THE TEMPORARY NATURE OF THE LIFE- OF THIS WORLD
(Sura Yunus: 108)
THE TEMPORARY NATURE OF THE LIFE- OF THIS WORLD
The life of this world is a trial for humanity. Though Allah has created countless allurements for man in this world, He has also warned him against becoming overly concerned by them, and forgetting Allah and His religion. In verses of the Qur'an, Allah states that the ostentation of this world is temporary, and that the real pleasure is Paradise, as reward for Allah's contentment:
We made everything on the Earth adornment for it so that We could test them to see whose actions are the best. (Surat al-Kahf: 7)
Know that the life of the world is merely a game and a diversion and ostentation and a cause of boasting among yourselves and trying to outdo one another in wealth and children: like the plant-growth after rain which delights the cultivators, but then it withers and you see it turning yellow, and then it becomes broken stubble. In the Hereafter there is terrible punishment but also forgiveness from Allah and His good pleasure. The life of the world is nothing but the enjoyment of delusion. (Surat al-Hadid: 20)
While the believer also enjoys blessings of this world, unlike the unbeliever, he does not consider them the purpose of his life. He may desire to possess them, but only for the purpose of giving thanks to Allah, and to use them to earn Allah's consent. He does not pursue out of greed. Because, he knows that that which is of this world is short-lived, just as is his own life. He knows that, after his death, such things will be of no benefit to him. Furthermore, he knows that if he pursues only worldly things, at the expense of nobler goals, for them he sacrifices his Hereafter. In a verse of the Qur'an, this important truth is related as follows:
To mankind the love of worldly appetites is painted in glowing colors: women and children, and heaped-up mounds of gold and silver, and horses with fine markings, and livestock and fertile farmland. All that is merely the enjoyment of the life of the world. The best homecoming is in the presence of Allah. (Surat Al 'Imran: 14)
The allure of the things of this world is an essential factor in the test placed upon man in this world. The satan resorts relentlessly to allurements in his attempts to deceive man. Believers, however, are those people who, though they may be attracted to such allurement, are aware of their true worth. Cognizant that these are the temporary blessings of this world, and that by them they are being tested, the deceptive attraction of these things does not delude them. For this reason, they are not deceived by the satan, and are able to save themselves from eternal torment. In the Qur'an, Allah warns mankind as follows:
Mankind! Allah's promise is true. Do not let the life of the world delude you and do not let the Deluder delude you about Allah. (Surah Fatir: 5)
On the other hand, those who are without faith, and thus are bereft of wisdom, feel an inner inclination to this world. Under satan's influence, they make the attainment of the temporary goods of this world the ultimate purpose of their lives. The condition of such people is stated as follows:
No indeed! But you love this fleeting world and you disregard the Hereafter. (Surat al-Qiyama: 20-21)
ADNAN OKTAR: We are in an extraordinary environment. We did not come here just to reproduce, enjoy ourselves and amass wealth. Even if they do amass possessions, the decades pass like a single year. You reach the result in a very short period of time. For example, if we ask young women of 40 watching us now, these women are the youngsters of yesterday. In other words, they have suddenly reached the age of 40. Their youth seems like only yesterday to people of 60. They reach that age unbelievably quickly. But young people imagine they will live for a very long time. But that is not the case at all. They will see this. It all comes to an end very quickly. Cancers, ulcers and heart diseases all follow immediately after. They struggle with those in hospital. Between 40 and 50 is the time in which cancer, ulcers and heart diseases are experienced most frequently. After that comes the death phase for people. They then try to stave death off, not to die. They try to keep themselves alive with medicines and treatments. I mean, left to themselves they would die, but they hold out against death. They try to live like that. This is what Allah emphasizes, not that He has any need for emphasis, but I am just saying it so that people will understand. There is something wonderful here. Allah says He sends us here just to be tested and to be His servants. But they insist on not understanding this. I mean, what is there in this world? They get food to eat with a thousand difficulties and they experience the difficulties of that food afterwards. They have to bathe every day, don't they? They have to take care of themselves every day. A woman will get in a terrible state if she does not look after. A man also gets in a terrible state if he does not look after himself. They spent 8 hours a day sleeping, don't they? Almost the half of it. Right? They spend 8 hours sleeping and 8 hours working. Then what remains they spend on eating and that kind of thing, bathing and the rest. There aren't enough hours in the day. Even if they live it just about. They even eat many meals standing up. For instance they just buy sandwiches and eat them as they don't have the time. In all this rushing about, many people are only interested in this world. As if they are going to gain something really great from this world. But there is nothing in this world. The best thing about this world is to love Allah, to be passionately devoted to Him, to love His commands and those of the Qur'an. It is very delightful to abide by Allah's pronouncements. It is really delightful to make no concessions on the deen. It is delightful to make no concessions on the Qur'an. It is such a delightful thing to cling tightly to the Qur'an. That has a depth all its own, a delight all its own. It is a special pleasure known only to Muslims. Loving Allah with a passionate devotion is a wonderful blessing, and we love people for Allah's approval, with passion, when He is loved with passion. We love them as manifestations of Allah. They then produce a very profound and powerful effect within us. Otherwise there is nothing particularly special about people. Human beings are otherwise just an assembly of flesh, made up of protein, bone, intestines, the liver, the spleen and all the rest. It is because they are manifestations of Allah we love them so much. The reason for this passion is that they are manifestations of Allah. Because Allah manifests Himself in human form in our brains, and that is how we see Him. We love people because we love Allah. Otherwise people would mean nothing to us. Nothing in the world would mean anything to us. The seas and mountains would frighten us. Other people would even frighten us. One would look for a hiding place when one saw other people. In other words, they would mean nothing to us. This love and passion is so strong in our souls because we love Allah. Because Allah is infinitely beautiful and has given us a soul for eternal love. When that feeling enters the equation, when that person becomes a believer, he loves Paradise with a great passion. He loves the trees of Paradise with a passion, and the plants, people there, the children and ladies there and everything of Paradise. He takes delight in them because of that. But if you put an irreligious person in Paradise he will just get bored. The mansions of Paradise will mean nothing to him. The people in Paradise will make him uncomfortable. That can only be delightful with faith. (From Mr. Adnan Oktar's interview on Kahramanmaras Aksu TV, January 28, 2010) |
MAN IS BEING TESTED
Allah has created everything according to His divine wisdom, and has rendered many things to man's service. Clearly, many things in the universe, from the Solar System to the ratio of oxygen in the atmosphere, from the animals that provide us meat and milk to water, have been created to serve man. If this fact is recognized to be evident, it follows that it is illogical to think this life has no purpose. Definitely, there is a purpose to this life, explained by Allah as follows:
I only created jinn and man to worship Me. (Surat adh-Dhariyat: 56)
Only a minority of humanity understand this purpose of Creation and lead their lives thereby. Allah has granted us life on Earth to test whether or not we will conform to this very purpose. Those who sincerely serve Allah, and those who rebel against Him, will be distinguished from one another in this world. All those blessings (his body, senses, property...) given to man in this world, are a means by which Allah tests him. In a verse of the Qur'an, Allah relates the following:
We created man from a mingled drop to test him, and We made him hearing and seeing. (Surat al-Insan: 2)
Man's duty in this world is to have faith in Allah and the Hereafter, to conduct himself in compliance with the commands of the Qur'an, to observe the limits set by Allah, and to try to earn His good pleasure. The continuing trials of this life over time reveal those people who are committed to accomplish these tasks. Because Allah demands a true and sincere faith ,-which is the kind of faith that is not attainable only by saying "I believe "-man must demonstrate that he has true faith in Allah and His religion, and that he will not swerve from the right path despite the cunnings of satan. Similarly, he must demonstrate that he will not follow the unbelievers, nor prefer the desires of his own self over Allah's pleasure. His response to the events in his life will reveal all these qualities. Allah will create certain hardships, during which man must show patience, in order to expose the degree of his dedication to faith in Allah. This fact is stated in the Qur'an as follows:
Do people imagine that they will be left to say, "We believe," and will not be tested? (Surat al-'Ankabut: 2)
In another verse, Allah states that those who say, "We believe" will be tested:
Or did you imagine that you were going to enter Paradise without Allah knowing those among you who had struggled and knowing the steadfast? (Surah Al 'Imran: 142)
This being the case, disappointment in the face of difficulties would not be the right response to allow oneself to have. Such difficulties may be great ordeals or just trivial daily problems. A believer must consider all such circumstances as part of the trial placed upon him, place his trust in Allah, and conduct himself in compliance with His pleasure. In a verse of the Qur'an, those difficulties placed upon the believers are related as follows:
We will test you with a certain amount of fear and hunger and loss of wealth and life and crops. But give good news to the steadfast (Surat al-Baqara: 155)
The Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace) also reminded the believers of this, by saying, "Whoever accepted it [ Allah's trial], will enjoy Allah's Pleasure and whoever is displeased with it, will incur Allah's Displeasure." (At-Tirmidhi)
Not only will difficulties, but also blessings in this world serve to test man. Allah tries man with every benefit He bestows upon man, to see whether or not he will be thankful. As well, Allah creates many circumstances through which man adopt a certain attitude. In the midst of these trials, man may formulate a decision, either in compliance with Allah's pleasure, or his own soul. If he recognizes such an incident to be a trial from Allah, and conforms his conduct accordingly to earn Allah's pleasure, then he succeeds in his test. However, if his decision is in accordance to the dictates of his own soul, it will both be a sin, which he will greatly regret in the Hereafter, and a source of anxiety in this world, as it troubles his conscience.
