَا إِذَا جَاءتْ لاَ
يُؤْمِنُونَ وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفْئِدَتَهُمْ وَأَبْصَارَهُمْ كَمَا لَمْ
يُؤْمِنُواْ بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَنَذَرُهُمْ فِي طُغْيَانِهِمْ يَعْمَهُونَ (٦:
١٠٩-١١٠)
These people keep solemnly swearing by God that if a sign
comes, they will definitely believe in it. Tell them: “Signs are with God” and
how will you know that even if signs come they will not believe and [in
retribution of their sins] We will turn away their hearts and eyes [from the
truth] since they refused to express belief at first and We will let them wander
about in their wrongdoing. (6:109-110)
Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:
This is a mention of the practice of God according to
which some are blessed with faith and some deprived of it … people who
deliberate on the innumerable signs which are found in this world and in the
world within their ownselves and with their heart and soul adhere to the obvious
consequences of this deliberation are blessed with faith. On the other hand,
people who in spite of witnessing all these signs turn deaf and blind to them
and take to narcissism and remain caught up in their desires, and do not open
their eyes even after persistent reminders by the Qur’an and the Prophet (sws),
their hearts and eyes are turned away from the truth by the Almighty as a result
of which they are deprived of correct vision and understanding. After this, the
greatest of signs and miracles have no effect on them. The practice of God is
that the hearts and thoughts of people who instead of looking straight and
walking in the right direction look crookedly and walk in the wrong direction
are rendered warped and crooked. The Qur’anic verse:
فَلَمَّا زَاغُوا أَزَاغَ اللَّهُ قُلُوبَهُمْ (٥:٦١)
(And when they deviated [from the truth], God led away their hearts [from the
truth], (61:5)) points to this very practice of the Almighty. Here, in the verse
under discussion, while referring to this practice of God, Muslims are prodded
that how do they believe that if such people according to their demand are shown
a miracle they will become believers. If so, many signs which exist in the world
around man and in that within him and towards which the Qur’an has pointed and
explained their implications have failed to convince their hearts and set right
their vision? How can another sign change and convince them? How can the veil
which stretches across their vision today be lifted tomorrow and how can the
blindness in them which today stops them from seeing such signs go away when a
new sign is shown to them? The way they have been belying all signs throughout
their lives will only make them belie another sign and the metamorphosis which
you see today in their hearts and eyes will play its role tomorrow also when
they witness the sign.
3. Beyond-Capacity Directives
The Almighty never gives a directive to human beings in
the shari‘ah revealed by Him which is beyond their capacity. In all that
emanates from God for human beings, it is always made sure that they are not
burdened beyond what they can bear and whatever directive be given is given
keeping in view human capacity and capability. Consequently, a person will not
be held liable for sins done out of forgetfulness or misunderstanding or done
inadvertently, and God’s only requirement of man is that he should follow His
directives in both form and spirit with full veracity and honesty. Verses such
as لاَ يُكَلِّفُ اللّهُ نَفْسًا إِلاَّ وُسْعَهَا (٢:
٢٨٦) (God does not burden a person beyond his capacity
(2:286)) and other similar ones mention this very practice of God. However, this
does not mean that if people adopt a rebellious behaviour, then too the Almighty
does not burden them beyond their capacity. It is evident from the Qur’an that
for reprimand and training
or for punishment
or to show them the consequences of their evil deeds
or to make them aware of their helplessness against the power of God
people are certainly burdened beyond their means.
4. Rise and Fall of Nations
Under the law of trial which has been mentioned earlier
just as God selects people to make them undergo a trial of patience or of
gratitude, in a similar manner He also selects nations for this purpose. As a
result of this selection, when a nation once rises among the comity of nations
the practice of God with it is that He keeps it on this position until it itself
plunges into lowliness with regard to morality and knowledge. This is an
unchangeable practice of God and when, after repeated warnings, He decides to
humiliate and depose a nation no one can stop Him and no power of this world can
help that nation against the Almighty. The whole history of mankind bears
witness to this practice of God:
إِنَّ اللّهَ
لاَ يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّى يُغَيِّرُواْ مَا بِأَنْفُسِهِمْ وَإِذَا
أَرَادَ اللّهُ بِقَوْمٍ سُوءًا فَلاَ مَرَدَّ لَهُ وَمَا لَهُم مِّن دُونِهِ مِن
وَالٍ (١١:١٣)
God does not change His dealing with a people unless they
themselves change their characteristics and when God decides to afflict them
with a misfortune, none can ward it off. And for such people there is none who
can help them against God. (13:11)
5. Divine Help
When the Almighty entrusts a person or a group with any of
His missions and asks them to achieve it, then He also provides His help to
them. This mission can relate to propagation of His message and it can also
relate to jihad and warfare. Many verses such as كَانَ
حَقّاً عَلَيْنَا نَصْرَ الْمُؤمِنِيْن (٣٠:٤٤)
(Helping
the believers is incumbent upon Us, (30:47)) clearly say that the Almighty has
held it mandatory on Himself to help the believers who have taken up such a
mission:
يَا أَيُّهَا
الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِن تَنصُرُوا اللَّهَ يَنصُرْكُمْ وَيُثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَكُمْ
(٧:٤٧)
Believers! if you help God, God will help you and
strengthen you. (47:7)
This help does not come randomly. It is based on a rule
and it comes in accordance with it. Its details are given in a separate chapter
of this book The Islamic Shari‘ah of Jihad. However, here this much should
remain clear that what makes a person worthy of help is perseverance and piety.
