INTRODUCTION
There is only one origin to Whom, equally, all must return. Life thus
becomes a journey, and its measure of happiness and success is the
closeness or distance to our Creator. Rather than a religion, Islam is a way
of life with its guidance charting the coordinates of the map by which the
return journey to where we came from can successfully be
accomplished. The present booklet intends to be a traveller's handbook
for those who like to know where they are and where they are going.
THE ORIGIN OF LIFE
We perceive life through our senses and experience. As such we live in
the moment, but the intellect bestowed upon us compels us to link
together events, search out the past, and project the future. We know
ourselves to be mortal: we have not always been around and are sure
to die. Yet something inside us refuses the notion that we are just a
temporary blip in the vastness of time.
Darwin’s theory of evolution gained currency in Europe because it
helped justify colonial expansion and exploitation. It replaced the
answerability of mankind to the higher authority of God with the
notion of natural selection, which was free of moral constraints, and
the idea of the survival of the fittest justified the use of force in
subjugating so-called primitive civilisations. Darwin’s highly flawed
and speculative theory became the myth of our time, a secular variety
of religious dogma to explain away all the mysteries of life. The
mathematics of chance does not permit the development of higher life
forms by random mutation processes in the time space available. As
original creation is not a repeatable event, the theory can never be
empirically proven and cannot lay any claim to greater scientific
validity than the creationist explanations of how life on earth first
started. We start our exploration of Islam’s outlook on life with its
account of creation, because this contains the basic moral principles
Islam teaches and wants us to adhere to.
IN SEARCH OF HUMAN POTENTIAL
According to the Qur’an, the revelation communicated through the
prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), God created the heavens
(multiple universes) and the earth with a purpose and allocated the
earth as the place for human habitation. Humanity was not the first
creation of intelligent life; angels, created from pure light, and jinn,
spirits created from the element of fire, preceded man. In fact, the
Creator announces his plan to them prior to creating the prototype of
man, Adam (peace be upon him):
“When your Lord said to the angels, ‘I am going to place a
representative on earth’, they said, ‘Are you going to place
someone there who will do mischief and spill blood, whilst we
(already) sing your praise and glorify you?’ He said, ‘I know what
you don’t know.’ And He taught Adam all the names and then
presented (things) to the angels and said: ‘tell me the names of
these if you are right.’ They said: ‘Glory be to you, we have no
knowledge except what You have taught us. You are the
Knowledgeable and Wise.’ He said: ‘Oh Adam, tell them their
names.’ And when he told them their names, He said: ‘Did I not tell
you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the earth and that I
know what you let on and what you hide?’
Qur’an, Surah 2 – Al-Baqarah – ayah 30-33.
The key difference between the knowledge given to the angels and
that given to man is that the angels only know what they have been
taught, whereas Adam (peace be upon him) was taught all the names,
in other words, he was given the power of creative thought and
speech, being able to conquer unknown environments in his mind and
give a name to things he never encountered before.
The news of this in many ways superior creation did not go down too
well with the angels, for man’s abilities can also be used to do great
harm to his fellow creatures and the world in which he lives.
Nonetheless, the angels, readily submitted and bowed down to
Adam (peace be upon him), but Iblis (the devil), a jinn put in charge of
the angels, refused. His objection, however, was not one of
principle, but governed by pride, scoffing at the humble origins of
man who was created from base material, the soil of the earth, when
he, Iblis was of a purer, better substance, fire. This original racism,
judging others by their make-up and origins rather than their
potential, is the prime cause of strife and competition between
people today. The devil was reprimanded for his attitude and
stripped of his position of honour. He bargained for time to prove
that man, on whose account he became rejected, was not worthy of
the privilege. He was given until the Day of Judgment to try and
seduce people from the path designed for them by God, and those
whom he would manage to lead astray would go down with him.
Thus, the devil becomes the enemy of man, rather than the rival of
God as in other religious traditions.