Indeed, Allah creates everything that happens in this world as a trial. Those events considered to be mere "coincidence" or "bad luck" by the ignorant, are actually circumstances created according to the great subtleties of a divine plan. Of this, Allah gives the example of Jews who broke the Sabbath, tempted by an abundance of fish:
Ask them about the town which was by the sea when they broke the Sabbath-when their fish came to them near the surface on their Sabbath day but did not come on the days which were not their Sabbath. In this way We put them to the test because they were deviators. (Surat al-A'raf: 163)
The Jews may have thought that the fish came forth to them on a Saturday by "coincidence," but, the event was predetermined as a trial for them by Allah. As this case makes clear, there is a divine purpose and a test in every occurrence in life. All that befalls a believer has been determined in order that he keep this notion in mind, and that he try to succeed at his test, and adopt a form of behaviour that is in compliance with the consent of Allah.
THE QUR'AN IS A GUIDE
(Sura Yunus: 108)
THE QUR'AN IS A GUIDE
That is the Book, without any doubt. It contains guidance for those who have fear of Allah. (Surat al-Baqara: 2)
The Qur'an is the word of Allah. Allah has revealed the Qur'an to introduce Himself, to communicate people the purpose of their existence, inform them of the nature of this life, the basis of the test put to them in this world, and their responsibilities towards their Creator, to give them the good news of the Hereafter, and describe what constitutes good morals. The Qur'an was revealed by Gabriel to the Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace). It is the last book revealed by Allah which will prevail until the Day of Judgment, therefore certainly it cannot be distorted by people. In one verse, Allah informs us that the Qur'an is under His protection:
It is We Who have sent down the Reminder and We Who will preserve it. (Sura al-Hijr: 9)
The unique style of the Qur'an, and the supreme wisdom of its teachings, is clear evidence of its being the word of Allah. This aside, the Qur'an has many miraculous attributes, certifying that it is the revelation of Allah. A number of scientific discoveries, that could only be attained in the 20th and 21st centuries, were declared in the Qur'an 1400 years ago. This information, that was impossible to verify scientifically at the time of the Qur'an's revelation, has proved once again that it is the word of Allah.
Another important characteristic of the Qur'an is that-contrary to the Torah and the Gospel-it contains no contradiction whatsoever. This is yet further evidence that it is the word of Allah. Allah reminds humanity of this fact as follows:
Will they not ponder the Qur'an? If it had been from other than Allah, they would have found many inconsistencies in it. (Surat an-Nisa': 82)
The Qur'an is guidance for mankind. It is also the definitive criterion by which to distinguish right from wrong, for which reason another name of the Qur'an is "Furqan," that is "Discrimination":
...He has sent down the Furqan (the Standard by which to discern the true from the false). Those who reject Allah's Signs will have a terrible punishment... (Surah Al 'Imran: 4)
The Qur'an is a book that admonishes humanity:
This is a communication to be transmitted to mankind so that they may be warned by it and so that they will know that He is One God and so that the wise will pay heed. (Surah Ibrahim: 52)
The Qur'an is the final revelation from Allah, and will remain until the Day of Judgment. Although the Torah and the Gospel were true scriptures at the time they were revealed, they have lost the quality of their authenticity, because of the reasons explained earlier. Allah informs us that, in His sight, Islam is the only religion:
If anyone desires anything other than Islam as a religion, it will not be accepted from him, and in the Hereafter he will be among the losers. (Surah Al 'Imran: 85)
BELIEF IN THE BOOKS REVEALED BY ALLAH AND BELIEF IN HIS MESSENGERS
Since the time the Prophet Adam ( pbuh) was sent to the Earth, Allah has sent messengers to every nation, to communicate to them the existence of Allah and the Hereafter, and to convey the divine message. Some of these messengers are those prophets whose names are stated in the Qur'an and to whom books were revealed. A Muslim must not discriminate between them, but respect them all equally, since they were all prophets of the true religion. Allah commands Muslims to believe in all the prophets, without making distinction:
Say, "We believe in Allah and what has been sent down to us and what was sent down to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the Tribes, and what Moses and Jesus were given, and what all the Prophets were given by their Lord. We do not differentiate between any of them. We are Muslims submitted to Him." (Surat al-Baqara: 136)
The book by which humanity is responsible in our time is the Qur'an, revealed to the Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Because, as we are informed in the Qur'an , the earlier books, which were originally revealed to communicate the truth to mankind, were later altered through additions and deletions:
Woe to those who write the Book with their own hands and then say "This is from Allah" to sell it for a paltry price. Woe to them for what their hands have written! Woe to them for what they earn! (Surat al-Baqara: 79)
For this reason, Islam was revealed by Allah as the final religion. Allah, in a verse of the Qur'an, commands as follows:
...Today I have perfected your religion for you and completed My blessing upon you and I am pleased with Islam as a religion for you... (Surat al-Ma'ida: 3)
In the Qur'an Allah also informs us that the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is the last prophet:
Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but the Messenger of God and the Final Seal of the Prophets. God has knowledge of all things. (Surat al-Ahzab: 40)
Consequently, the only true religion for all times, since the era of the Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace), until the Day of Resurrection, is Islam, and its source, the Qur'an.
