|
All revelations
guide man |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In Islam as revealed by Prophet Muhammad, man is guided to nourish his soul by
struggling to remove accumulated worldly layers of illusions to allow the inner
voice of truth to guide him and to keep the spiritual life within him growing.
Purification is the way of performing this cleansing process, and is thus the way to
life. Purification and spiritual growth are expressed in one word in Arabic, Zakka..
In Koran, this word is used to point to the process of growth through the
purification of the soul.
He is indeed successful who causeth it (the soul) to grow (through purification) (zakaha). And he is indeed a failure who stunteth it." (HQ:91:7-10) One way to purify, nourish the soul and be alive, is through being opened to the words of God " ..as we have sent unto you a messenger from among you who reciteth unto you Our revelations, purify you and make you grow (through purification) (yuzakikum). Those who turn deaf ears to the words of God are described as dead. Nor are alike those that are living and those that are dead. Allah can make any that He wills to hear; but thou canst not make those to hear who are (buried) in graves. (HQ:35:22) It is the bless of Allah that helps a person to be able to listen to His Words. So the believer attributes his ability to follow the prophets to God's grace, not to his own cleverness. In Islam, God's grace precedes any success. Such a belief would reinforce modesty, and revive the innate yearning to Allah. It is in itself a way for purification. God's Grace integrates man's struggle. |
|
Primordial Religion,  as Islam reveals,
guides man to be truly alive. "O ye who believe, comply with what Allah and His
messenger call you to that which bringeth you to life" (HQ: 8: 24)
Those who are alive spiritually, have become so refined that they illuminate spiritual light for others by their very presence. "Is he who was dead and We have raised him unto life and set for him a light wherein he spreadeth it among people, as him whose similitude is in utter darkness whence he cannot emerge?" (HQ: 6:122) |
|
In Islam, life continues after the phenomenal death. Once man succeeds to be "alive" by cultivating the "Trust" of life amanatul-hayah, he will not
lose it. God " fashioned him in due proportion, and breathed into him something
of His spirit" (HQ: 32: 9). The idea of the after life is very important.
Without which, a person would not be able to approach the meaning of spiritual life on
earth; he would consider himself as a finite being. Koran stresses the afterlife specially
for those who approached life from a spiritual perspective. They live for a higher purpose
and seek only the face of God.Think not of those who are slain in Allah's Way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the Presence of their Lord; (HQ: 3: 169) |
|
Real life is achieved by
keeping the "heart" alive. The word "heart" is used metaphorically to
point to the very core of human existence. Islamic teachings stress that the heart
is the central part of understanding and feeling. It can rust and die and it can be
polished to glow and survive. The prophet states: "within man there is part of
him, if taken care of (through remembering God), the whole human being will keep well
physically and spiritually."
"Verily in this is a Message for any that has a heart and understanding or who gives ear and earnestly witnesses (the truth)". (HQ:50:37) Prophet Muhammad says: "The heart is where the Lord resides". Muslims are directed to seek the Lord from within their heart "Keep your Lord alive within your heart, with awe below thy breath" (HQ:7:205) A purified heart is called in Koran a "sound heart " kalb salim, "devoted to Allah". Allah calls those who have a sound heart His faithful servants. . Prophet Muhammad quotes God as saying: "Heavens and Earth contain me not, but the heart of my faithful Servant containeth Me". Minds, and senses can be tools of the heart. Without the "heart", they do not function properly. "Do they not travel through the land, so that their hearts (and minds) may thus learn wisdom and their ears may thus learn to hear? Truly it is not their eyes that are blind, but their hearts which are in their breasts." (HQ: 22:46) |
|
Holy Koran describes those who do not respond to God's call as follow: They say: "Our hearts are under veils, (concealed) from that to which thou dost invite us, and in our ears is a deafness, and between us and thee is a screen" (HQ:41:5) |