Adam (peace be upon him) was given paradise to live in, a place free of
want, and for companionship was given a partner from his own makeup,
Eve. The complete bliss of paradise was tainted by only one small
prohibition: a tree, the fruit of which Adam (peace be upon him) and
Eve must not eat. Given the abundance of fruit available, this minor
restriction should not have mattered much, but the devil succeeded in
arousing the couple’s ambition, telling them that God only forbade
them from eating this fruit to prevent them from becoming angel-like
and eternal. The fruit had the opposite effect, however, and made
them aware of their nakedness and vulnerability, and as punishment
they are sent as mere mortals to live on earth, toiling in hardship to
survive. It is said that above God’s throne it is written that His mercy
overcomes His anger, and in true keeping with that Adam (peace be
upon him) and Eve were forgiven and provided with guidance which, if
followed, should help them find their way back into paradise. Life on
earth then becomes the temporary examination room where the
intentions of each and every human being are being tested, whether
they follow the guidance which helps them fulfil their true potential of
living up to the spirit of God in them as His representatives on earth, or
whether they follow the devil into obeying their base desires which
betray their humble material make-up. Through religious observance
and prayer man can thus rise from an animal-like existence to a level of
worthiness above that of the angels. Rather than having evolved from
an animal, the animal existence is the fallen state of man when he gives
up on searching for and fulfilling his potential as a spiritual being.
KNOWLEDGE OF GOD – THE KEY TO SUCCESS
Islamic tradition states that the fear of God is the crown of all
knowledge. Just as a chair knows nothing about the carpenter, we are
unable to understand or perceive God through our senses. Before the
physical creation of each and every one of us, however, He gathered
all the souls of the descendants of Adam (peace be upon him) and
reminded them of their duty to remember Him as their Lord. To help
us remember, He sent His guidance through His messengers. We
know God as He describes Himself. The name He takes is Allah, which
is more than just “God” in Arabic. “God” – just as the Arabic word
“llah” can be put in the plural or change gender; there can be gods and
goddesses. Allah, on the other hand, is unique; He has no equal and
He shares His name with none else. He was called Allah in the old
scriptures, too, in the cousin languages of Arabic, like Hebrew and
Aramaic. Readers of Bible translations still find the words Eli (Allah) and
Elohim (Allahumm, meaning “o Allah”). Besides His name He is known
through His attributes, which in the Qur’an are also called the most
beautiful names of Allah. These attributes tell us more about our
Creator, and whilst some are exclusive to Him alone, others are
qualities we can aspire to: He is the Just, and we can be just, He is the
Merciful, and we can be merciful, He is the Generous, and we can be
generous. The tradition that whoever remembers all the ninety-nine
names of Allah will definitely enter paradise means that if we apply the
knowledge we have about Allah in our daily lives, our lives will be filled
with virtue and crowned with success and reward.
The scope of this booklet is not vast enough to ponder about each of
the ninety-nine names. Suffice to say that each of them contains an
important truth about life, just as Allah is the ultimate Truth, and from
these names derive the guiding principles of Islamic philosophy. The
way Allah deals with us, His dependent creation, has a bearing on how
we ought to treat each other and the rest of His creation. The link
between Creator and created is a direct one that nobody can interfere
with. The Creator knows his creatures, He is constantly aware of them,
He attends to their needs and listens to their prayers. There is no need
for special intermediaries, because He is approachable by everybody,
and this equality in our relationship to Him liberates us from being
subservient to anybody else, making humanity in the Islamic point of
view a community of free people, irrespective of race, heritage, or
status. For a Muslim, it is an honour to be a devoted slave of Allah,
because his master is the Lord of all the worlds, and none can compete
with him. This gives a Muslim his strength and dignity which no-one
can take from him.
THE ROLE OF THE MESSENGER
Whereas we need no intercessors to present our prayers to Allah, who
is All-Hearing, He is not of this world and does not speak to us directly.
Instead of approaching each of His creatures individually with a
personalised message, He has chosen messengers of impeccable
character to bring His universal message to all of us. The task of these
messengers was both to bring the message and to guide by personal
example. They would always practice what they preached. In English,
the term prophet is frequently used to describe these people, as part of
their job was to warn of the consequences of non-compliance with the
instructions of Allah, and this telling of future events or prophecies
became a key characteristic in the perception of people. Whilst the
messengers were given insights not usually available to other people
and were often given miracles in support of their authenticity, it is
important to understand that they were not superhuman. If Allah
wanted to equip them in this way, He could have sent angels, but for
the messengers to be followed, their life example had to be
comprehendible; they had to be like everybody else in many respects,
so that all who encountered their message would feel that they had the
capability of trying to walk in their footsteps. For this reason,
messengers were always chosen from amongst their own people,
speaking their own language.
Since the days of Adam (peace be upon him), the universal content of
the message itself remained unchanged: that there is only one God,
Allah, that all depend on Him alone, that righteous conduct was the
route to success in His eyes, and that He would judge everybody’s
deeds on the Day of Reckoning. As mankind evolved through various
stages, however, the detailed set of rules accompanying this general
message equally evolved. Each messenger, in addition to calling his
people to the undivided worship of Allah alone, addressed the major
sins and injustices of his time and was such a social reformer by divine
command.