FAITH IN THE ANGELS
Angels, as we learn from the Qur'an , are the servants of Allah, who carry out His commands. Allah has assigned them different duties. Gabriel, for instance, delivers the divine revelation to prophets. There are the angels on each side of a man, writing down whatever he does; angels welcoming people to Paradise, and those angels who are the guardians of the Hell; the angels that take back the souls of men, the angels who assist the believers, the angels who communicate to the messengers who among their rebellious people will receive Allah's punishment, the angels who give the good news of a newborn to the messengers. Angels are obedient beings, who are never arrogant, but who continually glorify Allah:
Everything in the heavens and every creature on the Earth prostrates to Allah, as do the angels. They are not puffed up with pride. (Surat an-Nahl: 49)
Throughout history, angels have delivered Allah's commands to mankind. Angels appeared to many prophets, and, in some cases, to sincere believers, such as Mary, and communicated to them the commands and the divine wisdom of Allah. Allah informs us about faith in angels in the Qur'an, making it a prerequisite of faith in the Qur'an for Islam. In a verse of the Qur'an, it is stated that faith in angels is an attribute of a believer:
The Messenger has faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord, and so do the believers. Each one has faith in Allah and His angels and His Books and His Messengers. We do not differentiate between any of His Messengers. They say, 'We hear and we obey. Forgive us, our Lord! You are our journey's end.' (Surat al-Baqara: 285)
FALSE BELIEFS ABOUT ALLAH
(Sura Yunus: 108)
FALSE BELIEFS ABOUT ALLAH
The Torah and the Gospel, the earlier revelations from Allah, have lost their original authenticity, since in time the words and interpolations of man have been incorporated into them. This is one of the reasons for which the Qur'an was sent. That the holy books preceded the Qur'an were distorted by man is related by Allah as follows:
Woe to those who write the Book with their own hands and then say "This is from Allah" to sell it for a paltry price. Woe to them for what their hands have written! Woe to them for what they earn! (Surat Al-Baqara: 79)
Among them is a group who distort the Book with their tongues so that you think it is from the Book when it is not from the Book. They say, "It is from Allah," but it is not from Allah. They tell a lie against Allah and they know it. (Surah Al 'Imran: 78)
Distortion of the Torah and the Gospel led proliferation of false beliefs among their adherents. These holy books include beliefs and ideas that derive from outside of Allah's true religion. This manifests itself in the distortion of the true revelation, and the depiction of Allah as a being with weaknesses and imperfections peculiar to human beings. (Truly, Allah is above what they ascribe to Him).
However, Allah is exalted far above any imperfections. This is related in the Qur'an as follows:
We created the heavens and the Earth, and everything between them, in six days and We were not affected by fatigue. (Surah Qaf: 38)
Do they not see that Allah - He Who created the heavens and the Earth and was not wearied by creating them-has the power to bring the dead to life? Yes indeed! He has power over all things. (Surat al-Ahqaf: 33)
The verses above reveal that some of the adherents of other divine books have swerved from the straight path regarding these issues, and have not had an accurate understanding of Allah and His attributes.
The Qur'an, on the other hand, is under Allah's protection, and is the only book revealed by Allah to have survived intact. The Qur'an is the book of Islam, the only true religion:
It is We Who have sent down the Reminder and We Who will preserve it. (Surat al-Hijr: 9)
If anyone desires anything other than Islam as a religion, it will not be accepted from him, and in the Hereafter he will be among the losers. (Surah Al 'Imran: 85)
In the Qur'an there is reference to the erroneous beliefs about Allah adopted by Christians and Jews, and makes known the correct belief. For instance, some Christians'saying, "Allah has a son (Jesus)," ( Allah is beyond that) which is one of their basic tenets, is said to be merely an irrational belief and a lie said against Allah:
They say, "Allah has a son." Glory be to Him! No, everything in the heavens and Earth belongs to Him. Everything is obedient to Him, the Originator of the heavens and Earth. When He decides on something, He just says to it, "Be!" and it is. (Surat al-Baqara: 116-117)
Some other verses related to this matter are as follows:
People of the Book! Do not go to excess in your religion. Say nothing but the truth about Allah. The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, was only the Messenger of Allah and His Word, which He cast into Mary, and a Spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His Messengers. Do not say, "Three." It is better that you stop. Allah is only One God. He is too Glorious to have a son! Everything in the heavens and in the Earth belongs to Him. Allah suffices as a Guardian. (Surat An-Nisa': 171)
He is the Originator of the heavens and the Earth. How could He have a son when He has no wife? He created all things and He has knowledge of all things. (Surat al-An'am: 101)
Again some Christians' belief maintains that Allah created the universe and then left it to its own. This is not true and a supersititious belief. Yet, as stated earlier, Allah commands Will over the universe at every single moment; it is constantly within His control. Nothing can happen without His Will and control:
He Who originates Creation and then regenerates it and provides for you from out of heaven and Earth. Is there another god besides Allah? Say: "Bring your proof if you are being truthful." (Surat an-Naml: 64)
Allah keeps a firm hold on the heavens and Earth, preventing them from vanishing away. And if they vanished no one could then keep hold of them. Certainly He is Most Forbearing, Ever-Forgiving. (Surah Fatir: 41)
To counter these false notions, and many others not mentioned here, Allah gives His sublime attributes for us in the Qur'an. This is in order to, not only answer these erroneous claims, but also to guide those guilty of them to the true religion of Allah.
Everyone must acknowledge that Allah is One, there is no deity but Him, and that nothing is comparable to Him; He is free of any weaknesses. He encompasses everything, He is the Owner of everything, He exercises His command over Creation at every moment, He is near to man, He has the power to do anything, He is the Most Merciful, He is the Just, He is the King of the Day of Judgment, He sees and hears everything, and is the most sublime in attributes.
FAITH IN ALLAH FREE OF IDOLATRY
Have you seen him who has taken his whims and desires to be his god? Will you then be his guardian? (Surat al-Furqan: 43)
"Shirk," the word used for idolatry in Arabic means "partnership/association." In the Qur'an, it refers to ascribing associates to Allah, or deeming someone or something, called idols or false-gods, worthy of worship beside or in addition to Allah. Idolatry, though, is not limited to worshipping totems or non-living beings. Because man's responsibility is to serve his Creator, and to strive to earn His good pleasure alone, his pursuit of any other goal is to ascribe worship to something other than Allah. For instance, a person would be guilty of idolatry if he were to seek the pleasure of people instead of Allah's. Likewise, it would again be ascribing associates to Allah if one's purpose in life is to satisfy his whims and desires rather than to earn Allah's good pleasure. Many people ascribe divinity to things like money, status, wealth and so on.
In the Qur'an there is reference to idolaters of Arab society, who set aside a portion of their crops and cattle for their idols, as follows:
They assign to Allah a share of the crops and livestock He has created, saying, "This is for Allah," - as they allege - "and this is for our idols." Their idols' share does not reach Allah whereas Allah's share reaches their idols! What an evil judgment they make! (Surat al-An'am: 136)
As is mentioned in the verse above, idolaters assign a part of their wealth to Allah, and another part to their idols. This is characteristic of the delusion of idolaters.
Loving a being more than Allah or loving him/it as one ought to love Allah is again a form of idolatry. Similarly, someone who fears a being as he should fear Allah, idolizes it, since he assumes that that being possesses a might apart from and independent of Allah.