The Qur’an says that when in the battle of Uhud the Prophet (sws) in order to
raise the morale of his people told them that the Almighty will help them with
three thousand angels, the Almighty endorsed his proposal and out of His grace
even increased this number by two thousand; however, at this instance, the
Almighty clearly said that the promise of this help is dependent on the
condition that Muslims should show perseverance and abstain from showing
disobedience to God and His Prophet (sws):
بَلَى إِن
تَصْبِرُواْ وَتَتَّقُواْ وَيَأْتُوكُم مِّن فَوْرِهِمْ هَـذَا يُمْدِدْكُمْ
رَبُّكُم بِخَمْسَةِ آلافٍ مِّنَ الْمَلآئِكَةِ مُسَوِّمِينَ (١٢٥:٣)
Yes! If you persevere and are fearful of God, and your
enemies launch an attack on you at that very time God will help you with five
thousand angels who will be marked with specific signs. (3:125)
6. Remorse and Repentance
If a person commits a sin, there exists a chance for him
to repent. The Almighty has asserted (The Qur’an, 6:54) that He has made mercy
incumbent upon Himself and therefore He never punishes people who after sinning
repent and mend their ways. In this regard, the rule is that if people repent
immediately after they commit a sin the Almighty definitely forgives them;
however, He does not forgive people who deeply indulge in sin all their lives
and when they see death approaching start to repent and seek forgiveness from
the Almighty. Similarly, He also does not forgive people who deliberately deny
the truth if they continue on this denial till death. This practice of God
regarding repentance has been mentioned in the Qur’an in the following words:
إِنَّمَا
التَّوْبَةُ عَلَى اللّهِ لِلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السُّوَءَ بِجَهَالَةٍ ثُمَّ
يَتُوبُونَ مِن قَرِيبٍ فَأُوْلَـئِكَ يَتُوبُ اللّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَكَانَ اللّهُ
عَلِيماً حَكِيماً وَلَيْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السَّيِّئَاتِ
حَتَّى إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّي تُبْتُ الآنَ وَلاَ
الَّذِينَ يَمُوتُونَ وَهُمْ كُفَّارٌ أُوْلَـئِكَ أَعْتَدْنَا لَهُمْ عَذَابًا
أَلِيمًا (٤:
١٧-١٨)
It is incumbent upon God to forgive those who commit a sin
while being overwhelmed with emotions and then quickly repent. It is they who
are forgiven by God. God is all-knowing and wise. But He will not forgive those
who sin all their lives and, when death comes to them, say: “Now I repent!” nor
those who die as disbelievers. It is for these for whom We have prepared a
grievous punishment. (4:17-18)
7. Reward and Punishment
In the Hereafter, reward and punishment is a certain
reality; however, it is evident from the Qur’an that at times this reward and
punishment also takes place in this world. This lesser day of judgement is a
prelude to the greater day of judgement which will take place in the Hereafter.