Given the many generations of humans on this planet, spread across
the vastness of the globe, the number of messengers sent for their
guidance and betterment is too great for all their stories to have been
preserved. The Qur’an mentions only a select number of them by
name and tells in detail about their mission, where their example
continues to provide beneficial admonition and guidance for us.
Messengers were sent to all kinds of communities, but many of those
whose stories are preserved for us were sent to the Children of Israel
whom Allah had favoured amongst the nations for many generations.
Each messenger takes his place in a long chain of such emissaries, and
finally, when the time was right, Allah sent a final messenger to all
mankind to revive, confirm and seal His message for the remaining
generations of mankind. This messenger was Muhammad, (peace be
upon him). Once mankind had reached a stage of development which
could guarantee that the message brought by him, the Qur’an, would
be preserved unchanged and its content would remain valid for all
times to come, there will be no further new messenger after him. The
messengers mentioned by name in the Qur’an are Adam, Idris, Nuh
(Noah), Hud, Salih, Lut (Lot), Ibrahim (Abraham), Ismail (Ishmael),
Ishaq (Isaac), Yaqub (Jacob), Yusuf, (Joseph), Shu’ayb (Jethro), Ayyub
(Job), Musa (Moses), Harun (Aaron), Dawud (David), Sulayman
(Solomon), Yunus (Jonah), Ilyas (Elijah), Al-Yasa (Elisha), Zu-l-Kifl,
Zakariya (Zechariah), Yahya (John), Isa (Jesus), and Muhammad,
(peace be with them all).
THE LIFE AND MESSAGE OF MUHAMMAD
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was born in Makkah in Arabia in 570
as an orphan, for his father Abdullah died several weeks before his
birth. When he was six, his mother died, too, and he was looked after
for two years by his grandfather, Abd al-Muttalib, and then, after his
death, by his uncle Abu Talib, whom he helped with his trade caravans.
His integrity soon earned him the nickname “al-Amin”, the
Trustworthy. At the age of 25 he worked for the trading business of a
wealthy widow, Khadijah who, impressed with his character, proposed
marriage. In spite of her being 40 at the time, Muhammad (peace be
upon him) accepted, and she remained his life companion for 25
years, and they had six children together. After her death he married a
young girl, Aisha (may Allah be peace with her), who became an
important teacher and narrator of ahadith (sayings of the prophet), as
well as several war widows and divorcees, either to provide them with
shelter or to forge political alliances between competing tribes. In turn
for the kindness shown to him as a youth, he looked after Ali, the son of
his uncle Abu Talib, and he freed and adopted a young slave boy, Zayd
bin Haritha, into his household. His family’s testimony is that of a
caring husband and father who, although busy with the affairs of the
community, helped with the household chores wherever he could.
Disliking the idolatrous and frivolous practices of his compatriots in
Makkah, Muhammad (peace be upon him) often retreated to a cave in
mount Hira outside the town, and it was there, at the age of 40, that he
received the first revelation. These revelations continued for 23 years
until the end of the life of Muhammad (peace be upon him), and they
are collected in the Qur’an, the Muslims’ holy book.
Muslims follow the life example of Muhammad (peace be upon him),
Allah’s messenger, because – unlike so many rulers before and after
him – he meticulously observed and followed himself what he
preached to others and demonstrated that Islam, as revealed by Allah,
is not some esoteric, aloof philosophy, but a practical guidance,
applicable to all people, at all times, and in all areas of life. Amongst the
most beautiful aspects of Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) own life is
how perfectly he managed to balance the various demands of public
and private life, neglecting neither for the sake of the other. Through
his personality and the powerful guidance contained in the Qur’an he
managed to unite the quarrelling tribes of the Arabian peninsula and
lead them to being a major and flourishing civilisation within his own
lifetime, putting the then dominant Persian and East Roman empires in
the shade. Islam soon spread globally and took the cultural lead,
advancing science and humanity, giving birth to the European
enlightenment, and again, today, providing a much needed spiritual,
social, and philosophical ideology for over a billion people, counterbalancing
the excess materialism of the prevalent consumerism in the
modern world.