Muslims, however, firmly believe that everything is created by Allah, that all affairs are regulated by Him, that causes do not have any power to produce a result independently, that every event is predetermined and created by Allah, that Allah is the possessor of the ultimate will and judgment. This is the kind of belief system that Allah reveals to us in the Qur'an. Deviation from these tenets, believing that everything occurs spontaneously, as the result of coincidences, attributing the power to create to some other causes, are all forms of ascribing associates to Allah. Allah does not forgive idolatry:
Allah does not forgive anything being associated with Him but He forgives whoever He wills for anything other than that. Anyone who associates something with Allah has gone very far astray. (Surat an-Nisa': 116)
When Allah's Messenger ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was asked, "What is the biggest sin in the sight of Allah?", he also said, "To set up rivals unto Allah although He alone created you." (Al-Bukhari)
ASSESSING ALLAH WITH A JUST ASSESSMENT
They do not measure Allah with His true measure. Allah is All-Strong, Almighty. (Surat Al-Hajj: 74)
Allah manifests His infinite might and knowledge in everywhere. The perfection of every part of the human body, the beauty in flowers' appearance, color and scent, the glory in the heavens and the universe, the order in the orbits of the planets, the fish in the depths of oceans, and the intricate Creation in everything you see around you, are all clear manifestations of Allah's infiniteness and power. Some unbelievers, despite perceiving Allah's existence and His infinite might, deny Him out of arrogance. They do not acknowledge Allah's true greatness. Because they lack wisdom, they fail to see the evident signs of Allah's existence and of His greatness manifested in all beings. The inattention of these people is expressed in a verse as follows:
How many Signs there are in the heavens and Earth! Yet they pass them by, turning away from them. (Surah Yusuf: 105)
Only those who reflect on the purpose of the Creation around them, who have a clear faculty of discernment, who apply their minds and use their conscience, can recognize the truth that which these signs imply. They are those who believe. One of the primary attributes of a believer is his ability to be perceptive. Believers, who are capable of exercising their minds, unencumbered by false motives, come to recognize Allah's artistry and power through His Creation, and thus have a full appreciation of His greatness and glory. In one verse of the Qur'an it is related that those who are able to think clearly see Allah's signs wherever they turn:
In the Creation of the heavens and Earth, and the alternation of the night and day, and the ships which sail the seas to people's benefit, and the water which Allah sends down from the sky - by which He brings the Earth to life when it was dead and scatters about in it creatures of every kind-and the varying direction of the winds, and the clouds subservient between heaven and Earth, there are Signs for people who use their intellect. (Surat al-Baqara: 164)
A person so disposed recognizes the signs of Allah's existence everywhere he looks, perceiving Him for His true might. Believers keep their minds continually occupied with remembrance of Allah, while the majority of humanity spend their lives without a thought to these facts. In a verse of the Qur'an, the ideal behaviour of a Muslim is related as follows:
...those who remember Allah, standing, sitting and lying on their sides, and reflect on the Creation of the heavens and the Earth: "Our Lord, You have not created this for nothing. Glory be to You! So safeguard us from the punishment of the Fire." (Surah Al 'Imran: 191)
ALLAH'S INFINITE GREATNESS AND POWER
Allah created the order of the universe in superb detail to allow man to grasp His greatness. A verse referring to this order reads, "...so that you might know that Allah has power over all things and that Allah encompasses all things in His knowledge." (Surat at-Talaq: 12). Faced with the sublimity of the details of this order, man becomes in awe, recognizing that Allah's wisdom, knowledge and might is infinite.
So expansive is Allah's knowledge that what for us is "infinite" is in His Sight already ended. Every event that has taken place since the creation of time, until deep into eternity, was predetermined and ended in Allah's Sight. (See Timelessness and The Reality of Fate, by Harun Yahya) This is related in the Qur'an as follows:
We have created all things in due measure. Our command is only one word, like the blinking of an eye. We destroyed those of your kind in the past. But is there any rememberer there? Everything they did is in the Books. Everything is recorded, big or small. (Surat al-Qamar: 49-53)
Man must seek to appreciate the extent of Allah's knowledge, and reflect to comprehend His greatness.
Billions of people have appeared on Earth since time immemorial. Therefore, Allah created billions of pairs of eyes, billions of different fingerprints, billions of different eye tissues, billions of different types of humans... If He so willed, He could also create billions more. As stated in the Qur'an, "...He adds to Creation in any way He wills. Allah has power over all things." (Surah Fatir: 1)
Allah also possesses the power to create many other things beyond our limited imagination. The entire extent of the treasures Allah has bestowed in this world for His servants is all within His Sight. He sends down to us only that which He wills, all within a measure predetermined:
There is nothing that does not have its stores with Us and We only send it down in a known measure. (Surat al-Hijr: 21)
This matter, manifested everywhere in Allah's superb Creation, holds true for both that which we know as well as that which we do not. Allah states this fact in the verse, "...and He creates other things you do not know." (Surat an-Nahl: 8), He creates many other things of which we are entirely unaware.
Allah has created many worlds and beings which we cannot see. To better understand the possibility of the existence of other worlds, we should consider the following: a picture is two dimensional-width and length. The world in which we live, however, is 3 dimensional-width, length and depth-(time can be considered as the 4th dimension). The rest is beyond our comprehension. However, in the sight of Allah, there are other dimensions. Angels, for instance, are beings that live in another dimension. In the Qur'an it is stated that angels can see and hear us from the dimension and space in which they exist. Furthermore, the two angels, seated on our either shoulder, each, and at every moment, is recording every word we speak and every deed we do. Yet, we do not see them. Jinn are also beings of another dimension, as we are informed by the Qur'an. They, like us human beings, are also tested, all through their lives, and will ultimately be brought before judgment by Allah. However, they are possessed of completely different attributes than humans; their existence is dependent upon an entirely different system of cause and effect.
These are all facts that deserve careful consideration in order to attain a better grasp of Allah's splendid Creation. It is within Allah's power to create innumerable new worlds, beings and situations. Furthermore, each is He able to create with a limitless degree of differentiation. Indeed, in a nature unknown to us, Allah will create Paradise and Hell. While systems left to their own in this world tend to age, become corrupted, and eventually expire, in Paradise, unaffected by the passage of time, nothing will deteriorate; "rivers of milk whose taste will never change" is an example which states this feature of Paradise. The human body too will not degenerate; nor will anything ever age. As is related in the Qur'an, everyone in Paradise will be of like age, will live together for all eternity, in the best condition, and without growing older or losing their beauty. Allah also informs us in the Qur'an that in it will be bursting springs for us from which to drink. Hell, on the other hand, will be utterly different; in it, Allah will create unimaginable torment. No one will be able to conceive the pain of such torment until he experiences it.
On everything in this world, Allah has placed a limit. Everything has a finite existence. This being the case, in order to comprehend "eternity," and Allah's infinite might, we need to exercise our minds and compare these ideas with something that is familiar. We can only come to know to the extent that Allah permits us. Allah, however, is infinite in knowledge. Let us consider the following example, Allah has created 7 basic colors. It is impossible for us to visualize another color. (The case is similar to describing the color red to someone who is blind by birth; no description would be adequate.) However, Allah is able to create more than these basic colors. Although, unless He so wills, we will never be able to have a grasp that which is beyond what He has willed for us to know.
All that we have just mentioned belongs to that knowledge that Allah has allotted us in this world. But, one point deserves particular attention; because Allah's power and might is infinite, anything can happen, and at any time, by His will. Allah's Messenger, the Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace) also referred to the eternal power of Allah when he said, "The seven heavens and the seven Earths are no more in Allah's Hand than a mustard seed in the hand of one of you." Allah explains the infiniteness of His knowledge in the Qur'an as follows:
If all the trees on Earth were pens and all the sea, with seven more seas besides, was ink Allah's words still would not run dry. Allah is Almighty, All-Wise. (Surah Luqman: 27)
In brief, no matter how hard we strive to do so, we cannot possibly come to grasp the extent of Allah's knowledge, because it is unlimited. We can comprehend it only as far as Allah permits us to do so:
Allah, there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining. He is not subject to drowsiness or sleep. Everything in the heavens and the Earth belongs to Him. Who can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them but they cannot grasp any of His knowledge save what He wills. His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the Earth and their preservation does not tire Him. He is the Most High, the Magnificent. (Surat al-Baqara: 255)
LOVE OF ALLAH AND FEAR OF ALLAH
Allah says, "Do not take two gods. He is only One God. So dread Me alone." (Surat an-Nahl: 51)
Fear of Allah is one of the essential attributes of a believer. Because, it is fear of Allah that draws a person nearer to Allah, makes him attain a deeper faith, enables him to conduct himself responsibly towards Allah every moment of his life, and nurtures his dedication to values of the Qur'an. The fact that the good morals Allah expects from His servants come with the fear of Allah is reaffirmed by the Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in these words:
Fear Allah wherever you are; if you follow an evil deed with a good one you will obliterate it; and deal with people with a good disposition. (At-Tirmidhi)
Failure to understand the real meaning of fear of Allah causes some to confuse it with other kinds of mundane fears. However, fear of Allah differs greatly from all other type of fear.
The Arabic word used in the original text of the Qur'an (khashyat) expresses overwhelming respect. On the other hand, the Arabic word used in the Qur'an to refer to worldly fears (hawf) expresses a simple kind of fear, as in the fear one feels when faces with a wild animal.