The various forms of this reward and punishment which the Almighty has spelled
out in the Qur’an are:
Firstly, people who are only after this world, live and
die for it and are absolutely indifferent to the Hereafter are given whatever
worldly benefits the Almighty wants to give them and then their account is
settled by Him in this very world and they are rewarded or punished on the basis
of their deeds right in this world:
مَن كَانَ
يُرِيدُ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا وَزِينَتَهَا نُوَفِّ إِلَيْهِمْ أَعْمَالَهُمْ
فِيهَا وَهُمْ فِيهَا لاَ يُبْخَسُونَ (١٥:١١)
We recompense in this world the deeds of those who desire
the life of this world with all its finery and they are not given less in it in
any way. (11:15)
Secondly, those who reject their respective rasul
(messenger) even after being communicated the truth to the extent that they are
left with no excuse to deny it are punished in this very world and those who
profess faith in him, blessings of God embrace them from all sides:
وَلِكُلِّ
أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولٌ فَإِذَا جَاء رَسُولُهُمْ قُضِيَ بَيْنَهُم بِالْقِسْطِ وَهُمْ
لاَ يُظْلَمُونَ (٤٧:١٠)
For each nation, there is a rasul. So when a rasul comes
to a nation, their matter is decided with justice and his people are not
wronged. (10:47)
This is an unchangeable practice of God. The accounts of
the people of Noah (sws), Lot (sws), Shu‘ayb (sws), Hud (sws) and Salih (sws)
besides those of other prophets which have been narrated in the Qur’an are a
tale of this worldly judgement. In human history, this worldly judgement was
passed for the last time for the people of the prophet Muhammad (sws):
وَمَا
أَرْسَلْنَا فِي قَرْيَةٍ مِّن نَّبِيٍّ إِلاَّ أَخَذْنَا أَهْلَهَا بِالْبَأْسَاء
وَالضَّرَّاء لَعَلَّهُمْ يَضَّرَّعُونَ ثُمَّ بَدَّلْنَا مَكَانَ السَّيِّئَةِ
الْحَسَنَةَ حَتَّى عَفَواْ وَّقَالُواْ قَدْ مَسَّ آبَاءنَا الضَّرَّاء
وَالسَّرَّاء فَأَخَذْنَاهُم بَغْتَةً وَهُمْ لاَ يَشْعُرُونَ وَلَوْ أَنَّ
أَهْلَ الْقُرَى آمَنُواْ وَاتَّقَواْ لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَرَكَاتٍ مِّنَ
السَّمَاء وَالأَرْضِ وَلَـكِن كَذَّبُواْ فَأَخَذْنَاهُم بِمَا كَانُواْ
يَكْسِبُونَ (٧:
٩٤-٩٦)
And whenever We sent a prophet as a messenger to any city
We tested its people with hardships which were financial and which afflicted
their persons so that they adopt humility in their supplications. Then We
changed their adversity to good fortune so that when they had prospered a lot
they said: “Good and bad days also befell our fore-fathers.” At last we seized
them suddenly and they were caught unaware. And had the people of these cities
professed faith and remained God-fearing, We would have showered upon them
blessings from the heavens and the earth. But they rejected, and We seized them
in retribution of their misdeeds. (7:94-96)
Thirdly, the Almighty has promised the progeny of Abraham
that if they adhere to the truth, they will lead all nations of the world and if
they deviate from it, they will be deposed from this position and will have to
face the punishment of humiliation and subjugation. The words
(٢:٤٠) أَوْفُوا بِعَهْدِي أُوفِ بِعَهْدِكُمْ
(Keep my covenant, and I will keep yours, (2:40)) refer to this very covenant of
the Almighty with the Israelites. The warning sounded in the words
ِإِنْ عُدْتُمْ عُدْنَا (١٧:
٨) (If
you do it again, We would also do it again, (17:8)) also refers to this. All the
books of the Bible mention the details of this covenant.
وَإِذِ
ابْتَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ رَبُّهُ بِكَلِمَاتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ قَالَ إِنِّي جَاعِلُكَ
لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًا قَالَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِي قَالَ لاَ يَنَالُ عَهْدِي
الظَّالِمِينَ (٢:
١٢٤)
And recall when Abraham was put to trial by His Lord in a
few things and he fulfilled them. He said: “I have decided to appoint you the
leader of mankind”. “And what of my descendants?” asked Abraham. “My covenant,”
said He “does not apply to the evil-doers”. (2:124)
It is this very promise of the Almighty which is
specifically mentioned for the Israelites in the following verse:
وَلَوْ
أَنَّهُمْ أَقَامُواْ التَّوْرَاةَ وَالإِنجِيلَ وَمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيهِم مِّن
رَّبِّهِمْ لأكَلُواْ مِن فَوْقِهِمْ وَمِن تَحْتِ أَرْجُلِهِم مِّنْهُمْ أُمَّةٌ
مُّقْتَصِدَةٌ وَكَثِيرٌ مِّنْهُمْ سَاء مَا يَعْمَلُونَ (٦٦:٥)
If they adhered to the Torah and the Gospel and that what
has been revealed to them from their Lord, they would have received the
sustenance [of their Lord] from above them and from beneath their feet. [No
doubt], there is one group among them who are righteous but those whose deeds
are evil abound. (5:66)
It is recorded in Deuteronomy:
So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him and commanded
him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman. Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of
your mother’s father Bethuel. Take a wife for yourself there, from among the
daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. May God Almighty bless you and make
you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples.
May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you
may take possession of the land where you now live as an alien, the land God
gave to Abraham.” Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and he went to Paddan Aram,
to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother
of Jacob and Esau. Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent
him to Paddan Aram to take a wife from there, and that when he blessed him he
commanded him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,” and that Jacob had obeyed his
father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. Esau then realized how
displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac; so he went to Ishmael
and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of
Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had. Jacob left Beersheba and set
out for Haran. When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because
the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and
lay down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the
earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and
descending on it. There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD,
the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your
descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the
dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the
north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and
your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I
will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I
have promised you.” When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the
LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How
awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the
gate of heaven.” Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under
his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He called that
place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz. Then Jacob made a vow,
saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am
taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely
to my father’s house, then the LORD will be my God and this stone that I have
set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give
you a tenth.” (Genesis 28:1-25)
(Translated from Ghamidi’s Mizan by Shehzad Saleem)
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