THE QUR’AN – A LIVING MIRACLE
The Qur’an is no ordinary book of fact or fiction. It is a living
communication to humankind by our Creator, intended as a guidance
for life, akin to an instruction manual or a travel guide. It helps us find
our way, but it does not do the travelling for us. There were numerous
revelations prior to the Qur’an, and fragments of those scriptures are
still available today, like the Psalms of David (the Zabur of Daud), the
Torah (Taurat, the book given to Moses/Musa), or the original gospel of
Jesus (the Injil of Isa). However, none of those were recorded in writing
at the time of their revelation, and in the process of oral narration,
codification and translation, they underwent plenty of alterations and
large parts were lost forever. The Qur’an, on the other hand, was
preserved in writing each time as and when it was revealed.
The Qur’an is in Arabic, a Semitic language with an immaculately
preserved syntactical structure, which has led many people to claim that
it is not only the language of the people Muhammad (peace be upon him)
– was sent to as a messenger, but the original language of mankind.
Because the Qur’an, once revealed, codified the Arabic language, it has
remained virtually unchanged, and the classical Arabic of the Qur’an is
still easy to comprehend for a speaker of modern Arabic. Furthermore,
the Qur’an uses a fairly simple language which permits readers of all
educational backgrounds to feel comfortable and take from it.
Nonetheless, a deeper study reveals several layers of meaning in each
Ayah (verse, literally: sign) of the Qur’an, so that the same sentence,
whilst fitting well within its context, also imparts knowledge and
information about numerous other issues, personal, social, metaphysic,
and so on. Because of this inimical style, which in addition has
undeniable poetic qualities, the Qur’an contains the challenge that
nobody, even with the most advanced help systems available, can ever
produce a single Surah (chapter) like it. Those who have tried have failed
utterly for yet another reason: The Qur’an was not written, edited, and
eventually published as is the case with other books. It was revealed
portion for portion over a period of 23 years. Each sentence or passage
related to a particular event at the time and made sense to the people
who heard it for the first time. However, the verses were assigned a
particular order by Muhammad (peace be upon him), following the
instructions of the angel of revelation, Gabriel (Jibril), and this order is not
chronological, yet anybody who reads the Qur’an today, with its verses in
a totally different order than the one in which they were originally
revealed, still finds that the sequence makes perfect sense. So there is the
challenge: Write a book made up of contemporary comments over a
period of more than two decades, re-arrange them continuously all along
until you end up with a whole book which has a flowing narrative and is
well interconnected. It can’t be done.
To complement the miracle, the Qur’an contains knowledge of the
past and the future which was not available at the time of its revelation.
For example, it mentions that the body of the pharaoh of the Exodus
would be preserved as a sign for future generations, yet it was
mummified one and a half millennia before Muhammad (peace be
upon him) on a different continent and not discovered until one and a
half millennia afterwards. The Qur’an also contains most accurate
scientific descriptions of the embryonic stages of human development
in the womb or of the orbital movements of planets, all of which was
undiscovered for many more centuries to come. In fact, the scientific
encouragement of the Qur’an, which resulted in the flourishing
Muslim rule over Andalusia in Spain until eradicated by the
Inquisition, gave birth to the age of enlightenment in Europe which
eventually succeeded in spite of the Roman Church’s opposition. The
social and political concepts of the Qur’an were equally advanced: It
liberated women from being in the possession of men to being full
members of society with property rights and the right to choose their
own husbands, and Surah at-Taubah (Repentance) contains the first
ever constitution of a state, in this case the city state of Madinah, half a
millennium before King John, for example, granted limited rights to his
subjects in Magna Carta. The concepts contained in the Qur’an are so
revolutionary that it is not surprising that the Islamic faith conquered
the ancient world in the shortest possible space of time, putting in the
shade the great, but corrupt Persian and East Roman Empires, and
once again, as these Qur’anic truths are being re-discovered, these
ideals provide a balanced and increasingly attractive alternative to the
failed ideologies of communism and capitalism.
For people brought up in a Christian or secular tradition, the concept
of verbal revelation, that God speaks to man through an angel, is a
difficult one. Christianity only concedes that there may be divine
inspiration, which makes revelation not much different from intuition.
However, the concept of verbal revelation was generally accepted
prior to the establishment of the Christian Church. God spoke to
Moses and dictated the Ten Commandments. He also told him that
there would be raised amongst his brethren (that is the Ishmaelites or
Arabs who are the brothers of the Israelites or Hebrews) a prophet like
him (that is one who will receive such revelation and be a law-giver).
This prophet must undoubtedly be Muhammad (peace be upon him)
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