A consideration of the attributes of Allah leads to a better understanding of these two kinds of fear, both expressed by different words in Arabic. Worldly fears are usually caused by a potential threat. For example, one may fear being murdered. However, fear of Allah is different. Allah is the All-Compassionate, the Most Merciful and the Most Just. Therefore, fear of Allah implies showing respect to Him, the All-Compassionate, the Most Merciful and the Most Just, and avoiding exceeding His limits, rebelling Him and being of those who deserve His punishment.
The consequences that a fear of Allah has on people make this difference apparent. Faced with a deadly danger, a person panics; seized with hopelessness and desperation, he fails to exercise his reason and discover a solution. Fear of Allah, however, actuates wisdom and adherence to one's conscience. Through fear of Allah, a person is motivated to avoid that which is evil, corruptive, and likely to cause either physical or mental harm to him. Fear of Allah fosters wisdom and insight. In a verse of the Qur'an, Allah informs us that it is through fear of Allah that wisdom and understanding is acquired:
You who believe! If you have fear of Allah, He will give you a criterion (by which to judge between right and wrong) and erase your bad actions from you and forgive you. Allah's favor is indeed immense. (Surat al-Anfal: 29)
Worldly fears cause man anxiety. Fear of Allah, however, not only gives rise to increased spiritual strength, but also to peace of mind.
It is through fear of Allah that man avoids those evil actions displeasing Allah. In one verse of the Qur'an , it is stated, "...Allah does not love anyone vain or boastful." (Surat an-Nisa': 36). A Allah-fearing person strives diligently to abstain from boasting, and to engage rather in actions one expects to earn Allah's love. For that reason, fear of Allah and love of Allah are mutually exclusive.
Fear of Allah, in fact, removes the obstacles to drawing nearer to Allah and earning His love. Foremost of these obstacles is one's lower self. From the Qur'an, we learn that there are two aspects of the soul; the one inspiring evil and mischief, and the other, guarding against every inclination to evil.
...the self and what proportioned it and inspired it with depravity and a fear of Allah, he who purifies it has succeeded, he who covers it up has failed. (Surat ash-Shams: 7-10)
Struggling against this evil, and not giving in it, requires spiritual strength. This strength derives from fear of Allah. A Allah-fearing person is not enslaved by the selfishness of his soul. The awe he feels for Allah draws him away from thoughts and deeds unworthy of His pleasure. A verse of the Qur'an informs us that only those who fear Allah will take heed of the warnings imparted to them:
You can only warn those who act on the Reminder and fear the All-Merciful in the Unseen. Give them the good news of forgiveness and a generous reward. (Surah Ya Sin: 11)
Man's striving must be to feel a more profound fear of Allah. To effect this noble sentiment, he must reflect upon Allah's Creation and recognize the supreme artistry and power represented in its every detail. His thinking must enable him to attain a better grasp of His grandeur and add to his awe. Indeed, Allah commands us:
You who have fear! Have fear of Allah with the fear due to Him and do not die except as Muslims. (Surah Al 'Imran: 102)
So have fear of Allah, as much as you are able to, and listen and obey and spend for your own benefit. It is the people who are safe-guarded from the avarice of their own selves who are successful. (Surat at-Taghabun: 16)
The more a believer fears Allah, the more loving he becomes. He better acknowledges the beauty of Allah's Creation. He acquires the ability to recognize the multitude of people, nature, animals, and in everything around him, as reflections of Allah's sublime attributes. Consequently, he comes to feel a deeper love for such blessings, as well as for Allah, their Creator.
A person who grasps this secret also knows what love of God is. He loves God, over and above anything else, and understands that all beings are the work of His creation. he loves them in accordance with God's pleasure. He loves believers who are submissive to Him, but feels aversion for those who are rebellious towards Him.
The true love that makes man happy, brings him joy and peace, is love of Allah. Other forms of love, felt for beings other than Allah, are, in the words of the Qur'an, love peculiar to idolaters, and consistently leads to anguish, sorrow, melancholy and anxiety. The idolaters' love and the love believers feel for Allah are compared in a verse as follows:
Some people set up equals to Allah, loving them as they should love Allah. But those who believe have greater love for Allah... (Surat al-Baqara: 165)
THERE IS NO GOD BUT ALLAH
(Sura Yunus: 108)
THERE IS NO GOD BUT ALLAH
The essence of Islam is to know of the existence of Allah, and to understand that there is no god but Allah. To practice Islam is to allow this truth to manifest itself in every aspect of one's life. Allah reveals this truth in the basic source of Islam, the Qur'an:
Your God is One God. There is no god but Him, the All-Merciful, the Most Merciful. (Surat al-Baqara: 163)
Most people think that matter, the underlying substance of the universe, has an absolute existence, and regard Allah as but an abstract idea. ( Allah is truly beyond what they ascribe to Him) The truth is, however, only Allah truly exists, and the rest is merely His Creation.
The entire universe and everything in it was created by Allah. Before the Creation of the universe, nothing existed, in the material sense. It was all non-existence. At the moment when the universe was created, the Al-Awwal (The First) and Al-Akhir (The Last) Allah, Who is beyond all, created time, matter and space. In the Qur'an, Allah relates this matter as follows:
The Originator of the heavens and Earth. When He decides on something, He just says to it, "Be!" and it is. (Surat al-Baqara: 117)
Contrary to the perceived wisdom, God did not create matter and then leave it on its own. Everything happening, even at this very instant, is ordained by God. Every raindrop, each child that opens its eyes to the world, the process of photosynthesis in plants, all the bodily functions of living things, the courses of stars in far remote galaxies, each seed sprouting forth, or any other event that we might think of, or fail to think of, are all ordained by God. It is God Who creates all things. Every event occurs within His command:
It is Allah Who created the seven heavens and of the Earth the same number, the Command descending down through all of them, so that you might know that Allah has power over all things and that Allah encompasses all things in His knowledge. (Surat at-Talaq: 12)
He Who originates Creation and then regenerates it and provides for you from out of heaven and Earth. Is there another god besides Allah? Say: "Bring your proof if you are being truthful." (Surat an-Naml: 64)
Were the universe left to its own will, it would become disordered, scattered and corrupted. However, the perfect equilibrium in all things, from the cells of a living organism, to the stars in deep outer space, all reveal the existence of something that is controlling them at every moment, with the same perfection as their original Creation. In any corner of the universe, one will always come to recognize a flawless plan:
He Who created the seven heavens in layers. You will not find any flaw in the Creation of the All-Merciful. Look again - do you see any gaps? Then look again and again. Your sight will return to you dazzled and exhausted! (Surat al-Mulk: 3-4)
Denying that Allah is the Creator, and attributing divinity to that which He created, despite the abundance of proof to the contrary, is as nonsensical as claiming that a skyscraper was not built by construction workers, but came into being by the free will of bricks, or the placement of one on top of the other by pure coincidence.
The perfect order in the universe, and the supreme Creation of living things, reveals to us that they have all been created by a single Creator , in other words Allah created them. If there were other gods, that is, others capable of similarly ordaining their will, disorder and confusion would prevail. That there is no god but Him, and that no other being in the universe has any similar power, is related in a verse of the Qur'an as follows:
Allah has no son and there is no other god accompanying Him, for then each god would have gone off with what he created and one of them would have been exalted above the other. Glory be to Allah above what they describe. (Surat al-Muminun: 91)
In the supplication below, the Prophet Muhammad (saas) stressed that there is no deity but God and a believer has to turn to Him in all matters:
None has the right to be worshipped but God, the Majestic, the Most Forbearing. None has the right to be worshipped but God, the Lord of the Tremendous Throne. None has the right to be worshipped but God, the Lord of the Heavens and the Lord of the Honourable Throne. (Al-Bukhari)
As stated in the verse above, there is no other god beside Him. He has no son. He is above such human attributes. We clearly understand from this verse that those religions claiming that Allah has a "son" are misguided. (Allah is beyond that) The Oneness of Allah is further emphasized in the Qur'an as follows:
Say: "He is Allah , Absolute Oneness,
Allah, the Everlasting Sustainer of all. He has not given birth and was
not born. And no one is comparable to Him." (Surat al-Ikhlas: 1-4)
ALLAH ENCOMPASSES EVERYTHING
Some people think that Allah is found in a certain place. The belief that Allah is up in the sky, in a remote corner of the universe, is held by many people. (Allah is beyond that) The fact is, however, that Allah is anywhere, encompassing everything. He is the actual and the only absolute being, to Whom all beings are subjected:
Allah , there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining. He is not subject to drowsiness or sleep. Everything in the heavens and the Earth belongs to Him. Who can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them but they cannot grasp any of His knowledge save what He wills. His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the Earth and their preservation does not tire Him. He is the Most High, the Magnificent. (Surat al-Baqara: 255)
Allah has everything within His grasp at any given moment. There is no creature He does not hold by the forelock. He has power over all things and is exalted high above any weakness or inability.
Allah has everything within His grasp at any given moment.
There is no creature He does not hold by the forelock. He has power
over all things and is exalted high above any weakness or inability.
As the sole absolute being, Allah enfolds the
whole universe, all people and places, the heavens and everywhere. And
Allah is manifested in the whole universe. According to the hadith,
our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said that someone
who said that Allah was in the sky was telling the truth. But this
account in no way conflicts with the fact that Allah is everywhere.
Because if someone at your location on Earth raises his hands and prays
to Allah and thinks that Allah is in the sky, while someone at the
South Pole turns to Allah in the same way, while someone else at the
North Pole raises his hands and yet another individual in Japan, or
America or Ecuador raises his hands to the sky in the same way and
turns to Allah, then it is impossible to speak of any fixed direction.
In the same way, if djinn, angels and demons at various points in space
and the universe also pray toward the skies, it will again be
impossible to speak of any fixed direction, and the situation will be
one that covers the entire universe.
We must not also forget that Allah is unfettered by time and space. Allah's self is something different. But the manifestations of Allah are everywhere. If someone enters a room and says Allah is not there, he is denying Allah. The manifestations of Allah are in that room and everywhere. Wherever you may turn, manifestations of Allah are there. It is stated in several verses of the Qur'an that Allah pervades all places, that He is closer to us than our own jugular veins, and that we will see His face wherever we look. For example, in verse 255 of Surat al-Baqara Allah says "... His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the earth...." In verse 92 of Surah Hud it is revealed, "...But my Lord encompasses everything that you do" meaning that Allah also pervades what people do.
ALLAH IS NEAR TO MAN
Many people think Allah is far away. However, as stated in the Qur'an, "...Surely your Lord encompasses the people with His knowledge..." (Surat al-Isra': 60), He is very near. He sees and knows every aspect of a human being, and hears every word he utters. He is knowledgeable of even one's inner thoughts. This is related in the Qur'an as follows:
We created man and We know what his own self whispers to him. We are nearer to him than his jugular vein. (Surah Qaf: 16)
Allah is so near to man that He hears the prayer of everyone -even if he prays inwardly -and it is He Who answers it:
If My servants ask you about Me, I am near. I answer the call of the caller when he calls on Me. They should therefore respond to Me and believe in Me so that hopefully they will be rightly guided. (Surat al-Baqara: 186)
Allah knows what a person harbours in his heart. He knows whether he engages in a deed to earn His consent, or to satisfy his own lower soul. Allah reminds us that He knows our inner thoughts:
...Know that Allah knows what is in your selves, so beware of Him! And know that Allah is Ever-Forgiving, All-Forbearing. (Surat al-Baqara: 235)
Though you speak out loud, He knows your secrets and what is even more concealed. (Surat Ta Ha: 7)
Allah's Messenger, the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) also reminded Muslims that when they prayed Allah is very close to them by saying, "You are calling a Hearer, One very close by; The One Who you are calling is closer to each one of you."(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
As He is with you at every moment, Allah is with you as you are reading this book; He sees what you are doing and knows what you are thinking. This fact is related in the Qur'an as follows:
Do you not see that Allah knows what is in the heavens and on the Earth? Three men cannot confer together secretly without Him being the fourth of them, or five without Him being the sixth of them, or fewer than that or more without Him being with them wherever they are. Then He will inform them on the Day of Resurrection of what they did. Allah has knowledge of all things. (Surat al-Mujadala: 7)
ALLAH CREATED EVERYTHING ACCORDING TO A FIXED DECREE
We have created all things according to a fixed decree. (Surat al-Qamar: 49)
Destiny is part of Allah's perfect Creation and all events, past and future, are known to Him as in a timeless "single moment."
It is Allah Who created matter. What we call time is the motion of matter. Time is a dimension which is relative only to man. Only man perceives the passage of time; a human being can recognize his own existence only as it exists in time. Allah, however, is not bound by time, for it is He Who created it. In other words, Allah is independent of the flow of time; Allah does not need to wait to see what will happen in the future. Allah is truly exalted above all such deficiencies. Allah knows of a future event (future for us) before it happens, because Allah, the First and the Last, is not bound by time, and because He is the Absolute and the Infinite. Not bound by time, Allah is aware of an event which, from our perspective, will take place thousands of years later. In fact, it is He Who willed, determined and created it. This truth is revealed in a verse as follows:
Nothing occurs, either in the Earth or in yourselves, without its being in a Book before We make it happen. That is something easy for Allah. (Surat al-Hadid: 22)
ALLAH HAS POWER OVER EVERYTHING
Allah, the Creator of everything, is the sole possessor of all beings. It is Allah Who heaps up the heavy clouds, heats and brightens the Earth, varies the direction of the winds, holds birds suspended up in the sky, splits the seed, makes a man's heart beat, ordains photosynthesis in plants, and keeps planets in their separate orbits. People generally surmise that such phenomena occur according to "the laws of physics," "gravity," "aerodynamics," or other physical factors; however, there is one significant truth these people ignore: all such physical laws were created by Allah. In fact, the only possessor of power in the universe is Allah.
Allah rules all the systems at any moment in the universe, regardless of whether we are aware of them, or if we are asleep, sitting, walking. Each of the myriad of processes in the universe, all essential to our existence, is under Allah's control. Even our ability to just take a small step forward depends onAllah's Creation in countless minute details, including Earth's force of gravity, the structure of the human skeleton, the nervous system and muscular system, the brain, the heart, and even the rotation speed of the Earth.
Attributing the existence of the world and of the entire universe to sheer coincidence is complete delusion. The exquisite order of the Earth and the universe completely contradicts the possibility of formation through coincidence, and is, rather, a clear sign of Allah's infinite might. For instance, the Earth's orbit around theSun deviates only 2.8 mm in every 29 kms from the right path. If this deviation were 0.3 mm longer or shorter, then living beings all over the Earth would either freeze or be scorched. While it is virtually impossible for even a marble to revolve in the same orbit without any deviation, the Earth accomplishes such a course despite its gigantic mass. As stated in the Qur'an, "... Allah has appointed a measure for all things..." (Surat at-Talaq: 3). In effect, the splendid order in the universe is maintained as a result of fantastic systems that depend on highly delicate equilibriums.
Some people hold the perverted belief that Allah "created everything and then left them on their own." However, any event, taking place in any area of the universe, occurs solely by Allah's Will, and under His control. It is stated in the Qur'an:
Do you not know that Allah knows everything in heaven and Earth? That is in a Book. That is easy for Allah. (Surat al-Hajj: 70)
It is very important to grasp this fact for someone who strives to come near to Allah. The prayer of Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace) quoted below is a very good example of this:
O Allah: All the Praises are for You: You are the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth. All the Praises are for You; You are the Maintainer of the Heaven and the Earth and whatever is in them. All the Praises are for You; You are the Light of the Heavens and the Earth. Your Word is the Truth, and Your Promise is the Truth, and the Meeting with You is the Truth, and Paradise is the Truth, and the (Hell) Fire is the Truth, and the Hour is the Truth. O Allah! I surrender myself to You, and I believe in You and I depend upon You, and I repent to You and with You (Your evidences) I stand against my opponents, and to you I leave the judgment (for those who refuse my message). O Allah! Forgive me my sins that I did in the past or will do in the future, and also the sins I did in secret or in public. You are my only God (Whom I worship) and there is no other God for me (i.e. I worship none but You). (Al-Bukhari)
Elaborate processes taking place in the bodies of living things are impressive examples that help us to grasp Allah's might. For instance, at every moment, your kidneys filter your blood and extricate those harmful molecules to be excreted from the body. This screening and elimination process, which can be carried out by a single kidney cell, can only be accomplished by a giant haemodialyser (artificial kidney). A haemodialyser was consciously designed by scientists. A kidney, however, does not sense, or have a decision-making centre, nor the faculty of thought. In other words, an unconscious kidney cell can accomplish tasks that otherwise demand an elaborate thinking process.
It is possible to encounter millions of such examples in living beings. Molecules, composed of unconscious matter, perform tasks so remarkable they would otherwise suggest consciousness. The consciousness apparent in these cases though is, of course, of Allah's infinite wisdom and knowledge. It is Allah Who created the kidney cells, as well as the molecules discussed, and Who orders them to accomplish their respective tasks. In the Qur'an, Allah informs us that He constantly sends down "commands" to the beings He created:
It is Allah Who created the seven heavens and of the Earth the same number, the Command descending down through all of them, so that you might know that Allah has power over all things and that Allah encompasses all things in His knowledge. (Surat at-Talaq: 12)
Clearly, Allah, Who created everything in the universe, is surely able to bring the dead to life. Of this fact, Allah states the following:
Do they not see that Allah-He Who created the heavens and the Earth and was not wearied by creating them -has the power to bring the dead to life? Yes indeed! He has power over all things. (Surat al-Ahqaf: 33)
ALLAH SEES AND KNOWS EVERYTHING
People cannot see Allah-unless He wills -, being the main reason why some often falsely presume that Allah cannot see them (truly, Allah is far above that which they ascribe to Him). Allah sees and knows all things, down to the minutest detail, as indicated in a verse of the Qur'an as follows:
Eyesight cannot perceive Him but He perceives eyesight. He is the All-Penetrating, the All-Aware. (Surat al-An'am: 103)
Wherever a person may be, Allah is surely with him. Right at this moment, as you are reading these lines, Allah sees you and knows exactly what crosses your mind.
Wherever you go, or whatever you do, this is always the case. As it is explained in the Qur'an :
You do not engage in any matter or recite any of the Qur'an or do any action without Our witnessing you while you are occupied with it. Not even the smallest speck eludes your Lord, either on Earth or in heaven. Nor is there anything smaller than that, or larger, which is not in a Clear Book. (Surah Yunus: 61)
It is He Who created the heavens and the Earth in six days, then established Himself firmly on the Throne. He knows what goes into the Earth and what comes out of it, what comes down from heaven and what goes up into it. He is with you wherever you are-Allah sees what you do. (Surat al-Hadid: 4)
The Prophet Muhammad ( may Allah bless him and grant him peace) also reminded believers to keep this in mind when he said," Allah is above the Throne and nothing is hidden from Allah of your deeds."
Aware of this fact, a believer submits himself to his Lord, seeks refuge in Him, and fears nothing but Him. Allah's command to Prophet Moses (pbuh), and Prophet Aaron (pbuh) is a lesson for all believers. Allah states in the Qur'an:
He said, "Have no fear. I will be with you, All-Hearing and All-Seeing." (Surah Ta Ha: 46)
ALL BEINGS ARE SUBJECTED TO ALLAH
All beings in the universe, either living or non-living, are under Allah's command. They can act only if He wills. They can only perform those tasks which He wills. For example, honeybees, who produce more honey than their actual need, could not possibly know that honey is beneficial to humans; nor could they be aware of the precise chemical composition that makes it so useful and delicious. In fact, in addition to not knowing why they produce an abundance of much honey, nor could they possess the intelligence to construct the orderly hexagonal honeycombs, each of which is a miracle of design and mathematics. It is Allah, to Whom all beings are subjected, that causes bees accomplish these feats. That bees act in compliance with Allah's command is related in the Qur'an as follows:
Your Lord revealed to the bees: "Build dwellings in the mountains and the trees, and also in the structures which men erect. Then eat from every kind of fruit and travel the paths of your Lord, which have been made easy for you to follow" From inside them comes a drink of varying colors, containing healing for mankind. There is certainly a Sign in that for people who reflect. (Surat an-Nahl: 68-69)
Bees' compliance with Allah's commands in the manner in which they conduct themselves is not an anomaly. Allah provides us with this example to allow us to understand that all beings, including man, act by His Will. In the Qur'an Allah indicates that this is a sign for those who reflect. All beings are entirely subjected to His command:
Everyone in the heavens and Earth belongs to Him. All are submissive to Him. (Surat ar-Rum: 26)
Some people consider satan to be a being apart from and independent of Allah (Truly, Allah is above what they ascribe to Him). ome supersititious religions also attribute individual power to satan. However, both opinions are incorrect. Satan, as well as the unbelievers who follow him, are subjected to Allah's Will. Allah created satan to put man to test, and endowed him with the ability and authority to call mankind to disbelief. Allah's address to satan is related in the Qur'an:
He (Allah) said, "Get out! you are accursed!
My curse is upon you until the Day of Reckoning."
He (satan) said, "My Lord, grant me a reprieve until the Day
they are raised again." He said, "You are among the reprieved until the
Day whose time is known."
He said, "By Your might, I will mislead all of themexcept for Your chosen servants among them.
"He said, "By the truth - and I speak the truth - I will fill up Hell with you and every one of them who follows you." (Surah Sâd: 77-85)
Just as man is, satan is also entirely under Allah's control, and subjected to His Will. He is not a being possessing a will apart from and independent of Allah; he can neither make such decisions nor carry them out. In the trial set for human beings in this life, he is merely a being that is expected to distinguish the righteous from the corrupt.
PREFACE
(Sura Yunus: 108)
PREFACE
This book is written for those who have recently been introduced to Islam. Of course every person has some information and a certain degree of conviction about Islam. However the majority of these may have had their origin in inadequate or invalid sources. Many people know about Islam only through information they gather from their family and their friend circle and they only know about the commandments of the Qur'an as much as they could follow from the media or from various books. . However, the best way to follow in accessing accurate information about Islam is to get to know the Qur'an, the source and the basic of Islam, and to learn the sunnah of our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and to get all the information regarding Islam from the Qur'an and the the hadiths.
The Qur'an is the final revelation sent by Allah, as guidance to mankind. While the Torah and the Gospel, the two holy books preceding the Qur'an, were also revelations from Allah, in time, they were distorted and lost their quality as the divine word of Allah. Although they may contain parts of the original word of Allah, their greater part consists of words and interpolations of man. The only book revealed by Allah to have survived completely intact, is the Qur'an. It contains only that which has been revealed by Allah. Allah sent down His message, either by way of Gabriel, or through direct inspiration to the Prophet Muhammad (saas). The Qur'an consists of only that which was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (saas), sent down in stages, for a period of twenty-three years.
At every stage, the revelation was immediately recorded in writing, or committed to memory, by the Our Prophet's (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) companions. Today, all Muslims wherever they are, read the same Qur'an. No contradiction or discrepancy can be found in any of the copies. (In our day, the Qur'an of Uthman, the third Caliph, is displayed in Topkapi Museum, Istanbul.) Evidence that the Qur'an is from Allah is the total absence of any sort of contradiction in the Qur'an.
In one verse of the Qur'an, Allah reveals:
Will they not ponder the Qur'an? If it had been from other than Allah, they would have found many inconsistencies in it. (Surat an-Nisa': 82)
The Qur'an is guidance to lead man to the path of rectitude. It is the revelation of Allah, sent to bring man from darkness to light. By way of the Qur'an, Our Lord, the Creator of man and all living things, directs His servants to the straight path. In a verse, Allah states:
Mankind! Admonition has come to you from your Lord and also healing for what is in the breasts and guidance and mercy for the believers. (Surah Yunus: 57)
There is an important point that needs to be remembered here. Muslims can only fully understand and apply the Qur'an into real life with the help of the Sunnah. The Sunnah, on the other hand, is the belief of the Ahl al-Sunnah, which is the totality of our Prophet's (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) authentic hadiths and their subsequent interpretations by the great Islamic scholars.
The Sunnah is the living interpretation of the Qur'an by the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), the possessor of great moral values who had such great consideration for believers that he would become distressed when they were troubled and would relieve them of their burdens and chains of bigotry.
Believers look at the Sunnah of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and learn how to implement its precepts and practices in their lives. The Prophet's (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) entire life reveals a seriousness, responsibility, and sensitivity considering all details. This is the result of our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) having taught "wisdom," alongside the Qur'an, to his community.
The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:
The best talk (speech) is Allah's Book, and the best way is the way of Muhammad, and the worst matters are the heresies (those new things which are introduced into the religion)... (Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 92, Number 382)
Allah's existence, His unity, the signs of Creation, and the life of the Hereafter, are those basic facts mostly reffered in the Qur'an. In many verses of the Qur'an, Allah invites man to think and to ponder on the divine wisdom in His Creation, and on the transience of the life of this world, and the permanence of the life of the Hereafter. Apart from these, in the Qur'an we can also find passages of the lives of the prophets; their sincerity in faith, their commitment to our Almighty Lord's cause, and their determination in spreading the divine message. Finally, a number of verses in the Qur'an also provide us with insight into how we should conduct ourselves in our everyday lives.
In this book, based on information Allah provided us by the way of Qur'an, and by the knowledge our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) told us , we will discuss Allah, His attributes, the real purpose of our existence in this world, what we need to do to comply with it, the reality of death and that which awaits us, the Afterlife.
We highly recommend that you read this book carefully, and reflect upon its lessons, because they are intended to draw you nearer to our Creator, Almighty Allah, and show you the way to infinite bliss and salvation.
FOSSIL SPECIMENS OF INSECTS
FOSSIL SPECIMENS OF INSECTS
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COBWEB SPIDER
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CLICK BEETLE |
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CICADA NYMPH
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CICADA |
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DRAGONFLY AND MAYFLY LARVA |
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GROUND CRICKET |
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GRASSHOPPER |
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COCKROACH |
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GRASSHOPPER |
PLANTHOPPER |
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COCKROACH |
MARCHFLY (Bibionidae)
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DRAGONFLY |
 This is a fossil that has left positive and negative impressions on the two layers of stone. |
DRAGONFLY (with its pair) |
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CRICKET |
COCKROACH |
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COCKROACH |
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DRAGONFLY NYMPH |
MAYFLY |
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MAYFLY |
WATER STRIDER (Gerridae)
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WINGED STINK BUG (Pentatomidae)
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GROUND CRICKET |
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GROUND CRICKET
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WASP |
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PLANTHOPPER
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MAYFLY |
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GROUND CRICKET |
MAYFLY
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SPIDER
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MAYFLY |
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GROUND CRICKET |
GROUND CRICKET |
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MAYFLY NYMPH
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GROUND CRICKET |
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SPIDER Age: 125 million years It is astonishing that people who claim to speak in the
name of science can defend such an outdated theory as evolution in the
face of evidence from that same scientific discipline. Countless
fossils have proved the invalidity of evolution, and it is illogical to
attempt to hide from the facts by distorting them. Like this
125-million-year-old fossilized spider, fossil specimens belonging to
countless different life forms have all clearly revealed that evolution
never happened. What scientists need to do is not to ignore this state of affairs, but to concur with what scientific evidence shows. And what it shows is Creation. |
DRAGONFLY
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WASP |
MAYFLY NYMPH
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MAYFLY NYMPH
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MAYFLY |
FOSSIL SPECIMENS OF INSECTS
FOSSIL SPECIMENS OF INSECTS
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ANT |
JUMPING SPIDER |
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BUTTERFLY LARVA
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BRISTLETAILS |
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Only the two insects on the sides are ants, the one in the middle being a jumping spider, which has one more pair of legs than ants. JUMPING SPIDER |
LARGE JUMPING SPIDER
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Fly, Orb weaver spider ORB WEAVER SPIDER AND FLY
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GROUND SPIDER |
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BARKLOUSE
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WASP
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GALL MIDGE |
ASSASSIN BUG |
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SOFT-BODIED PLANT BEETLE
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COCKROACH AND MIDGE |
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LONG-HORNED BEETLE |
TWO MEALWORM LARVAE
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CATERPILLAR
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TRUE BUG |
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SANDHOPPER |
MANTIS, PEDILID BEETLE, AND FUNGUS GNAT
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SCALY BARKLOUSE |
SAP BEETLE
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GRASSHOPPER |
SCUTTLE FLY
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DANCE FLY |
WORKER ANT |
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DANCEFLY
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CLICK BEETLE |
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MOTH FLY
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BRACONID WASP |
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LONG-LEGGED FLY |
SPIDER
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SPIDER |
BUTTERFLY CHRYSALIS |
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RAPHIDIOPTERA (SNAKE FLY) LARVA
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PIRATE SPIDER |
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BRISTLETAIL |
ICHNEUMON WASP |
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WALKING STICK |
BUTTERFLY LARVA |
FOSIL SPECIMENS OF PLANTS
FOSIL SPECIMENS OF PLANTS
BEECH LEAF |
FERN |
HONEYSUCKLE LEAF |
FERN |
BIRCH LEAF |
FERN |
HONEYSUCKLE LEAF |
BIRCH LEAF |
SOAPBERRY LEAF |
SOAPBERRY LEAF |
SOAPBERRY LEAF |
FERN |
FOSIL SPECIMENS OF PLANTS
FOSIL SPECIMENS OF PLANTS
HACKBERRY SEEDS |
SEQUOIA PINE CONE |
SEQUOIA PINE CONE |
ALLOPHYLUS LEAF |
POPLAR LEAF |
CEDAR LEAF |
SUMAC LEAF |
SPURGE LEAF |
BALLOON VINE |
POPLAR LEAF |
OAK LEAF |
WILLOW LEAF |
FERN (with its pair) |
FOSSIL SPECIMENS OF MARINE CREATURES
FOSSIL SPECIMENS OF MARINE CREATURES
PUFFER FISH |
SQUID Age: 95 million years The squid is a marine-dwelling mollusk, a member of the class Cephalopoda (cephalopods).
This photo shows a 95-million-year-old squid fossil. There is not the
slightest difference between it and present-day specimens. The pigment
sac beneath the skin can even be seen in this fossil, and its skeletal
structure is identical to those in modern-day squid. If evolutionists' claims were true, then squid should have undergone various changes over the course of millions of years, and by now, various fossil specimens documenting these stages should have been discovered. But every fossil found shows that squid have survived completely unchanged for millions of years. |
SARDINE |
MANTIS SHRIMP AND EEL |
PUFFER FISH |
NEEDLEFISH (with its pair) |
MANTIS SHRIMP |
GUITARFISH |
MACKEREL (with its pair) |
NEEDLEFISH The illustrations show fossil digs being conducted at the Haqe Formation in Lebanon. As a result of such excavations over the last 150 years, millions of fossils belonging to hundreds of thousands of species have been unearthed. Not a single one of these points to the so-called evolutionary process of living things. Species appear in the fossil record with all their characteristics fully formed and developed. This shows that the Darwinist scenario of gradual development from the primitive to the more advanced never occurred. |
LADY FISH (with its pair) |
BONEFISH (with its pair) |
SAWFISH |
SEA URCHIN |
CATSHARK |
